First Tool show, had to drive from Wilmington so it was about 4.5 hours. I missed two or three Melt-Banana songs on the way in but caught them for the last half of the act. When I saw them live last week in a small venue in Chapel Hill they were incredible, but an arena just doesn't fit their style. Tool started around 9:15 I guess, wasn't paying too much attention.

Jambi: I don't think this is a very good opening song, but I don't think its a really good song anyway. They played it slower than on record so Maynard sounded a little fast at some points but otherwise they performed it good. It was just kind of boring.

Stinkfist: Much better. The band was dead on, and I was so happy to hear the extended version. Makes the song a lot better.

Forty-Six & 2: Adam's rig cut out after the first few notes and didn't start for a minute but it was a good time for it to cut out, as opposed to the middle of the song or something like that. I lit a joint and shared it with some of the people around me, and that helped me get into it more. Danny was on fire during the solo, and the ending was so powerful. I wish they could have gone to something heavier after this because it was so rocking but Schism was alright.

Schism: Like some people say, it's an alright song but it just hurts the flow of the concert to have it where it is. The double-time section is very cool but I think something else would fit better.

Lost Keys/Rosetta: The visuals are cool and its awesome how the stage resembles a UFO during the song but the vocals at the beginning just don't work live. There seemed to be a few timing issues as well but there are always a few hiccups during a show and it's not too noticable. The song gets much better as it goes on but it does nothing for me compared to something like Third Eye.

Flood: Probably the highlight of the night. I'm happy they played the full version too, the beginning resembles the sonic equivelent of a flood very well. The band was spot on and rocked hard. It's easy to tell how old Maynard is getting and how constant touring hurts because his voice was shaky during the high notes, but he still pulled it off.

Wing 1&2: I don't like these songs, and seeing them live didn't change my opinion. The drumming is very cool and the bass has some good grooves but the guitar work is shoddy and the lyrics do nothing for me. I spent the time smoking another joint and looking at the pretty lasers.

Lateralus: One of my favorite songs and seeing it live was awesome. The extended part is alright, hearing the drum-off is cool but it ruins the pacing of the song and the drummer from Melt-Banana just isn't in the same league as Danny. Agata the guitarist added some cool effects to the song that worked out nicely though. I just think a song like Triad invites for a jam atmosphere more than Lateralus. I wish something like that was played.

I can't remember if it was before or after Lateralus, but Maynard led us in the happy birthday song for someone that I couldn't make out from where I was. He also said something to the effect of "We've played these songs a million times, but they require a lot of dedication and communication between us to pull off. There's also a lot of emotional attactment that we have for each song, and we thank you for not bringing your flash cameras to the performance because they make it harder for us to concentrate on what we're doing." So that was pretty cool, giving a little explanation for why they're playing the same setlist over and over. Hopefully this will also show the band that the southeast appreciates them coming in so they won't skip us again like on the first tour. I was also hoping that this little speech meant for another surprise for the show, but alas I was mistaken.

Vicarious: This song was overplayed so I got bored of it but it sounds great live. It does make for a good closer but Aenema would be my wish for the last song. Maynard skipped the first part of the last verse but thats to be expected I guess.

Overall it was a pretty good show, but after hearing everyone say how good Tool is live, I guess I was expecting more. Maybe I'm just spoiled on amazing bands in small venues but I just wasn't as into it as I thought I would be. 10,000 Days just isn't a good album either, especially after Flood I realized how much more rocking they were back in the day. I had the most fun during the older songs. It was a good performance though and the sound was very good in section 123, though the drums weren't loud enough for me. Overall it was about 7/10.