Mudvayne i get.
RATM has the same kinda of poetical negativity
The BEATLES!! pls tell me that was a joke....

Not really, Why was it so funny?

Red Temple Spirits
Father Yod

in fact i think theyve stolen from these bands...

caspar brötzmann is fucking amazing...adam only hopes

Uhh, Beatles was mainstream and loved by Elvis fans
Tool has neither attribute (thankfully)

Dream Theatre, lolol

.

seriously *pukes in mouth*

Decent post, only if you take out the creepy elipsis's and focus on your sentence structure. But i agree with you

tool sound like:

king crimson
pink floyd
the doors

sound like tool:
HURT
10 years
chevelle

are you kidding? tool is VERY mainstream.

I wasn't talking about appeal, genres, or fans. I was talking about their massive popularity and radio play.

Tool is somewhere in between, although they certainly didn't start that way. Main difference is that they originated as an underground alternative/prog metal act. with their own artistic vision, and never let that get compromised. They were not "taken into the studio by some producer", who told them he was going to make them huge - how and why to construct their music so it would sell millions of albums, like most real "mainstream" acts. Now they sell millions of albums and are in the media sometimes. They have become mainstream by their own artistic merit, which is a great thing and has only allowed them to live their lives as they wish and continue to have control over and produce what material they feel like when they feel like it. So I can find a middleground in the argument. Probably they are mainstream now, but they originated out of something definitely not mainstream.

I think if you read Danny's faq on www.danneycarey.org it gives you great insight. Just because something becomes popular because it is GOOD is not a bad thing. And even though they are mainstream at this point, they are definitely not P-Diddy mainstream, so it's a bit relative.

Van Gogh is mainstream, and his art is arguably unmatched.

Much better way of putting it. But I still think they're more like Zeppelin than The Doors. There are similarities to both, but it's the hard edge of Zeppelin that bridges the gap for me.

Ah ha, but you're American i take it? I'm a New Zealander, and Tool is pretty much under a rock as far as we can tell. Its not mainstream here, its quite underground. I've seen each tool Video once (not counting Parabol/a and Vicarious) due to a need to fill in a half hour slot on the local music tv. Thats it. So its not mainstream here.

Ginazjuice, i almost regretted throwing in the jab, but then i looked at your name....muahahahahah!

ahahahahaha

so you're saying Tool isn't mainstream because you understand them on some transcendental level, and that John Mayer is good?

you don't know anything about music

I don't really think he's trying to say that. He's just trying to defend their artistic integrity. And the label of "mainstream" has a tendency to denote that they have lost that quality. I can see where he's coming from. But like I said, I am on the fence on this one. They are somewhere in between. And if they are "mainstream", they are one of the relatively rare acts (ESPECIALLY in America) that has made it there entirely on their own vision and artistic merit. There is something to be said for that.

Yeah that name Ginaz_Juice will get you a jab or two here and there... mine certainly has me =). You guys give the less than greatly screennamed fellas a little bit of a break, because you've got to realize ideal handles aren't exactly up for grabs here anymore. I didn't have hours to keep trying one hundred possibilities, and come up with something perfect when I felt the undeniable impulsive urge to respond to a post finally after about 5 years of lurking here.

And the John Mayer topic... *sings* here come the flames, here comes the flames. I'm not a huge fan or anything, but if you look at what he's done so far, he broke from his "mainstream" beginning to attain more artistic credibility. I mean, he went from "your body is a wonderland" *puke* to a pretty tight blues/rock trio doing originals and Hendrix/SRV covers. Which is a commendable thing, in this day and age within the music industry. He is looked at as having great potential for what he eventually may do, because he's so young. The one thing I can say for sure is the is an exceptionally talented guitarist. One of the very few I have ever heard who does half justice to Hendrix, and can pull it off live. So he may turn out better than most of us expect.

But alas, the thread is most definitely not about John Mayer lol...

RAMMSTEIN
DETERIOR
LAST DAYS OF HUMANITY

True, but seems to me something can have a highly original sound and still be "mainstream".

Mozart is "mainstream" lol

wat

You don't have the huge fanbase that tool does and not be mainstream. Tool's music is deep and intricate, but it also is very pleasing to the ear. That's why it appeals to so many people. I say they are somewhere inbetween. They have the popularity of being mainstream, but a lot of those people just like the sound and don't really understand the other side them.

Dream theatre isn't mainstream either, but they have sold out concerts everywhere.
Mainstream is The Kooks ( Indie ) Rihanna (RnB) Escape the fate (Emo) ie. crap music
Good music is usually never mainstream imo. Only a few greats have managed to rise e.g Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and that was only because they captured the mood of the time.

Dream Theatre doesn't have the fanbase that Tool does. Tool has also won three Grammys, two for best metal performance. For Aenema they beat out Korn, Pantera, and Megadeth. For Schism they beat out Slipknot, Black Sabbath, System of a Down, and Slayer. I'm sorry but they are at least partially mainstream.

What are you on about? I see dozens of people with Tool T-shirts and Tool stickers on their cars and so forth. Schism was played a lot on C4 when Lateralus was released. The Vicarious video hasnt been played often due to it being released more than a year after 10k Days came out. The song itself has had plenty of air time on the radio though ,and Aenema was voted the 8th best album of all time by the Rock's listeners. Stop deluding yourself. Tool is mainstream.

I really don't see how something being mainstream equates to it having nothing to offer musically. If that is the case then The Beatles have also nothing to offer musically?

To say that music being mainstream somehow makes it of any less value is absurd and irrational. I'm not saying that a lot of music which is mainstream isn't utter crap though.

Being mainstream is about being popular and things that go along with being popular. You adding any other meanings to it is your problem.

pink floyd, nine inch nails, mars volta (at the drive in) in terms of bands who have made it big while still keeping their edge and artistic integrity...but I don't think any band can really compare to tool.

good take on it

No, that's your interpretation of mainstream. To me being mainstream has to do with your music being popular, and widely listened to. You can be a popular band, win grammys, have a lot of fans and still offer all that Tool does musically and poetically. That doesn't mean everybody gets it. I saw an 80/20 ratio posted on here that seems pretty accurate.

Lmao, you're funny. I just explained how mainstream applies to music. You're retort is "well besides all that how are they mainstream?" Please explain to me if they aren't mainstream then what are they? Underground?

Um, no. And you didn't answer the question.

Why does what I think effect wether or not you can explain your opinion?

No, I can't help you. Like I said they are somewhere in the middle I'd say. I don't think they are mainstream completely. They have a large following, get radio play, and all that. That's the only part about them I find mainstream. Musically they aren't. I think perhaps you misunderstood what I was saying. I would call them great, that's about all the help I can be.

Mainstream is, generally, the common current of thought of the majority. It is a term most often applied in the arts (i.e., music, literature, and performance). This includes:

something that is ordinary or usual;
something that is familiar to the masses;
something that is available to the general public

Mainstream music denotes music that is familiar and unthreatening to the masses, as for example popular music, pop music, middle of the road music, or soft rock; but it should be noted that older generations often dislike the mainstream taste of the youth, and may not agree as to what is or is not mainstream. Mainstream jazz is generally seen as an evolution of be-bop, which was originally regarded as radical.

Yeah kind of. I wouldn't even say musically speaking. I don't think their musical sound is mainstream at all. But this, is exactly what I'm trying to say.

1) King Crimson - Especially on Red
2) The Melvins
3) Led Zeppelin - Not so much for the sound, but for their mysticism

Can agree with this.

The horse is dead and beaten to a bloody pulp, toss it into the stream and let it's main sink with the Undertow ^

Yeah this thread is done in all senses of the word

similar wise?
Well I can say that from a creative/genius comparison (of the music I listen to),
1. NIN, I mean Trent Reznor is amazing. Hands down this was the first bands that came to mind

2. Pink Floyd... Im a huge fan and I must give them number 2 because they one of the most creative bands (The story to the Wall is great).

3. Rush wouldnt be a bad choice, there Prog Rock stuff is what I am thinking of. Its kinda open really...

Other's disagree but I think Chevelle fits perfect. They have some very cool unorthadox movements in the songs that make me think Tool everytime.

nope.

if anything: King Crimson, Yes, and Pink Floyd. The latter for the subject matter and the two former for intricate(ish) meters and style.

that guy from chevelle is a punk.