Tool - FEAR INOCULUM

[00Stinger]

New album to be released on August 30th

Tool Drop New Album Name, Promise To Finally Fkn Stream Their Back Catalogue

'Fear Inoculum' will arrive a cool 13 years after their last effort, '10,000 Days'.

www.pedestrian.tv

 

[skipjack]

Haven't been as excited for a release in my whole life. Their instagram has been released updated moving versions of their old album covers over the past week leading up to the clip from above.

PUMPED.

Legitimately might take August 30th off work.

 

[00Stinger]

Haven't been as excited for a release in my whole life. Their instagram has been released updated moving versions of their old album covers over the past week leading up to the clip from above.

PUMPED.

Legitimately might take August 30th off work.

I have a huge cd collection but haven't bought an actual cd in a couple of years.

That is about to change

 

[thedank]

I've had my heart broken too often by Tool so im reserving excitement until im holding the damn cd in my hand

 

[vast]

I have a huge cd collection but haven't bought an actual cd in a couple of years.

That is about to change

No exaggerration I dont think i have bought an album this decade. In fact 10k days would be one of the last I bought

 

[vast]

Maynard did those insta announcements while he was the Joe Rogen show yesterday.

 

[Roobs321]

I don't think I'll get as much mileage out of a new Tool album nowadays. I was still in high school when I picked up 10000 Days on release day, and now I'm in my 30s lol.

But those 4 albums remain pretty great when in the mood (although I always seem to reach for Aenima & Undertow, the other two rarely enter rotation). Anything remotely comparable to that standard would be mint. Intrigued to see how they've evolved.

 

[Mootsy]

Is that the front cover?? I hope not, lol. Maybe that's just the initial promotional artwork, it's really minimal. Anyway, hoping the album cover is actually different and well crafted. So it's seven songs, similar to Lateralus and 10K Days. I'm excited. But i'm also excited that their catalogue should be up on digital services tomorrow as well. Part of the reason i don't listen to them enough is that i use digital over disc/vinyl for the most part, and it's hard to actually listen to their music unless you can be bothered sitting down with a discman.

But really, a new Tool album is a big deal. It's a listening event that's genuinely exciting.

 

[Heisenberg_]

Been hitting refresh on Spotify all morning

 

[Roobs321]

I still own all their physicals and have them digitally ripped. I even have the Vicarious video single lying around somewhere.

 

[Heisenberg_]

I still own all their physicals and have them digitally ripped. I even have the Vicarious video single lying around somewhere.

Yeah I’ve got all physical copies it’s just so much more convenient to stream

 

[SHAKESPEARE]

gonna **** the shit out of their new vinyl. can't wait

 

[skipjack]

Back catalogue up on Spotify now....

 

[Magus]

I remember thinking 10,000 Days was already sounding like they'd ran out of ideas. Can't see them releasing anything as good as Aenema or Lateralus again but those are exceptional albums and not a lot of bands can say they've done two albums that good.

 

[Mootsy]

Lateralus sounds way better then I remember as does 10000 days. I guess not having digital copies meant I didn’t listen all that much. Probably only listened to both albums a handful of times at most without full attention.

Lateralus has to be considered a classic album, high grade release.

 

[Roobs321]

Probably only listened to both albums a handful of times at most without full attention.

And yet you're excited for the new Tool album??

In high school I had a pamphlet delivering job, so as a teen I usually had about 8-10 hours a week spent folding and then delivering pamphlets. I listened to music throughout the entire process to kill the time (especially once I upgraded from walkman to iPod). Remember getting into Tool back then and must have listened to the latter 3 countless times. Caught up with Undertow after I left home and that was my favourite for a few years, before reverting to Aenima. Vicarious is still one of my most played iTunes tracks mostly from hammering it circa 2006-07.

Was gutted that some friends got to see them live at the 2007 BDO (which also had Killers & Muse from memory).

 

[Mootsy]

And yet you're excited for the new Tool album??

Yes, I listened to their singles a lot and always followed them at each release, but I do this with alot of bands, I’ll listen 5-6 times the album and listen to the next band. Too much music to listen to, lol.

I bought Lateralus on release day at JB etc.

I’m just a lazy music follower, fade in and out of intrigue etc.

 

[Roobs321]

Yes, I listened to their singles a lot and always followed them at each release, but I do this with alot of bands, I’ll listen 5-6 times the album and listen to the next band. Too much music to listen to, lol.

I bought Lateralus on release day at JB etc.

I’m just a lazy music follower, fade in and out of intrigue etc.

That's fair enough, I'm completely the opposite. I like to spend time with albums, usually 10-20 listens (maybe much more if they are really great), and I'll periodically return to them in phases, or they might enter regular rotation. Especially if I buy something decent, I want some in-use value & in-depth familiarity, imprint it in my memory sort of thing. Otherwise it's just all passing listens and collecting, a bit meaningless. I understand its difficult in the digital and especially streaming era, so much stuff, I fully get it and struggle with that too. But if I get a buzz with an album, I like to follow that through till it fatigues or something new finally pulls me away. Otherwise you never get past that first impression and miss out on opportunities to click with growers.

 

[Plugger35]

Aenima is on the 1st rung - awesome

Lateralus and Undertow on the 2nd rung - great

10,000 Days on the 3rd rung - average

I'm tipping the new album will be either on the 2nd or 3rd rung.

They will never produce another Aenima, that's a masterpiece.

 

[Heisenberg_]

10000 Days was much better then it gets credit for, it’s just coming after Aenima and Lateralus, so hard to follow.

 

[Plugger35]

10000 Days was much better then it gets credit for, it’s just coming after Aenima and Lateralus, so hard to follow.

Even Lateralus was a let down for me initially as I just wanted another Aenima but looking back on it now it's a great album, it just suffers from being the follow up to one of the GOAT albums and then 10,000 Days suffered the same fate, although I haven't listened to it as much as Aenima or Lateralus to fully appreciate it.

I saw Tool at the Brixton Academy in 2001 shortly after Lateralus had been released and I hadn't listened to it enough to fully appreciate how good it was, all I wanted to hear was songs off Aenima and I wasn't alone. They opened with The Grudge and the bar at the back was still pretty full and then 2nd song in they launched into Stinkfist and I've never seen a bar clear out quicker in my life, there was a stampede into the main concert area and the whole place went mental.

 

[Badesumofu]

10000 Days was much better then it gets credit for, it’s just coming after Aenima and Lateralus, so hard to follow.

I've only really just come to properly appreciate 10k days over the last couple of months while I've listening to basically wall to wall Tool in anticipation of the new album. My problem in 2006 was that I really wanted Lateralus 2 and 10k is not that. Lateralus has been my favourite album ever from the first time I listened to it. I already liked Tool before that, but only really as a casual listener alongside stuff like NIN, RATM, and RHCP which were my favourites.

Jambi brilliant, especially when the bass kicks in. That bass drop and breakdown before the talk box solo is intense. The Pot is simply a banger, and again a great bassline. Rosetta Stoned might be their best work from a technical standpoint, so much going on in that track. Intension and Right in Two which I've come to view as almost a single 'song' in the vein of D/R/T are fantastic. I think Lateralus will always be my favourite, but I view 10k as being right up there with it now.

I'm really enjoying having the albums up on Apple Music. My old rips from the CDs that I made in the early 2000s aren't the best quality. I did do lossless rips at one point but I guess they're lost on some hard drive somewhere because I haven't been able to find them. The tracks they've put up on the streaming sites seem to have been mastered differently to what is on the CDs. The difference is most noticeable on Undertow which sounds far better than it ever has before. There are some details I can hear now that I'd never noticed before, the bass sounds richer, and there is better separation of the instruments. Aenima, Lat, and 10k are only subtly different.

A big part of what makes Tool so great for me is what Danny and Justin bring to the table. The drumming (and gong hit) on Lateralus (track), the bass in songs like Schism and The Pot. Adam is a creative genius, but it's the interplay between all the instruments and the way that they all take the lead at different times that takes it to another level. Those elements are more evident from Lateralus onwards, IMO. You start to see it on Aenima, but Lateralus takes it to another level and 10K maintains it. If Descending and Invincible are representative of the rest of the new album then I think it'll be right up there for me. Apparently the whole thing goes for just under 85 minutes and consists of 7 full songs and 2 musical interludes.

Hard to believe that in 26 days we will have a new Tool album after 13 years of waiting. I'm glad that I haven't been following their progress until this year. I read an article from early 2013 recently where Danny is asked if 2013 would be the year and he replies something to the effect that 2014 is more likely but doesn't rule 2013 out. What's also interesting though, I was listening to an IEM bootleg of a Tool concert from 2007 and the tapers managed to get the soundcheck. Adam starts playing this riff which I now recognise as the start of Invincible! So at least some of this new material really has been in the works for 13+ years. Now I imagine Adam has this riff but hasn't been able to turn into a song and then one day in the studio Justin turns up and plays a bass riff which turns into the bass riff in Invincible that comes after 'hear I am', and then the song comes together.

But anyway. Amazing band. I feel very confident that Fear Innoculum is going to be incredible. Look forward to hopefully getting a lead track this week.

 

[Roobs321]

Yeah I like Lateralus & 10000 Days about equal. The latter is definitely a better front-to-back listen for mine, never been too attached to the last few tracks on Lateralus.

I do prefer their more 90s alt-metal scene roots in Aenima & Undertow though. That is my essential Tool.

 

[Magus]

 

[Roobs321]

I don't mind it, very Tool but less front-and-center for a change. Looks like it will probably have some physical hologram/optical effect or similar like their previous 3.