Lateralus vs. Every other album

[Maninthebox357]

The way I see it, Lateralus just couldn't top Ænima or Undertow or all the other albums. Don't get me wrong it is a truely great album. But it just didn't match up to the others. One thing that annoyed me was the fact that the hit song Schism was played constantly on the radio. When in fact the song Lateralus was much better. It also ( just like Ænima) had too much filler. Now I will admit (it's mot like it's a secret) that Undertow had more filler than both of them combined. And even though Sober was played on the radio alot as well, I could never get sick of that song. All the stuff on Lateralus was great but I don't think it could be considered their best work.

[Choler]

If you look at the history of tool they have reinvented themselves every time they come out with a new CD, I guess what your saying is you don't like the new tool sound, it's your opinion although in my opinion they have stepped up into a higher plain of music than anyother band, in Lateralus their instrumental ability is far better than any of their previous albums and the lyrics are so spiritual and mindblowing. I believe that Lateralus is more mature and sends a positive message than their other albums. I can only look forward to see the new tool emerge. And it seems almost impossible to top lateralus, but this is tool we are talking about.

[Maninthebox357]

Originally posted by Choler
And it seems almost impossible to top lateralus, but this is tool we are talking about.

Thats very true. Even though I think Tool could have done better with Lateralus, I also believe they will top themselves again and again and again, until Tool has reached the best of music thats possible to produce. I just think that Lateralus (musically, not lyrically) wasn't as good as the old Tool.

[Choler]

what aspects of the older tool do you like better than lateralus? to me they have improved since AEnima musically, Lateralus seems to almost focus on the instrumental part of the band and let them take control. The riffs in lateralus are amazing and as a musician myself I am in awe as to what a masterpeice they made. I get alot of emotion from the instruments, but I do in all of tool's music so I guess this is all based on opinion.

[Maninthebox357]

Originally posted by Choler
what aspects of the older tool do you like better than lateralus?

I guess I'm just a big fan of maynards voice. and his seemed to stick out more on songs like Jimmy and Pushit. And yes they did very well for Lateralus but for some reason whenever I hear the CD it just doesn't appeal to me as much as Ænima. Maybe Because I started listening to the radio more when Lateralus came out and all they played was Schism. so I geuss that Schism just blew it for me.

[4th Eye]

Hmm, I have to say that Meteora can't top Hybrid Theory. I mean HT was original with lots of diversity and great epical songs like "One Step Closer" and "Papercut". I love all of their albums though but...umm...oops...wrong forum... :P

Ænima is the best album of all time. So is Lateralus. I can't decide...

[holyfived]

As with all forms of expression/art it is truely in the eye of the beholder. I think when tool comes out with a new cd, it will be more and more unexcessable of the mainstream media. It seems the only relationship between the mainstream media and TOOL is sex. Not that tool is an overtly sexual band, but they do have the title TOOL and that, in some circles, is another name for............. well you get the rest.
Well I guess what I am tring to say is that TOOL will go down as one of the greatest rock/metal/progressive alternative/whatever label you choose to give them,bands of all time. so enjoy what you do and be thankful for having experenced one of the most educational and exciting bands around. When I say be thankful, I mean to be thankful to Tool and also yourself for opening yourself up to the world and not closing yourself off from it.

blessed be and continue to send positive energy no matter what negitive you feel and recieve.

Lateralus is only a stepping stone to the divinity found within ones self.

[RasputinDelOest]

As far as music goes...
Their songs are incredibly complex, and instead of putting together of bunch of riffs that sound good, like other bands, their songs actually have chord structures and they've actually used "scientific music"...

In other words, they've studied on the sciences of music and the technical stuff, the notes that fit in a certain order to create composition, Mozart did that too.

[Alexandra]

Originally posted by Choler
If you look at the history of tool they have reinvented themselves every time they come out with a new CD, I guess what your saying is you don't like the new tool sound, it's your opinion although in my opinion they have stepped up into a higher plain of music than anyother band, in Lateralus their instrumental ability is far better than any of their previous albums and the lyrics are so spiritual and mindblowing. I believe that Lateralus is more mature and sends a positive message than their other albums. I can only look forward to see the new tool emerge. And it seems almost impossible to top lateralus, but this is tool we are talking about. I sincerely agree.

Originally posted by Maninthebox357
Thats very true. Even though I think Tool could have done better with Lateralus, I also believe they will top themselves again and again and again, until Tool has reached the best of music thats possible to produce. I just think that Lateralus (musically, not lyrically) wasn't as good as the old Tool. I can understand why you like Undertow and Opiate. They have a more raw, treble sound, than Aenima and Lateralus. But I absolutely love Lateralus because I don't think there really is one filler song on there except for Faaip de Oiad. I love all twelve real songs. On Aenima, there were some I really didn't connect to, and there was a lot of filler. But I thought Undertow was pretty good. Sometimes I like Undertow more than Aenima, but I really do love Aenima a lot. I definitely think that Lateralus is by far their best cd. The lyrics alone could kick the other albums' asses. And I totally agree with what Choler said about their progress in the instrumental department, they made it seamless, which is hard to do with instrumental music when combinging it with lyrics too.

[D/R/T]

Lateralus and Aenima are both masterpieces, but i believe lateralus is better than anemia. it is just more mature, and deeper, without ruining the brilliant music; u think the music on lateralus is weaker than Anemia? compare 46 and 2 to reflection, compare H. to the patient, compare anemia to lateralus...i think all the latter songs would be my favourite, but thats just my opinion

[reign3]

I agree with what Choler said. They reinvent themselves with each new CD, and you just don't like the new Tool as much as the old.

In my opinion though, Lateralus has them all beat. Don't get me wrong, I love Aenima, Undertow and Opiate, but Lateralus just seems to live on a higher plane. I see them improve in every aspect from CD to CD. Every instrument has gotten better. I don't mean better like Adam learned how to play his guitar better; I mean they seem to explore and experiment more with each new album which is great. And Maynards voice just gets more and more amazing. But it seems that his lyrics are consistent. Ever since Opiate, he has had wonderful lyrics, but my favorite would have to be off of Lateralus.

Lateralus is just a masterpiece to me. And I actually didn't think there was that much filler. There are just three tracks (if you count Eon Blue Apocolypse, which I don't but most people do) and they're not that long. I don't even listen to Faiip de Oiad, it's just not that interesting to me. The filler on Aenima kind of annoyed me. I'm not a big fan of the Message to Harry Manback. Dier von Satan was cool though.

I don't know. Lateralus is just an epic album to me. If they can manage to surpass it, it will be a true miracle.

[Pierre-Paul]

Lateralus is the kind of album that I'Ll still be listening to ten years from now and still be in awe listening to "lateralus" and "Reflection".

Aenima was awesome, but I feel that Lateralus went further, that the band actualy "pushed the envelope". Also, there are songs on Aenima that I don't really like (intermission, cesaro sumability. (-)ions is cool but a bit too long) whereas I like every song on Lateralus.

Faiip de Oiad is really cool, the first times I listened to it the song scared the shit out of me!

[Quetzocoatl]

Lateralus was my first Tool album, and it was the first album that completely gripped me from the first listen and never let go. I bought Aenima about a week after first hearing Lateralus. Though it is a fantastic album, it has never touched me the way Lateralus did. Lateralus has so many colors, so much deep meaning, such meticulous construction (there is no filler on Lateralus. even Mantra works to further the overall feeling of the album, which is something that can't be said for, i dunno, Message to Harry Manback or Intermission). Aenima really does perpetuate Tool's reputation of creating somewhat blank, inaccessable walls of sound. Though the songs are beautiful and different once you get down to them, none of them are as insipiring or powerful, in my opinion, as any song on Lateralus (except maybe Third Eye).

Undertow doesn't even come close to Aenima and Lateralus. Sure it is complex and is a great album, but after listening to Lateralus, Undertow kinda sounds like your average hard rock record. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but its probably not in my top ten albums.

I cannot even begin to comprehend how the band will top Lateralus.

[Windowlicker]

my opinion is that Lateralus is more twilightzone-spiritual like and Aenima more on this world.
You can just not compare it.

[ProfessorSnarly]

I don't get it. Obviously everyone here loves Lateralus and I wish I did too. Yet almost nothing about the record appeals to me. The music while changing time signatures, etc. more often, and being ultimately more complex from a musician's standpoint is ostensibly more butt-metal than ever. Virtually every track has that old school Metallica "chunk, chunk, chunk, chunk" guitar riff in it. After my first listen I joked to a friend that Lateralus was far and away the best record Judas Priest ever made. The other records (particularly Aenima) didn't sound like anyone else. Lateralus sounds like everyone else done by people who can play.

Lyrically it is still the same classic Tool, but with one important difference. The lyrics often don't go with the music. I found myself asking "Why is Maynard bellowing 'between supposed brothers'?" and answering the question by realizing that he is bellowing because that is where the music got heavy - not because he is emotionally motivated to be any louder or more passionate at that moment. What this creates is a situation where the tracks on Lateralus have good lyrics and complicated music, but no cohesive songs. The two don't go together. On previous discs the music got quiet when Maynard got personal - "I'm praying for rain..." and loud when he got pissed - "and then, You, BoUgHt ONE!!!!!" On Lateralus there is little connection between what he is saying and how he is saying it. The lyrics don't fit the songs.

Therefore the whole CD ultimately leaves me cold. Rarely have I been as insane about a band as I am about Tool. I have given Lateralus a million chances and I never, ever get it. Help me understand what I'm missing.

[soberwithapenis]

Originally posted by mstajduh
that's your opinion...

My Heart belongs to AEnima but My soul belongs to Lateralus

well put. id like to add that my ears belong to Undertow, and my thoughts belong to Opiate. Salival is badass, just couldnt think of something else to which it could belong.

Prof. S.
Stop listening to the cd with your ears, listen to it with your heart and soul(mind) [but lets not get into that argument]. It might help. Personally i think what you are saying is absurd and i think that the lyrics, the singing and the music all go together.

Pierre - How can you not like the pure genious of intermission? I dont think Ænima would be the same album with out it.

on a pretty cool side note:
for a while i had intermission as my phone ring (pretty cool if you can get it). Probably the most bizarre thing to happen to me was the moment i got it in my phone i listened to it and right then My neighbor downstairs started blasting Jimmy. I didnt move for the entire song. 17th greatest tool experience ever. (for anyone wondering 11 concerts + each cd for the 1st time)

As for Lateralus, it is their visibly most experinced cd to date (not best, they all are). The lyrics, and the instrumentals (Maynard's voice included) are so more well defined and broad compared to Ænima. But this is the cycle of evolution. Tool are not a band who is content being good. This is why they will top Lateralus with their next album. As they grow as people/musician, so grows Tool, thus furthering our intoxication with their bliss.

Just read the quote on the Opinion Homepage.

[nate]

I don't know if anyone pointed this out yet, but the reason Schism is on the radio and Lateralus isn't is because of the lengths in the songs. The radio won't play a 9:24 song usually.

[Alexandra]

Originally posted by ProfessorSnarly
The lyrics often don't go with the music. I found myself asking "Why is Maynard bellowing 'between supposed brothers'?" Firstly, you either get it, or you don't. Whoa, don't take that the wrong way! I am saying this nicely! I mean, I am sure I don't get Aenima like you do. No one can sit here and tell you how great Lateralus is, nor can anyone tell me how much better Aenima is than Lateralus, unless YOU alone decide to change your mind.

And his lyrics in Schism there, are "between supposed LOVERS." I'd also like to add, that the music in Schism completely coincides with the lyrics. The lyrics are about breaking connection, breaking relationships. I know this is extremely subjective, but I can hear the dissent in the music of Schism, the battling of two planes trying to fuse together, but inevitably, cannot meld/or inevitably meld.

I also love how Tool just attacked the depths of the human psyche in Latearlus. It is SO deep. It's amazing. The music is so emotionally heavy, it's easy to just get swept along on the ride instead of thoughtfully contemplating what you are hearing. I don't know, but Aenima didn't really connect with my brain that way. It wasn't as deep a connection with me, my soul. Aenima kind of hits my ego, my desires, and Lateralus has grasped my desires and my ego by the hand, and took me with it, showing me a whole other world that I never knew existed inside my mind.

I hope that makes a lot more sense.

We all just connect with a different facet of Tool. It doesn't matter which it is, just that we all connect to them in some way. People are different, and of course, we all see different things in their music. Perhaps this is what makes them so great.

[watchtheweather]

I think that lateralus blows everything else (by any other band or artist) out of the water.

[supersonic2006]

Lateralus is an incredible album.

I am not one for filler.
and even though some might say that tracks such as Eon Blue Apocalypse and Mantra are filler, I like to think of them more as part of the next song.

Eon Blue Apocalypse flows incredibly well into The Patient and Mantra sets up the mood for Schism quite nicely.
Compare that to things like Useful Idiot which basically goes... and then suddenly: Forty-Six & 2!!!
or Message To Harry Manback, which is basically pointless garbage (in my opinion).

Also, Tool has matured lyrically somewhat.
You hear profanity much more in AEnima than you do in Lateralus, which in fact only has fuck in one song - Ticks & Leeches. Tool has found better ways to express themselves besides vulgarity.

and the music... wow. Given that it's harder to find a steady beat than it is in AEnima, Lateralus' music is just incredible.

[debaser]

Thats one of the biggest problems I've had with Lateralus, its finding how the band changes/molds the riffs, especially on The Grudge. With Aenema its more emotional and exciting for me, whereas as with Lateralus, its kind of, wow, they know what they are doing, but its a bit too spiritual lyrically to pull me into the music

[neochrist]

i just want to know what the problem is with your so called "fillers", lets look at this from a different perspective than all of you are obviously looking at it, you see the songs that are by tool standards "normal" and then you see all these shorter songs and you call them fillers and say theres too many of them, if tool was a band like i dont know.....good charlotte, then yes the short little instrumental parts would be fillers cuz there brains are to stuck up trl's ass to write a song to put there, anyways, but this is tool were talking about, so dont you think these "fillers" have meaning, just because a song has no words doesnt mean it has no meaning, to me it actually has more, because with no words its completely open to infinite meaning, but thats just me

[trippletaurus]

The length of time between each Tool release has been to the bands benfit. How much quality music does a band w/ longevity have in them? Depends on each band member… how much they have to bring to the table initially, growth as a person AND a musician, playing w/ people who might be better players so they grow etc. Each album has shown growth and evolving maturity. Lateralus is the latest result of this growing maturity primarily because of continuity. All of the best Prog albums Yes, Floyd etc. have been constructed in such a way that you almost have to listen to the whole, not mearly the sum of the parts. Tool has attempted this with each succesive album. I guess since I've used the word growth about 20 times already that is the distillation of what I am saying. Tool has not stopped this process, they keep setting the damn bar- higher. And you know what? I am totaly confident that the next release will be even closer to their own personal pinical. As far as the 'filler' statements… those little ditties serve their purpose, and BTW the Band chose Schism to be the single.

[mandruku]

just personally, but this album has a different feel to the other. when your on acid it has this feeling of freshness/cleanliness im sure if you've been on it i know what i mean, almost like, i am more normal now than when im straight. anyway, i reckon the first time i heard lateralus it had that feel to it. and whenever i was about to put it on, i always could feel that feeling coming on, it was like it was clearer than any other album or something, like it was a super cd (it kinda was but my cd player didn't do that 20bit thing so it didin't affect me) but yeah. fo shizzle

[RU5TY]

ive noticed alot of dissapointment with 'intermission'. i cant help but smile everytime i hear it, and its obviously an introduction to jimmy. i feel like im walking into a creepy carnival everytime i hear it.

[Martin]

Hehe, yeah!
Intermission is kinda funny.
It really reminds me some theme park song, a tune that is played repetatively during a whole day on some merry-go-round. Or at some creepy, abandoned roller coaster.

Well, it has the same beat as jimmy, and works sorta like an intro to it.

[dueler25]

aenima had all that dark humor which is really cool but damn, lateralus is just an otherworldly experience. aenima is really cool of course but i prefer the style on lateralus. and it is true that they grow immensely with each record. you can hear elements of opiate on undertow, undertow on aenima, etc. but i think the biggest quantum leap has been taken on lateralus. when i first heard the climax of the patient i couldn't believe people were making these sounds with guitars, basses, drums, and vocals. it was an otherworldly experience.

so to me lateralus is better but aenima is great because of its pop culture elements. it was made for a reason unlike lateralus which sounds more like just making music for the joy of it.

[Martin]

Hmmm...

Well, to start off, I must say that I like Lateralus better. Nevertheless, Ænima is truly brilliant.

Why do I like Lateralus better?

After Ænima, I never expected them to come up with something this good. I thought Ænima was perfect. I was waiting for somthing to be just as good, but nothing this stunning. I mean, after delivering such a good record as Ænima, you just don't go make a better album just like that. Expectation starts to build, and when they are just blown away like that... it leaves me breathless.

The whole album gives a feeling of oneness and wholeness like nothing else. It is complete, and very hard to improve. (I thought the same with Ænima until I heard Lateralus)

Sorry for the lack of coherence and reason...
But I'm very tired.

[dueler25]

i agree in that "where the hell did this come from" about lateralus coming after aenima.

the next album will probably be orgasm-inducing. as in, forget sex, your girlfriend, masturbation, you will have an orgasm listening to the next record.

of course this is exaggerating but who knows? the quantum leap will only grow bigger.

[Martin]

This is where the danger lies.

Exaggerated expectations.

It seems extremely hard to top Lateralus, am I right? How are they going to do that? They did it with Ænima, and this is, after all, Tool we are talking about. I think they are more than capable of doing it. We'll just have to wait for it to find out what it sounds like.

Too high expectations may result in disappointment. (MGS2 to some extent)

But this is Tool...

[trippletaurus]

Intermission is my favorite 'transition' piece. The Unplugged version if you will of Jimmy. My personal take on it is that Adam was playing around with a melody: =intermission = Jimmy. I too smile whenever it's playing. It has a snarky, malevolent feel to it. Ever see the film adaptation of S. King's IT? Remember the clown? That's what I see. And as far as setting yourself up for the Big Letdown w/ high expectations.…What other band can you think of where this is LESS appropriate? This Band has NEVER released ANY crap!

[mendholsin]

what aspects of the older tool do you like better than lateralus? to me they have improved since AEnima musically, Lateralus seems to almost focus on the instrumental part of the band and let them take control. The riffs in lateralus are amazing and as a musician myself I am in awe as to what a masterpeice they made. I get alot of emotion from the instruments, but I do in all of tool's music so I guess this is all based on opinion.

From what I understand, the majority of MUSIC for L. was written/recorded while Maynard was away; this is opposed to the standard Tool method of recording, that is, basing the music around the lyrics and lyrical content/structure/etc.

This raises the point that Tool is completely different now than they ever were. I understand that they went through some horrible litigations invovling new management, and that they are now under new control; even so, has Tool ever struck anyone as the type of group to have ball caps? more t-shirts than albums? or any type of entity such as "toolarmy.com?" I don't know what anybody else has thought about this, but at first I viewed it as selling out. As much as I'm sure it was mostly managerial decisions to provide all this merch, the band certainly had some say in it. You'll also notice that,besides for this splendid site and deadohiosky.net, alot of the old skool tool pages stopped recording news after the release of L. Maybe they caught wind of something that they didn't like. However....what if?

Using Marilyn Manson's success with evil as an example, what if Tool is setting up the world for yet another scandalous joke? (MM ex.: Antichrist sells like a bitch, Animals is a flop, so now he's evil again) Picture all these teeny-boppers and blonde haired bimbos driving mercedes that their fathers gave them, and, oh yeah, they're hip because they have a L. sticker on their back window. What if Tool is setting them up? What if maynard decides to personally execute everyone on toolarmy's database i nthe years to come? I wouldn't put it past him, the crafty son of a bitch.

god, I'm only more arrogant than opionated.

yrs.,
erik

[Luna Galapogos]

Have any of you realized that Tool is not about beating the last album. It is about realizing ones self and not falling prey to all of the lies around you. It is about meeting them through their music, no matter which album does that for you. Should it matter that one person likes one album more than another. That is natural. It does not matter. They are all in their own way, an original work of art that deserves to be honored for what it is. They are all marvelous and give insight into the different feelings that are felt in every day life. There is no point in trying to prove that one album is better than the other, what does that do. It is not about one's own personal belief. It is about all the Tool fans and Tool themselves becoming one through their albums. If you can't do that, then you are only listening to the music because you enjoy the sounds. And by the way, the name Tool is meant as a Tool for lachrymology. The art of crying to relieve pain. It has nothing to do with anything sexual. So yes, I will stop blabbing, I suppose that all of this is just my opinions, except for what the name is about. Accept each album for what it is, not for what it can and can't compare to.

[Winds of Fame9]

in my opinion, lateralus is an opus- in my mind, it is the most perfect album i have ever heard. it not only tops all previous tool CD's, but in my opinion, it tops all other cd's (that i have heard at least.)

[Jonzard]

To me its like choosing between children..... except for the bastard son opiate (just 6 songs!? ) j/k....

I seem to gravitate towards lateralus as an album.... whiel Aenima has some better individual songs...

Ask me tomorrow and u will get totally different resonses.... ITS ALL GOOD!

[HomSar]

Hey, my first post here. Well to me, lateralus is the superior album for Tool. I love Aenima a TON, undertow is kinda... meh... to me it sounds like classic rock, which ain't bad, but I'm all about progression. Lateralus to me sounds like a true evolution of the band itself, it neither seems forced nor repressed, but very natural. To me it sounds like they couldn't have made a different album if they wanted to. I could say the same with Aenima, but it was was made before Lateralus, so Lateralus had to be a progression and by nature better than it. I can definitely sense the lack of Maynard in the early jam sessions, but I think it actually helps the album. The instrumentation is much more risky. In a jamming atmosphere (which I'm assuming Tool does a lot of jamming when writing...) every sound dictates how the songs takes shape. If maynard had been there earlier in the process, his melodies may have been more tailor made for the songs, or resulted in the songs themselves being changed altogether. But since his presence wasn't always there, the instruments went off on their own, and he had to come in later when things were more concrete. Thus you have sections in songs like the Patient, where Maynard's melody almost seems to be competing with the chord progression. In lesser hands this could be disaster, but I feel that Tool pulled it off beautifully. I have now written way too much. Good night.

[Martin]

Intermission is my favorite 'transition' piece. The Unplugged version if you will of Jimmy. My personal take on it is that Adam was playing around with a melody: =intermission = Jimmy. I too smile whenever it's playing. It has a snarky, malevolent feel to it. Ever see the film adaptation of S. King's IT? Remember the clown? That's what I see. And as far as setting yourself up for the Big Letdown w/ high expectations.?What other band can you think of where this is LESS appropriate? This Band has NEVER released ANY crap!
I get somewhat the same assosiations with Intermission, not necessarily the clown, but some dark abandoned amusement park, like Lakeside Amusement Park from the Silent Hill series, with the clown in it.

As for expectations, I'm not expecting a letdown, far from it. I'm expecting the next step on the Tool evolution ladder, climbing on top of Lateralus. This is a release I'm really looking forward to, and at the same time thinking "What if they come up short?" Then I comfort my mind by saying "Hey, it's Tool we're talking about here, they won't deliver an inferior record." They've done it before, why not again.

[eulogy508]

IMO, Undertow has the least filler of all Tool albums.... AEnima is amazingly good but has a little too much filler.... Lateralus is genius, unlike anything Tool have ever done (I hate critics that pass it off as an AEnima sound-alike)... I respect each album in their own way but the one I appreciate most is Lateralus.

[BigCheese]

Here's my opinions on the albums:

Opiate: My angry, not as complicated album, fun to play Jerk-Off and Hush on the guitar.

Undertow: Everyone kills me when I say I don't care for Undertow. I really don't. I mean lyrics like "dead inside" and "beligerent fucker" just don't add up to H, Pushit, Parabola, Lateralus and Reflection. Not to meantion the music isn't as great (except Sober). Everyone gets really uptight when I say that, but it's true. So this is the album I listen to when I'm like "Okay, I've heard Aenima and Lateralus enough times, and I'm not in the mood for Opiate." Just my opinion.

Aenima: Ah... this is more my stuff. Nice darker feeling. Truely emotional. Although Stinkfist and Jimmy don't hit me emotionally that much, they are still great songs. But Eulogy, then H, then 46 & 2 just gets me everytime, especially H and 46 & 2. My friend burned me the CD without all the extra stuff, even though I still have the one with all the extra stuff, I listen to the 9 track CD. It's truely amazing. This is more of my crying CD. You realize something that you don't want to (let go of someone your connected too, or whatever). But you still feel alive after listening to it. Just differently. So it's hold dear to my heart.

Lateralus: Man, extremely emotional. And I feel so alive after listening to it (especially after Lateralus) the order is SOOOO perfect. Truely a work of art. I can't explain enough about it. Just the felling at so many parts of that CD make me feel just so alive. I can't explain it much better than that.


So in conclusion, Aenima and Lateralus I love, and I'd proabably choose Lateralus if I had to, but I hold them so close to heart, it's hard to choose.

[Windir]

Lateralus is genius, unlike anything Tool have ever done.

Isn't all there work different from each other?

[mr. id]

hey, even though i'm not christian, not anymore anyway, i see it this way...aenima is god and lateralus is jesus. undertow is satan and opiate is either judas or st. john the divine...

OR

AEnima is the best. Prime stuff. Can't top it.
Lateralus is the literal physical embodiment of tool...not borne of aenima but a separate entity. not better than aenima either.
Undertow is a great album but a little too headbanger-y for me.
Opiate is not too headbang-y...just the right amount of heavy and sinister

sooooooooo
AENIMA
LATERALUS
OPIATE
UNDERTOW

hey, now i can change my name to mr. insomniac

[IC]

In general, Tool albums seem to describe certain periods in your life. I am 15, and Aenima is probebly the most amazing and terribly wonderful things I've ever heard. I can really connect with aenima and opiate right about now. I am assuming that as I become more involved with the world and become more vulnerable, that Undertow might make more sense to me now. Lateralis seems to appeal to more reflective people. I mean I love Lateralis. It is a very moving album. Not just that, but it is a headphone masterpiece. Its disturbing. Aenima is a very dark album and seems to show the world raw and at its worst. Yet there is a tiny sense of hope through it. It carries such desperation and grabs you as it goes through so many levels of emotion..My favorite album..
And, a few songs by Tool seem to go against my religion completely. Yet I can see most of the meanings. Such as in Opiate. Its not as though he specificly points out one religion and says it sucks. He is making people aware that some of these people use peace and love teaching religions to use and hurt people. Then you look at Lateralis and pick a song. There is so much depth to Tool songs, and so much reality that all bands today lack. All of their albums are wonderful.

[Deicidal Necrophilia]

I most definately agree that Tool reinvents themselves with every album. You can hear it in the music and you can see it in the artwork (shirts, album art, etc..) I would have to say that Lateralus is my least favorite album. The music is bothers me to death, the song "The Patient" makes me feel horribly, and the new Tool logo is hard to understand and ugly. I dislike all shirts with their new logo and I still try to get all of their old shirts in my posession. Here is my line-up of my favorite albums from favorite to least favorite:

Ænima
Undertow
Opiate
Salival
Lateralus

[Fatman]

Bah, I thought The Patient was great, infact it would be up the top of all my most liked tool songs.

Hmm its a tough choice, when I hear Lateralus, its a lot more metal orientated, where as Ænema was alot softer and seemed to have more vocals and less guitar thrashing.

And I simply hate the fillers, don't they realise that this only puts the album down!?! because every song other then the fillers is great.

So practically, Ænema was better then Lateralus, but Lateralus was alot better then the other albums, I thought Undertow was pretty poor, didn't really sound like tool, Salival was a sort of half done album, Opiate was great but with only 6 short (for tool anyway) songs it doesn't really compare.

Also I did notice that the albums did evolve over time, ever new album had a different sound to it.

[manif3st]

i generally dont like to compare Tool albums with eachother, because they are all seperate pieces of art, and should be listened to/judged in the same manner.

BUT if i were forced to directly compare Lateralus to the other albums, I would have to say my vote would go to Aenema. I'm not saying Aenema is any better musically/lyrically/spiritually or whatever to Lateralus, i just like the feel of that album better. I like the dark, raw, gritty feel of Aenema better than the otherwordly experience of Lateralus.

Also something i'd like to add about Aenema (and another reason why i like it better) it has Paul AND Justin on the album, which i think is great. I like both of their musical styles, (Paul more raw and heavy/ Justin more technical and melodic) so when you combine both of them on the same album, the result is unbelievable (aka Aenema)

...just my two pennies

[manif3st]

p.s. anyone who says they can listen to Intermission without cracking the slightest smile is a liar :]

[neochrist]

i would just like to say fatman made the dumbest comment of the year in his post, he said and i quote

"And I simply hate the fillers, don't they realise that this only puts the album down!?! because every song other then the fillers is great.

So practically, Ænema was better then Lateralus, but Lateralus was alot better then the other albums, I thought Undertow was pretty poor, didn't really sound like tool, Salival was a sort of half done album, Opiate was great but with only 6 short (for tool anyway) songs it doesn't really compare."


first of all, im so tired of the filler bashing, they serve a purpose or tool wouldnt of put them in, for every moron in the world who thinks a song has no meaning without words should stop listening to tool and go back to whats on mtv this week, if vocals were all that mattered it would just be maynard up there singing, every note of every instrument has meaning, and i dont understand how people overlook that fact. second of all fatman says that undertow doesnt sound like tool......what an idiot...if tool doesnt sound like tool then who does, and even if in his mind it doesnt sound like the rest of tool, who is he to decide what tool should sound like, i think thats up to tool to decide. another thing, salival in my mind might be the single most beautiful collection of songs ive ever heard, the zep cover "no quarter" is phenomenol, and the new version of pushit is the most moving song ive ever heard. and last but not least he says Opiate is short(for tool anyway), once again he seems to be deciding for tool what tool should sound like, it was there first album, i mean come on, i myself think there are no stupid people on the planent, on mistaken and opinionated people, but if there was an idiot, it would be fatman.