Fat Ninja

As a fan of Tool, I’m almost sorry to say that I was never all that impressed with their last effort in Lateralus. I know that many of my fellow Tool fans that might be reading this are thinking less of me with every passing moment. I know that the album was largely well-received by the fan base, but it just never synched up with me. It didn’t offer that aural sucker punch that I got from Opiate, Undertow and Ænima. That said, I think in the wake of Lateralus there was a waning interest on my part with regards to Tool.

But that’s all changed, and that metamorphosis began earlier this week when I got a hold of the first single off Tool’s latest collaboration 10,000 Days. If you haven’t heard it, it’s called Vicarious and it really struck me the way Sober did the first time I ever heard it. That unique combination of beauty and chaos that I came to associate with Tool’s sound was evident once more.

Now that I’ve had the chance to listen to 10,000 Days in its entirety, I can say with great satisfaction that the album represents a return to form for one of the most talented rock groups my generation has seen. There’s a very unified sound to be found in this latest effort. I think one thing that bothered me most about Lateralus was the fact that it seemed to be a wandering album. I didn’t really get the sense that there was a larger underlying theme that really tied one track to the next.

10,000 Days on the other hand is seamless in its execution. Each songs bleeds into the next, creating a very organic whole. As such, it just seems so much more vivacious than its predecessor. From beginning to end there’s almost an evolution that occurs, as each song progressively builds upon the last, all of them coming together in the dischordant harmony that Tool has always delivered before.

In my opinion there’s a great deal more passion behind this album, and it’s evidenced in every piece of the whole. Adam Jones’ fluid guitar melodies meld with Maynard James Keenan’s sorrowful crooning, while Justin Chancellor’s artful plucking bass carefully accentuate the undertones of the lyrics. But it is when they come together in savage crescendo at the driving beat of Danny Carey’s forceful syncopation that they are their most powerful and moving. There’s a very harsh beauty that this quartet is known for, and 10,000 Days reminds us that no one else is capable of creating that chaotic order quite so well as Tool.

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