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bennytude
02-05-2012, 05:27 PM
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My 13th Tool show. Tool is exuding some superior vibrations on this tour. They are mega-awesome even by Tool standards. I've never been to a show at the old coliseum that had this much of a buzz around it. Tons of people were looking of tickets. Great mix of humans at this show. Youngsters, grandparents, 30-somethings, punks, hippies, non-caucasions, metalheads, black-widow spiders, hipsters, bikers, skanks, chain-smoking rednecks(in a smoke-free facility), goths, and some suit-and-tie crowd in their starched t-shirt disguises.
First, don't care for Yob. The vocalist kind of kills it for me. Somewhat predictable, dyed-in-the-wool doom metal. I like Tool's slant on merch these days. More autographed material helps counter all the D-bags trying to make a fortune on ebay.
It astonishes me how Tool's live presentation continues to evolve. My brother put it best; "A new word must be coined because 'trippy' is entirely insufficient to express what these guys do." Their show truly plants one in the epicenter of a kaleidoscopic volcano with all the the tectonic rumblings of their precisely tuned cymbal brass drums and expertly tweaked synth madness. Tool creates visions and sounds combined into experiences that defy language and description.
Now, I will attempt to highlight some moments from the experience. I tried to avoid spoilers before the show, but I saw the post on toolarmy that showed Danny playing HWAP. I never thought this song would come back to us in a live format, but they ruled it! What a way to start the show. Maynard's constantly evolving, brilliant use of multiple mics and multilayer harmony and vocal production is criminally underrated by scads of tool fans who nag about the Nard's treatment of older material. I think it's brilliant that they can alternate between major and minor vocal harmonies and stack clean and distorted vocals in ways that mimic album multitracking. This was in full use for HWAP, Jambi, and particularly Intension. Genius, I say! Furthermore, Adam and Danny's synthesizer prowess(Virus for Adam, Oberheim for Danny) has grown from modest experiments on the opening legs of the Lateralus tour to full-blown alien spaceship landings on recent outings. Justin alternates between the rudder and the anchor of the Tool ship. He can take his sound into the heavens or can offer a titanic two-note underpinning to the jam in Lateralus. The new jam that they previewed seemed to be a Justin based riff(awesome).
Speaking of Lateralus, I thought the jam with drummer from Yob was great. Very unselfish on the part of both drummers. Generally, the guest musician leaves after the improv part of Lateralus, but Tool allowed him to play the rest of the song. That seems to indicate that they dig what he has been adding to the jams.
I could go on and on, but suffice to say Tool's enshrinement in the canon of artistic greatness cannot be questioned and the sun is not setting on what they represent. Their shows are not a memorial to great achievements of the past, but instead a living altar that births new beauty constantly, but often in ways that subtly elude the casual or overly expectant fan. Go see this tour to remind you that Tool is awesome and prepare yourself for a the new Tool album.
Much love and cheers to Tool and to Southern Tool fans who represented quite well last night,

Bennytude
Old 02-05-2012, 05:27 PM   #17
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Join Date: Jun 2007
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Re: 02.04.2012 - Charlotte, NC @ Bojangles Chicken

My 13th Tool show. Tool is exuding some superior vibrations on this tour. They are mega-awesome even by Tool standards. I've never been to a show at the old coliseum that had this much of a buzz around it. Tons of people were looking of tickets. Great mix of humans at this show. Youngsters, grandparents, 30-somethings, punks, hippies, non-caucasions, metalheads, black-widow spiders, hipsters, bikers, skanks, chain-smoking rednecks(in a smoke-free facility), goths, and some suit-and-tie crowd in their starched t-shirt disguises.
First, don't care for Yob. The vocalist kind of kills it for me. Somewhat predictable, dyed-in-the-wool doom metal. I like Tool's slant on merch these days. More autographed material helps counter all the D-bags trying to make a fortune on ebay.
It astonishes me how Tool's live presentation continues to evolve. My brother put it best; "A new word must be coined because 'trippy' is entirely insufficient to express what these guys do." Their show truly plants one in the epicenter of a kaleidoscopic volcano with all the the tectonic rumblings of their precisely tuned cymbal brass drums and expertly tweaked synth madness. Tool creates visions and sounds combined into experiences that defy language and description.
Now, I will attempt to highlight some moments from the experience. I tried to avoid spoilers before the show, but I saw the post on toolarmy that showed Danny playing HWAP. I never thought this song would come back to us in a live format, but they ruled it! What a way to start the show. Maynard's constantly evolving, brilliant use of multiple mics and multilayer harmony and vocal production is criminally underrated by scads of tool fans who nag about the Nard's treatment of older material. I think it's brilliant that they can alternate between major and minor vocal harmonies and stack clean and distorted vocals in ways that mimic album multitracking. This was in full use for HWAP, Jambi, and particularly Intension. Genius, I say! Furthermore, Adam and Danny's synthesizer prowess(Virus for Adam, Oberheim for Danny) has grown from modest experiments on the opening legs of the Lateralus tour to full-blown alien spaceship landings on recent outings. Justin alternates between the rudder and the anchor of the Tool ship. He can take his sound into the heavens or can offer a titanic two-note underpinning to the jam in Lateralus. The new jam that they previewed seemed to be a Justin based riff(awesome).
Speaking of Lateralus, I thought the jam with drummer from Yob was great. Very unselfish on the part of both drummers. Generally, the guest musician leaves after the improv part of Lateralus, but Tool allowed him to play the rest of the song. That seems to indicate that they dig what he has been adding to the jams.
I could go on and on, but suffice to say Tool's enshrinement in the canon of artistic greatness cannot be questioned and the sun is not setting on what they represent. Their shows are not a memorial to great achievements of the past, but instead a living altar that births new beauty constantly, but often in ways that subtly elude the casual or overly expectant fan. Go see this tour to remind you that Tool is awesome and prepare yourself for a the new Tool album.
Much love and cheers to Tool and to Southern Tool fans who represented quite well last night,

Bennytude
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