So much for taking the easy road.

Recently, the five members of Switchfoot decided to start every night of their new U.S. tour by playing their Nov. 10 release, Hello Hurricane, in its entirety. But backstage before Sunday night's sold-out tour opener at San Diego's East County Performing Arts Center, the decision was becoming an anxiety-producing reality.

Maynard James Keenan -- the freak-show ringmaster of Tool, A Perfect Circle, and Puscifer -- perpetually promises to design spectacles that go well beyond what people expect from a rock show.

It was apparent early on that Incubus' tour-opener in San Diego Thursday night wasn't going to include a whole lot of messing around. The band that expertly juggles the move from Ozzfest to Gap ads utilized that same dexterity throughout their 90-plus-minute set.