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Old 06-30-2006, 10:42 PM   #1
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Lateralus - A story?

Big Fat Matt’s Motherfucking Revalation

By
Big Fat Matt
-a.k.a.-
Rev. Maynard
-a.k.a.-
Flynnnyrd Skynyrd
-a.k.a.-
To Live is To Die
-a.k.a.-
Harvester Of Sorrow
-a.k.a.-
The Fatness
-a.k.a.-
Flynn
-a.k.a.-
The BFM Bomb
-a.k.a.-
The Bubbanaut
-a.k.a.-
Matt Flynn









CH 1: My Fucking Revalation Bitches!
I will start with how I made my genius revelation. I was taking a shit in my basement, reading an old Game Informer. Then it hit me. I remembered the Holy Gift Reorder of Tool’s “Lateralus” and wondered how a Revalation like that was achieved. Suddenly I remembered the schism video, how it told a story. A story of 2 people, ending a schism between each other, becoming one. Then the other songs bring a relevance of sorts into this. I realized that this album told a story. A story of 2 people, who go from Bitter hate, to everlasting unity in a ‘heaven’ like state. The Following chapters will describe this story, and will serve as a backdrop for some intellectual bullshit.




CH. 2: The Grudge
This song is not only an excellent introduction to the album, but it is where the story starts, The story is of 2 people, and at the beginning, they dislike each other, they hold a GRUDGE against one another if you will.

“Wear the grudge like a crown of negativity.
Calculate what we will or will not tolerate.
Desperate to control all and everything.
Unable to forgive your scarlet lettermen.”

Not only do they dislike each other, but it becomes evident that one has done something to anger the other. They cannot tolerate each other. They hold nothing but negativity against each other. However, this will change




CH. 3: Eon Blue Apocalypse/The Patient/Mantra

Though “Eon Blue Apocalypse” and “Mantra” are nothing but filler, “Eon” Fades into “The Patient”, which describes how the 2 people grow to tolerate each other more.

“Wait It Out
Gonna wait it out
Be patient (wait it out).

If there were no rewards to reap,
No loving embrace to see me through
This tedious path I've chosen here,
I certainly would've walked away by now.
Gonna wait it out…
…And if there were no rewards to reap,
No loving embrace to see me through
This tedious path I've chosen here,
I certainly would've walked away by now.
And I still may.”

Though they dislike each other, they have come to realize there may be rewards in such a relationship like this. That Trying to Find Something god in each other may work out for the better.

“Be patient.
I must keep reminding myself of this.”

They realize that they MUST find good in one another for them to survive and to be happy and therefore they must end the…

CH. 4: Schism
If you don’t know what a Schism is, I suggest you get a dictionary, then watch the video for this song. It will make sense. The 2 people, who realize that they cannot survive as 2 begrudging individuals, decide to end the Schism, and become a happy ‘couple’ if you will. The Reward that was spoken of in the last song is now discovered, and they realize what importance it holds.

“I know the pieces fit cuz I watched them tumble down
No fault, none to blame it doesn't mean I don't desire to
Point the finger, blame the other, watch the temple topple over.
To bring the pieces back together, rediscover communication”

The temple symbolizes the ‘Leaden Grudge’ (see lyrics to 'The Grudge') that has been disassembled and ‘turned to gold’. For so long, they held such a grudge (point the finger, blame the other), but now they realize that through their communication, they have broken down such ignorance.

“Cold silence has a tendency to atrophy any
Sense of compassion
Between supposed lovers/brothers”

During the schism, there was no compassion, no communication, between the soon to be ‘lovers’. This is even better portrayed trough the video for the song.

CH. 5: Parabol

Parabol Holds little value to this theory; partly because it is my belief that it is part of parabola. Nonetheless, it gets its own chapter cause Kicks so much ass.

CH. 6: Parabola

Parabola describes the Gift that the 2 people receive through each other (see Ch‘s 1-4). The gift is that there is an afterlife of sorts.

“This body holding me. Be my reminder here that I am not alone in
This body, this body holding me, feeling eternal
All this pain is an illusion.”

That there is an eternal spirit trapped in all of us, and that through death, that sprit is released into eternal bliss. They are each a little reminder that they may not be happy here, ‘in this body’ but they will be eternally happy in the afterlife.

CH. 7: Ticks & Leeches
Many Tool fans feel that Ticks & Leeches is positioned horribly on the album. I however disagree. This song Plays an important part in the story. The 2 people have found solace in each other; I will go as far as to say they love each other. However, another enters the relationship. A parasite. He takes from the 2 until they have no more to give, and eventually die.



“Suck me dry.
My blood is bruised and borrowed. You thieving bastards.
You have turned my blood cold and bitter,
beat my compassion black and blue.

Hope this is what you wanted.
Hope this is what you had in mind.
Cuz this is what you're getting.
I hope you're choking. I hope you choke on this”

This song is obviously in anger towards whoever did this to them. But the culmination of the story comes in the next song.

CH. 8: Lateralus
Lateralus is the culmination of the story, the eventual passing of the spirit from the body to the afterlife.

“Over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind.
Withering my intuition, missing opportunities and I must
Feed my will to feel my moment drawing way outside the lines.”

Though they may have not achieved all they desired in their physical lifetime, they are eternal now, they can do what they want, (draw outside the lines).

“Feed my will to feel this moment urging me to cross the line.
Reaching out to embrace the random.
Reaching out to embrace whatever may come”

Death in this case is a reward, which may seem odd, why they’re being told to “embrace the random”. “Cross the line” refers to the line between physical life, and eternal life.

CH. 9: Disposition

Disposition holds no meaning to my theory, but I believe it is as Parabol is, that is merely a part of the next song.

[/b]Ch. 10: Reflection/Triad[/b]
Reflection describes what the 2 experience in the afterlife. They discover one of Late comedian Bill Hicks’ theories, of a collective unconscious, that we are all one mind. If we are all that is, there can be no opposite, and if there is no negative, there is only positive.

“And you will come to find that we are all one mind
Capable of all that's imagined and all conceivable.”

So in this everlasting communal consciousness, the 2 people become one with existance, essentially becoming part of god.

Triad has no lyrics, and is merely a sonic continuation of reflection.

CH. 11: Faaip De Oiad

This song (yeap you guessed it) hold no purpose, except in its name. One will find that Is Enoch For ‘Voice of god’. And I will leave you with that.


CREDITS:

COMIC RELEIF:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...aynard&pl=true
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...d+tool&pl=true
Mr. Dimmer

Bill hicks Theory Appears On: ‘Relentless’

All thoughts Copyrighted by Matthew James Flynn.
Except for theory of death in CH. 7 copyrighted by Vincenzo Barone

I am not Tool. Vincenzo Barone is not Tool. I am in no way associated with Tool, and neither is Vincenzo Barone. We just love the music.



comments welcome
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Old 07-01-2006, 12:01 AM   #2
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

gtfo..............
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Old 07-01-2006, 09:13 PM   #3
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Big Fat Matt
I was taking a shit in my basement, reading an old Game Informer.
In your basement? Were you on a toilet?

In all seriousness, though, nice post. I liked your perspective.
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Old 07-02-2006, 02:41 AM   #4
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

Heard it all before, but you put it across way better than anyone else did, and some of your Ticks & Leeches ideas were very good.


But one thing I want to add, I believe Mantra has a seperate purpose to The Patient or Schism. Mantra is a message sent from the Faaip De Oiad to one of the 2 people, saying they must 'rediscover communication' and break down the Schism to become eternal, and join God's one mind. During The Patient, the two were both thinking about bridging the gap, but were 'gonna wait it out'. Mantra comes, and pushes one of them to finally do it, and that is where Schism happens.
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Old 07-02-2006, 11:09 AM   #5
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

Quote:
Originally Posted by duncang
Heard it all before, but you put it across way better than anyone else did, and some of your Ticks & Leeches ideas were very good.
The T&L ideas are not mine, see the credits.

Quote:
In your basement? Were you on a toilet?
yes. i was.
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Old 07-02-2006, 11:11 AM   #6
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

And that T&L person is none other than myself. *waits for someone giving boos*
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Old 07-02-2006, 11:13 AM   #7
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

you were crutial in the progression of this theory, vinniehemoth.
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Old 07-06-2006, 05:52 AM   #8
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

I have seen so many theories on this album it's unreal, but i continue to view them anyway....made some good points with this one but it can be interpreted in many ways...one theory that holds strong in my mind is how it represents different points of the tree of life (from qabalah)...interesting link, tool fans will at least find this interesting (http://www.toolpantheon.com/lateralus_meanings.htm) check it out and let me know what you guys think..on danney carey's website i've seen the tree of life diagram so there is potential for at least a little correalation......REMINDER, just for discussing, im not saying this is flawless.....let me know people.......peace
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Old 07-11-2006, 09:24 PM   #9
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

i was jsut about to post somehting llike this and i am really angry that someone beat me to it, since i don't make good posts, ever. the grudge should be chapter 1 and the epiphany should be prologue.

edit - good job
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Old 09-26-2006, 06:31 PM   #10
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

the asshole in me says, "i'm not sure what you got right... i mean, there is such thing as a band called 'tool', but..."

the non-asshole in me says, "you've obviously gone to great lengths to describe what seems to have really clicked for you (and thank you for your efforts), but i just can't understand the album in the same light."

all of tool's lyrics seem to point in all different directions, so of course we're not going to come up with THE answer (not just yet), but we'll keep digging - that's what it's all about.

matt, i had a more left-brain-ed thread concerning the track "lateralus". mine consists mostly of numbers (rather than feelings) - yours is interpretation (good stuff, indeed). i just wish everyone went to these lengths (also, i wish that people thought for themselves rather than the ol' "i heard that song this is about this, so... now, i think this" sorta thing). this thread's more unique than most, so ...there's my props. keep going.

somniferous, in my personal digging, i've also come across the idea of these 13 (12 around 1) tracks (see: the "holy gift" re-arrangement) to have some sort of connection to the whole sacred geometry aspect of tool. there, i said it. "tree of life", maybe, but i'm actually thinking that maybe it's the "fruit of life" image. "faaip de oiad" would be the center circle (this is where i differ STRONGLY against that link - which i've been to many times before). "in the beginning there was the word", right? (something like that) we all know that the title of track thirteen on lateralus translates to "the voice of god" (enochian). all you do from there is follow the process of creation.

i'm glad other people are connecting sacred geometry to these works of art.
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Old 09-27-2006, 01:39 PM   #11
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

Ehhh...

I though T+L would be more like the final fight that resolves the conflict where they get it all out and LAteralus was more of a continuation where they learn to accept each other and realize that everyone makes mistakes.... and then bond with each other closing the argument and DRT is telling each other their dirty secrets and feelings of hopelessness towards life and bond towards even more...

ehhh... idk thats just more how i would see THIS theory...

but thats just me
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Old 09-30-2006, 07:27 PM   #12
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

:applause:

I've only ever once had an organic listening experience like that once, where each song just sort of progressed things into another part of one extravagant story. and it wasn't even while I was listening to TOOL

the muses have sung sweetly to you Matt; thanks for sharing
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Old 10-13-2006, 01:38 PM   #13
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Re: Lateralus - A story?

wow...im surprised...noone is yelling at each other yet over why their theory is better...
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