Tool

[Galactus]

I really hope so.

[Thorngrub]

Yeah, that would be swell.

But me?

1.Hotdamn LOVE the title "Rosetta Stoned" for a song! Straight up

2. "The Pot" . . . hmmm. . . .could it be about. . . .POT? No. . .not TOOL. . .

3. 10,000 Days - I am down with that as an album title. I like the dada-reference, marcel duchamp & the surrealist movement. . . ["I like to watch things die from a good safe distance..."]

4. Anyone who's heard it already and thinks it sux simply can't compete with a real fan who hasn't heard it yet but knows better.

*sticks tongue out @ kMc & the rest of the bratpack*

[kmc]

Yeah, but the thing is, thorn, that there is nothing many of us would have loved more than good album by TOOL. It simply doesn't follow that if you don't like it then you are not a true fan. TOOL produced something subpar by their standards. It's ok. It just means 2006 won't belong to TOOL (really, it would have belonged to Radiohead anyway, regardless of what TOOL did, but whatever).

Sonic Youth is one of my favorite bands. NYC Ghosts by Sonic Youth is a shit album by their standards. I can accept that and move on.

[Thorngrub]

first impressions from a burned rip / 10,000 Days leaks...

(*our reviewer thoRny simply could not resist*)

Midway thru track 3 Wings For Marie (part 1) and this album has already delivered more depth & perception than any that came before it.

If vicarious alone weren't enough (I understood that had to be the 1st track due to its rather tongue-in-cheek, tricky generic intro-riff luring the unsuspecting down a false trail like a matador w/a red flag. . .), well track 2 digs further into TOOL's catalogue by presenting the amazed listener w/a vague "undertow" point-of-reference, however, not one to be stuck in the past, the song easily dissolves into a swirling mix of forward-looking (& back-) riffs:

In Jambi we clearly have a nod from Adam Jones towards a Gilmouresque "Animals" & echoes of Sweet Emotion... the classic rock wah-wah pedal on his guitar is used to tremendous effect. Not to mention . . . I. Swear. To. GOD that is easily the sickest riff I've ever heard (that kicks off the song) !

10,000 Days itself (track 4) follows the tales of the hero indeed . . . what a beautiful song . . . words like 'haunting' aren't enough to lend grace to this stuff...

This album proves the thesis that TOOL are the ultimate post-rock band. The music conjured for the title track is hypnotic & relentless in its evolution. Some could argue this as psychedelia's finest hour. Power w/no flowers about it (other than a crimson clover bed for kings to slowly drown in).

the Pot -- joining in w/the ancient tradition of herb hymnals -- could only win the hearts of the likes of us / yikes did I say too much / who are you to wave your finger, *this* is rocking you cannot touch! As loose as ever w/their themes and tighter than ever in their execution, the Pot is like a lost classic TOOL song found with the dust blown off & given as a gift.

Lipan Conjuring sounds great to these ears (as I am a native American).

LOST KEYS = EXCELLENT!! If it ain't obvious by this point midway thru track 7 that your ears are being exposed to (clearly) *an historic recording in the annals of rock* -- fuckin' TOOL puttin' it down -- then you're a)not tuned into the groove enuff or b)not stoned enuff, jesus christ.

Rosetta Stoned manages to invoke every known equivocal progressive riff known to man, and channel it into a vortex of exploration across the scales of melody (you believe me don't you), if anything Rosetta Stoned is the sole song that seems to incorperate *all four* of their preceding phases of musical expression, and blossoms it out into a new fusion of territory. Herein we have reached the deepest point in their rich motherlode of musical references. The nods to the court of the Crimson King notwithstanding -- this song fucking rocks! The multiple-endings rock tits ! God Damn ! "Shit the bed--?" *Not unless you're de-sensitized in the head*

Intension makes a great sequel to disposition whether its intentional or not. I like the pseudo-medieval crypto-kraftwerk woven textures of the ending, and at over 7 minutes long, another great relief to these ever grateful ears.

Track 10. Right In Two. *Classic epic straight up the ass* Monkey killin' monkey, AMEN -- preach on brother Maynard -- Danny can stay on the tablas all DAY, and the rest of em bring it on BIGtime, a goddamn explosion of unprecedented ROCKING OUT possesses the song betwixt the six & seven minute marks, bring us along for the view from the sidelines again, thanks can only be given to TOOL for providing us w/this majestic viewpoint driven home yet again.

Vigniti Tres, track eleven @5 minutes provides some abject relief & sustenance in the form of purified oxygen and a steadily breathing ambient gauze revitalizing us from the journey for the view yet to be presented ahead. 3 minutes into it the listener has already transcended space; a sequel to Faaip De Oiad -? The implication is clear (despite the album ending too early @76 minutes): the future lies open for anything to happen, with strange & startling possibilities looming beyond each whispering bend.

By the time it came to an end, my thoughts were "If this recording is a fake, you can keep the real thing".


*God damn blown away*, straight up

[Thorngrub]

kmc said:

Yeah, but the thing is, thorn, that there is nothing many of us would have loved more than good album by TOOL. It simply doesn't follow that if you don't like it then you are not a true fan. TOOL produced something subpar by their standards. It's ok. It just means 2006 won't belong to TOOL (really, it would have belonged to Radiohead anyway, regardless of what TOOL did, but whatever).

Sonic Youth is one of my favorite bands. NYC Ghosts by Sonic Youth is a shit album by their standards. I can accept that and move on.

Well, that would be nice and all (if it were true), but I gotta say (now that I've heard the album) - and my friends agree on this -- that if someone doesn't like 10,000 Days, they are not a "true fan", period.

Now realize what I'm saying, here. It's no secret the word "fan" is short for "fanatic" - and that is what we are: fanatic for the music this band produces.

And I'll be boondoggled & double-damned if that album didn't blow my socks clean off these feet.

It most certainly IS NOT (in any way shape form or fashion) "Lateralus II", and *that*, my friend, is a huge relief.

What it IS can be described (to the best of my ability) as

TOOL²

Meaning, (to be more precise), that the music found on 10,000 Days takes all their prior albums, shakes it up and squares it off against an x-factor of Classic Rock Homages multiplied by Tool's own signature sterling stamp of. . .well, "toolness", for lack of a better word.

"Impressed" only begins to scratch the surface, in describing the effect listening to this album had on me, yesterday. "Amazed" is another...

[Galactus]

See, I told you.

[Kensterberg]

thorny said:

kmc said:

Yeah, but the thing is, thorn, that there is nothing many of us would have loved more than good album by TOOL. It simply doesn't follow that if you don't like it then you are not a true fan. TOOL produced something subpar by their standards. It's ok. It just means 2006 won't belong to TOOL (really, it would have belonged to Radiohead anyway, regardless of what TOOL did, but whatever).

Sonic Youth is one of my favorite bands. NYC Ghosts by Sonic Youth is a shit album by their standards. I can accept that and move on.

Well, that would be nice and all (if it were true), but I gotta say (now that I've heard the album) - and my friends agree on this -- that if someone doesn't like 10,000 Days, they are not a "true fan", period.

Now realize what I'm saying, here. It's no secret the word "fan" is short for "fanatic" - and that is what we are: fanatic for the music this band produces.

And I'll be boondoggled & double-damned if that album didn't blow my socks clean off these feet.

It most certainly IS NOT (in any way shape form or fashion) "Lateralus II", and *that*, my friend, is a huge relief.

What it IS can be described (to the best of my ability) as

TOOL²

Meaning, (to be more precise), that the music found on 10,000 Days takes all their prior albums, shakes it up and squares it off against an x-factor of Classic Rock Homages multiplied by Tool's own signature sterling stamp of. . .well, "toolness", for lack of a better word.

"Impressed" only begins to scratch the surface, in describing the effect listening to this album had on me, yesterday. "Amazed" is another...

I've got absolutely no idea what you're trying to say here, Thorny, but I can say that this is a post that only you could have written. You've got a unique way with words.

[Paul]

I liked Thorny's review....I don't know much about Tool, but I just applied what he wrote to Pearl Jam, and it made perfect sense....

Does Tool have an Anthology for newbies? Anyone wanna make me a mix?

[rockkid]

Just heard a few cuts on radio & I must say I feel let down.
New TOOL sounds striking like old TOOL esp. particular riffs.
Bummed out I am.

[Galactus]

pcook said:

Does Tool have an Anthology for newbies? Anyone wanna make me a mix?

No anthology...I try to make a mix though, it might be kinda hard,...in the same way Pink Floyd collections don't work so well...You be just as well to get lateralus or Aenima but I'll try to make a mix anyhow.

[Paul]

ded said:

pcook said:

Does Tool have an Anthology for newbies? Anyone wanna make me a mix?

No anthology...I try to make a mix though, it might be kinda hard,...in the same way Pink Floyd collections don't work so well...You be just as well to get lateralus or Aenima but I'll try to make a mix anyhow.

Oh, so they're one of the bands where you need to listen to the entire album to get the idea? I know what you mean, some bands just aren't good for mixes...But, since you're a solid fan, I'm sure you can put together like a cool Mantis mix, as opposed to just some run of the mill 'best of' kinda thing.

Anyway, I appreciate it and look forward to it...I'll PM you my address...

[sisyphus]

kmc said:

Yeah, but the thing is, thorn, that there is nothing many of us would have loved more than good album by TOOL. It simply doesn't follow that if you don't like it then you are not a true fan. TOOL produced something subpar by their standards. It's ok. It just means 2006 won't belong to TOOL (really, it would have belonged to Radiohead anyway, regardless of what TOOL did, but whatever).

Sonic Youth is one of my favorite bands. NYC Ghosts by Sonic Youth is a shit album by their standards. I can accept that and move on.

i'm not saying anything either way, and i have not heard the new album, but this reminds me of another scenario.... U2 used to be a pretty big deal...(i'm kinda sick of it all, truth be told...) a lot of U2 fans dropped out after Achtung Baby/Rattle & Hum because u2 changed their style...their fans just wanted joshua tree after joshua tree, and were not open to changes....

could the same thing be happening here? i have no idea. i have not heard it yet. it's all subjective anyway.

[luke]

I'll buy it the day it comes out and listen to it then. I'll take it in for awhile, and probably ignore just about every review I read of the thing except maybe Riley's and JLLM's, whose Tool opinions I've long trusted.

I'll give it to Tool, though, this is probably the only album I won't sift through online before I actually buy it this year. I may do the same for the Chili Peppers, but really, unless that new Pumpkins album comes out this year, I can't see anyone dropping anything important enough to not screen before I buy. I'll probably be sick of the new Radiohead by the time it comes out and will prolly only buy the thing because I've got all the rest of them; same deal with Pearl Jam, although PJ albums lately tend to get more interesting with each listen and then trail off at about the six month point, so maybe I'll just be really into it by the time I buy it.

But not Tool, no, ain't gonna download.

[Thorngrub]

The new tool . . . . kept in perspective . . . must be (by definition) same as the old tool . . . and in addition . . . it must look forward to new vistas . . . and leave old horizons behind.

Such is precisely what 10,000 days manages to achieve. Breathtakingly. Solidly. There is more of a "jammy" feel to it (which, as far as this old stoner is concerned, arrives like a blessing). The "same old" tool -riffage which appears liberally -spiced throughout it, is sometimes used as a "fakeout" (as in the intro to vicarious, totally faking out the unwary listener into thinking "the song remains the same", but then (as those who have listened to it carefully can testify) leaves that old-school tool behind as the song moves through several iterations & mind-bending progressions to elevate itself far & above the tunes that preceded it. Speaking as one with a solemn & sane mind for all things "prog" in rock music, I can honestly say vicarious exceeds any single this band has ever produced, and I can say this in plain English, without a hint of exageration. It is just my simple opinion: the song is the best single they have ever released (w/the possible exception of "sober").

The riff that brings track two in is freaking insane people ! *damn* but that riff exceeds any/all expectations from what TOOL might've produced. It's so intricate & quick, I can't even believe my ears that its able to be played~! *go Jonesy, go Jonesy* And then that riff sinks under the song's skin to merge with its skeleton . . . let me say this:

The entire album, from beginning to end, was one endless progression, never looking back, chock-fulla loaded references to not only their own past catalogue, but rife with nods to tons of classic psychedelic rock acts of the past, from Hendrix to Pink Floyd to King Crimson, all kept afloat by Danny Carey's clearly most focused percussive onslaught to date.

Adam Jones does things with his guitar that could only bring a smile to a Floyd Casualty such as myself, and keep that smile plastered on my face from beginning to end.

Freakin' Justin. . . *damn!* Anyone who thinks the bass on this is in any way/form/fashion "subpar" *KOFF* just. ain't. listenin'. ferchrissakes... I never *heard* basslines like that-! Sinewy, uncoiling, smooth secretly-slitherin'-thru-the-grass unseen only to poise like a cobra and strike out of nowhere! Merging into the ambience and breathing with the guitar tones. Assisting Maynard's amazing and patented vocal-delivery.

Oh yeah. And the lyrics. Speaking for myself, as a lover of MJK's penmanship ever since the get -go, I can (again) honestly say these are some great lyrics. At times playful, at times drop dead serious, they waver in and out of the land of expectations and always circle back in to deliver a lethal dose of beautiful cynicism (reflecting a deeply felt caring for life) which kept me breathless trying to discern what lyrics would come next, and often causing me to LOL at some of the underlying humor contained within.

All in all . . . tool delivered what I expected (greatness), and this does not surprise me.

10,000 Days is clearly an elevation of their craft. Because it dares to experiment with some awesome new tribalesque rhythms and mantras (those tablas sound awesome!), it further expands the territory their previous albums already laid claim to: that of the post-rock classicist psychedelic era. Which (needless to say) is so straight up my particular alleyway of rock music, this thing is veritably a gift from the gods themselves, to me!

Rock on, mighty tool. \m/

[Galactus]

This is probably what Paul's getting...I'll listen to a time or two befopre I burn it, if anyone has some suggestions feel free. The first disc is abit more accessable while the second is more dense.

Disc 1-
1. Stinkfist
2. Sober
3. Jambi
4. Parabol
5. Parabola
6. Part Of Me (Live)
7. Intolerence
8. 46&2
9. The Pot
10. Schism
11. Wings For Marie (Part 1)
12. 10, 000 Days (Wings Part 2)
13. Undertow

Disc 2-
1. Third Eye (Live)
2. Vicarious
3. Eulogy
4. The Grudge
5. Right In Two
6. Pushit
7. Prison Sex
8. Ticks & Leeches