A site dedicated to TOOL

Music has inspired and helped evolve some of the most intelligent and creative people in the world. Through music we learn many things about life, love and the minds of other people. TOOL has been one of the most inspirational bands in history. Artistic, creative, beautiful and enlightening to our souls, Tool never stops in evolving what they do... making great music.

The evolutionary process of the mind - my journey with Tool

Tool has been my favorite band for almost 17 years and they have helped me evolve my mind, broaden my intellectual capacity and accelerate my thought process. Although it is mostly music that has helped me become inquisitive and curious, it is Tool that has been the foremost influence and inspiration on my long path.

Curiosity

Although I have always been a curious person, it is music, (Tool in general) that has made me want to learn. Anytime I hear something and don't understand it I look it up and learn everything I can about it and then evaluate the subject and the base my opinion and belief. The majority of Tools' subject matter is more of an intellectual, yet somewhat spiritual nature in a sense. But for me it didnt stop at just their subjects. It was so motivating for me that I wanted to know everything about everything. Now I spend every moment of every waking day learning something or at least applying what I have learned.

The music

Tools music, intrumentally, is also advanced. Not only is the music written harmoncally and melodically, but it is written mathematically as well. Like an algebraic equation who's solution is formulated with unknown factors and yet arrives at a beautiful point. Yet that equation's solution may not always be complete, it is better structured and comes closer to the definative answer - better music.

The band

Maynard James Keenan - Vocals, Song Writer and Wine Maker

Maynard James Keenan was born in Ohio in the city of Ravenna on April 17, 1964 and was the only child of Judith Marie and Michael Loren Keenan. He had always been creative and intelligent, but was born into a very intolerant home where his creativity was held back and shunned. As a young man he joined the United States Army with hopes of getting cash for Art school. He was skilled in advanced training and accepted at West Point Military Academy which he declined to attend Art college. After college he moved from Michigan to L.A. to try at a career in music. There he met the rest of his band... Maynard also has two side bands called A Perfect Circle and Puscifer. A Perfect Circle is quite famous and no less intelligent and beautiful than Tool and has its own unique creativity. I have only listened to a little of Puscifer and although I like it (it is his newest band) I don't know much about it yet.

Adam Jones - Guitarist, Art design and various other talents

Adam Jones was born in Park Ridge, Illinois, and raised in Libertyville, Illinois about a 3.5 hour drive from where I live. He has always been a music lover and played violin through elementary until his freshman year of highschool when he changed over to the accoustic bass for the orchestra. He then played bass for a band called Electric Sheep with Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine , another of my favorite bands. He then quit the band and moved to California and then learned how to play guitar by ear. Adam moved to L.A. to study art and sculpture. After college he began to work as a sculpturist and special effects desinger for the show 'Monsters' . Jones has worked on films like 'Ghostbusters 2', 'Predator 2', 'Jurassic Park', 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day', 'Dances with Wolves' and 'The Nightmare on Elm street' parts 4 & 5. Then he met the rest of the band... Adam Jones has done the majority of the design for the Tool videos and has collaberated with artist Alex Grey on the last two albums cover art and design and videos. Adam's unique guitar style is part of what makes Tool. There is no other with a sound like him.

Danny Carey - Drummer, the percussion

Danny Carey learned how to play the drums at 10 years old when he joined the school band and took private lessons to learn to play the snare drum. Through out highschool he was trained by two great drummers. Carey went to the University of Missouri in Kansas city where he studied the principles of geometry, science, and metaphysics. He also expanded his mind into Sacred Geometry and certain subtle parts of life and the occult. Carey played jazz music through out college. He then moved to L.A. and did studio sets with Carol King and performed live with Pygmy Love Circus. He then joined another band I liked called Green Jello (later Green Jelly) and then he met the rest of the band... The percussion of Tool is another of my great inspirations. Something about Danny's amazing skill with drumming can easily change my mood from mad or sad to happy and sends an unexplained euphoria through out my entire body.

Justin Chancellor - Bass, the rythym

I don't know a great deal about Justin except that he was in a band named Peach when the original Tool bassist left (who I feel there is no need to mention) and they called him to see if he wanted to join the band. He turned them down at first and then later decided it would be a good idea. What I do know is that he has proved to be one of the most amazing bassists that I have ever heard. His rythym and time are impeccable and go naturally with the flow of Tool; which in turn evolutionizes the music even further.

Opiate 1992

The Albums

1. Sweat 2. Hush 3. Part Of Me 4. Cold And Ugly: (live) 5. Jerk-Off: (live) 6. Opiate This is the 1st album and of course with any evolutionary process was at the beginning stages of Tools' journey and not as advanced. But that was not to say that it was any less unique or intelligent; it was just at the beginning stages. Tool has always been an outspoken band expressing all sorts of problems in the world with those about the human element and how it messes good ideas up. Although viewed as a "pissed off" album they were not so much being angry as they were expressing their views and fixes of those problems saying "this is what we should do about it".

Undertow 1992

1. Intolerance 2. Prison Sex 3. Sober 4. Bottom Rollins, Henry/Tool 5. Crawl Away 6. Swamp Song 7. Undertow 8. 4° 9. Flood 10. Disgustipated The next stage in the process was a more advanced particle that was more of an expression of maynards anger towards the government, his mother and just life itself. But it wasn't an expression of hate but of pragmatism. Again "This is what we should do". This album subject also conveyed Maynards struggle with heroin expressed especially in the song 'Undertow". " I think this was a very personal album to Maynard and I don't want to express too much about what I feel some of these songs mean to not disrespect Maynard in any way.

ÆNIMA 1996

1. Stinkfist 2. Eulogy 3. H. 4. Useful Idiot 5. Forty Six & 2 6. Message to Harry Manback 7. Hooker With a Penis 8. Intermission 9. Jimmy 10. Die Eier Von Satan 11. Pushit 12. Cesaro Summability 13. Ænema 14. Ions, (-) 15. Third Eye This is my over favorite album. Every single song is my favorite and I relate to this album more than anyone can know. Have you ever listened to someone and knew and understood every word they said, speaking as if it were the same mind as your own? That is how I feel about this album and Tool in general. Here they start to delve more into spiritualism (not in a religous sense) and searching your own mind and learning your self; your third eye. And all the while still expressing the concern for the human element and its disfunctions with always a sturdy solution. This is Danny's drumming at his best, that is probably why it is my favorite, but everything else on the album has advanced as well. And on to the next progression...

Lateralus 2001

1. The Grudge 2. Eon Blue Apocalypse 3. The Patient 4. Mantra 5. Schism 6. Parabol 7. Parabola 8. Ticks & Leeches 9. Lateralus 10. Disposition 11. Reflection 12. Triad 13. Faaip de Oiad This album was an expansion into the mind and into spiritualism. A great album, but not as good as ÆNIMA in my opinion. It was more advanced in content and formulation however. I thought it was a more poetic expression than the other albums lyrically. This album may be written in conjunction with the Qabala and its meanings are I believe explained quite well on this web page: toolpantheon.com/lateralus_meanings . It is too much for me to go into here, but it is thorough explaination.

10,000 Days 2006

1. Vicarious 2. Jambi 3. Wings for Marie (Pt 1) 4. 10,000 Days (Wings, Pt 2) 5. The Pot 6. Lipan Conjuring 7. Lost Keys (Blame Hofmann) 8. Rosetta Stoned 9. Intension 10. Right in Two 11. Viginti Tres At various times in history there have been geniuses in the world who have written music. Whether their IQ's were higher or their intellectual capacity and extremely fast thought process were evolved they have created some of the greatest music of all time. From Beethoven to Mozart or Rush to Pink Floyd every generation has a couple. But in my generation there has been an evolution of music that extremely progressed in the 80's and 90's and one of those bands has out evolved them all... their name is Tool. Take the creative intelligent writing of Rush, Floyd and Zeppelin and mix it with a man who probably has a higher IQ than 3/4's of the world and a drummer who surpasses Neal Pert from Rush any day and you have Tool. Every Album has progressed harmonically, melodically and mathematically (through the instruments) in succession since Opiate came out in 1992. The recent album 10,000 Days is the culmination of everything Tool has done in my opinion. Contained within the album 10,000 Days are 2 songs called 'Wings For Marie - (Part 1) and 10,000 days - (Wings Part 2); the former telling of how his mother suffered for years and still had faith in her religion and her god and was the pillar of his life*¹, and the latter telling the story of her finally standing at the gates of the heaven she most reverently had faith in and demanding her wings, and then climaxes with him expressing his admiration of her*².

*¹ Lyric excerpt from 'Wings For Marie - (Part 1)
Yet it was you who prayed for me.
So what have I done
To be a son to an angel?
What have I done
To be worthy?

*² Lyric excerpt from "10,000 Days - (Wings Part 2)
You're the only one, who can hold your head up high,
Shake your fists at the gates saying:
"I've come home now!
Fetch me the spirit, the son, and the father.
Tell them their pillar of faith has ascended.
It's time now!
My time now!
Give me my, give me my wings!"

and...

Set as I am in my ways and my arrogance,
(With the) burden of proof tossed upon the believers.
You were my witness, my eyes, my evidence,
Judith Marie, unconditional one.

With Maynard James Keenan`s operatic baritone vibrato voice combined with his lyrics and passion, this has to be the most amazing things I have ever heard in my life and I have listened to thousands of bands from various era's in history. This is not a religious song or album or band. From every view I see it from he is agnostic as I am (and I could most definitely be wrong, but that is my opinion). The art in the album of course is a collaberation of both the guitarist Adam Jones and artist Alex Grey. The music video from the song 'Vicaroius' is also a beautiful artistic display from the art of alex grey. Most of Tools videos have been a transcendences of beauty and of the mind and most of them directed or designed by Adam.

My Journey

This has become my journey with Tool because I started my process at the same time I heard the first Tool album. It has been the Tool that has helped me along my path and I am so greatful to them and the rest of music. I suggest to anyone who has an open mind to give it a chance, and if not listen to the music then read the lyrics.