Genre: Progressive Metal
Name: Tool
Album: Lateralus
...Mention this to me
Simply put, Tool are one of the most progressive bands of all time.
Just take a look at the time signatures they use. "Schism" is written, according to the band, in 13 over 16 (or 6.5/8, depending on the band member), and then later goes into 11/8. "Lateralus" was written in a complex set of shifting signatures: 9/8, followed by 8/8, then 7/8, then back to the start.
However just using weird time signatures would not be progressive enough. The subject matter must be, in and of itself, completely bizarre. "Lateralus" is the perfect example of this. It has been assigned various interpretations; ranging from LSD to alchemy, but the most common one is the human quest for knowledge. This is mirrored by references to the Fibonacci sequence, the golden ration, a famous mathematical sequence, incarnate in the letter "Φ". The observant among you will have already noticed one: 987, hidden in the repeated time signatures, is the 17th number in the sequence. On top of this, Maynard, the singer, has carefully controlled his vocal work. Consider these lyrics:
Black
And
White are
All I see
In my infancy
Red and yellow then came to be
Reaching out to me
Lets me see.
There is
So
Much
More that
Beckons me
To look through to these
Infinite possibilities
As above so below and beyond I imagine
Drawn beyond the lines of reason
Push the envelope
Watch it bend*
The syllables for each line fit the sequence: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 5, 3, 2, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 8, 5, 3. But as if that were not enough, the timing itself is perfect. Maynard begins singing 97 seconds in. Put that in minutes, and you'll find that it can be written as 1.618 (give or take): the golden ratio.
I could just leave it at that. But there's so much more to say, like how the drummer thinks he can only drum well with a carefully forged gong inscribed with obscure symbols hanging behind him, and bases his patterns on the universal hexagram, or a bassist who has synaesthesia and thus paints songs, rather than writes them. I could go on for hours, pages, entire essays on the subject. However, instead, I shall simply finish by comparing Tool to liquorice. An acquired taste, but an unforgettable one, of which everyone who loves can never get enough.
Summary: Difficult, confusing and complex progressive metal, but excellent, and definitely worth the work.
Lyrical Themes: Obscure, and occasionally NSFW (not here). Includes drugs and human pursuit of knowledge
Rating: 9/10 - recommended
Track listing:
1. The Grudge
2. Eon Blue Apocalypse
3. The Patient
4. Mantra
5. Schism
6. Parabol
7. Parabola
8. Ticks and Leeches
9. Lateralus
10. Disposition
11. Reflection
12. Triad
13. Faaip De Oaid
Download
*Lyrics never officially published; just another example of Tool being ridiculous. Apparently, they have too much impact on the meaning of the song.
Also worth noting - comparisons that I had for Tool while writing this review were Marmite, Liquorice (made the cut), Onions and Parfait. I'm incredibly hungry.
