I am no metal-head by any stretch of the imagination. I love rock music and grew up listening to Nirvana, Guns’n’Roses, Metallica, Doors, and the like. What I enjoyed about those bands was the fact that besides sounding great, their music had so many layers, and the longer you listened to them, you would discover varying interpretations of the songs. Compared to the mindless screaming (sorry, that’s just my personal opinion) of the hard-core metal bands, I found it so much easier to connect with classic rock.
A few years ago, Alex introduced me to a progressive metal band named Tool. When I heard them for the first time, I was not really sure what genre of music I was listening to. Rock? Yes. Metal? Sounds like it. “Alternate”? Hell yeah! But what the hell… Indian tabla? Fusion? What? Those crazy guitar riffs and ludicrous drums! No way! Damn, that sound is nothing like I have heard before!! After listening to more of their songs, Tool quickly became a favourite. Their lead singer – Maynard James Keenan – is also on a band named Puscifer, where he combines with the rest of the members to create some of the most spectacular songs I have heard in a very long time.
Fast forward to today, August 30th 2019 – Tool finally released their new album – Fear Inoculum – after a long gap of 13 years! Obviously, the moment the news broke and the album went live on Apple Music, I have had it playing on loop all afternoon. Boy oh boy… this album was surely worth the wait. It’s 87 minutes of absolutely insane brilliance. Out of the 10 songs on the album, 6 are longer than 10 minutes!
The first song, Fear Inoculum, blends ambient, atmospheric elements with Eastern instruments like the Tabla and the Santoor, and then just blows your mind away with a barrage of complex, interweaving layers of sounds, beats and deeply insightful lyrics. I’d say the song centers on the theme of overcoming your fears. Powerful, dynamic, deep.
Pneuma starts with a slower build-up, and then a more Tool-esque sound takes over. About 6 minutes in, you hear some African drums creating a sense of anticipation before Danny Carey goes crazy on his drums and then Adam Jones adds yet another sheet of brilliance with his hard-hitting guitar jams.
Litanie contre la Peur took me by surprise. The highly technical and space-like sound of the short piece comes out of nowhere and reminds you of Tool’s “progressive” or “alternate” DNA.
Invincible again builds up slowly, with a mix of repetitive guitaring, atmospheric drumming, before pulling you into a complex world of psychological and musical unpredictability, interspersed with powerful, rib-cage rattling drums and guitar riffs. The following lyrics force you to stop, look back on your own life, reflect on your current circumstances and wonder where exactly are you headed and what will your legacy be if any.
Age old battle, mine. Weapon out and belly in.
Tales told of battles won, of things we’ve done, Caligula would grin.
Beating tired bones. Tripping through remember when.
Once invincible. Now the armor’s wearing thin.
Heavy shield down. Warrior struggling to remain relevant.
Warrior struggling to remain consequential.Bellow aloud, bold and proud, of where I’ve been.
But here I am, where I end.
The song is a mix of nostalgia, melancholy and an expression of your last farewells.
Legion Inoculant is almost soothing… after the volatility of Invincible, this song tries to slow down your heart-beat and make you feel as if there’s still time… The song has a mysterious, almost “tantric” edge to it.
Descending starts with the calming sound of waves and just as you begin to think that this is a continuation of the recovery from Invincible, the mood changes quickly to a virtual war cry. This is by far one of my favourite Tool songs of all time. The mind-boggling musical variations (including the Tabla again) hit you relentlessly. What also stands out for me about this song are the lyrics:
Free fall through our midnight, this epilogue of our own fable.
Heedless in our slumber.
Floating nescient we free fall through this boundlessness,
This madness of our own making.
Falling isn’t flying. Floating isn’t infinite…
Come, Our end, suddenly. All hail our lethargy. Concede Suddenly.
To the quickened dissolution.
Pray we Mitigate the ruin, calling all to arms and order.
Drifting through this boundlessness, this madness of our own making.
Sound our dire reveille. Rouse all from our apathy, lest we cease to be.
Stir us from our wanton slumber.
Mitigate our ruin.
Call us all to arms and order.
Sound the dread Alarm through our primal body.
Sound the reveille to be or not to be.
Rise. Stay the grand finale.
Stay the reading of our swan song & epilogue.
One Drive; To stay alive.
It’s Elementary. Muster every fiber. Mobilize. Stay Alive
Stir us from our wanton slumber. Mitigate our ruin.
Call us all to arms and order.
I am sure different people will interpret these words in different ways. But from my point of view, these words speak volumes about the times we live in, laying out the harsh realities, giving humanity’s lethargy a slap on the face. At the same time, almost screaming out to wake up, get up and turn things around. Muster every fiber. Mobilize. Stay alive. Stir us from our wanton slumber. Mitigate our ruin. Long after the song ended, these words continued to haunt me. I read somewhere that this could also be Tool’s swan song, but it doesn’t really matter. This is one of those songs that will linger in the memories of mortals for ages to come. The last 4 minutes of this 13:37 minutes song bring together the best of Tool’s insane instrumentals with an almost encore-like ending, leaving you gasping for breath, as once again, the soothing sound of the waves fade you out.
“Psychopathy. Don’t You dare point that at me.” This line dominates the song titled Culling Voices. Wikipedia defines Psychopathy as traditionally a personality disorder characterized by persistent antisocial behaviour, impaired empathy and remorse, and bold, disinhibited, and egotistical traits. I may be wrong, but this song comes across as an admission of being a social misfit, yet having no regrets about it at all. It’s a constant battle with the voices in your head. This is another song that has a haunting edge to it, made even more so by the dark mood set by the guitar and drums. Yet again, the song fades out with an almost soulful essence.
Chocolate Chip Trip is a rollercoaster! Starts with bells and chimes and Tibetan gongs, before introducing some psychedelic sounds and classic drum rolls. Just as you strap in, a weird time-warp zaps you to the highest point of the ride from where you are at the mercy of the extraordinary Danny Carey. And he just sets you off on a 4-minute journey of incessant and highly complex, technical drumming. This would be the perfect soundtrack to an alien attack thriller!
The longest song of the album, clocking 15:43 minutes, is 7empest. The Apple Music “Editor’s Note” rightly says the song “begins by sounding like the most traditional Tool song of the lot – but it sure doesn’t end that way”. Keep calm. Keepin it calm. Keep calm. FUCK. Here we go again. No, these are not my words. This is the opening line of the song. And if you ask me, it’s a warning of what lies ahead! Halfway through, you are at the edge of your seat, not really sure of what’s next. This is Adam Jones and bass guitarist Justin Chancellor at their creative and technical best. Their mad guitaring blended with Danny Carey’s drums, grabs you by the feet and swings you around, thrashing you on the floor a few times, swinging again, a bit more of the thrashing, and then you are set free, with your body intact, but your brain reeling from an experience that should have shattered you into a million pieces, but somehow, miraculously, you just walk away feeling… rejuvenated… alive… maybe even reborn!
Mockingbeat is a 2-minute piece comprised of electronic screeches, bird-sounds, ambient vocals and atmospheric riffs. It ends as abruptly as it starts. I am not quite sure what to make of it. But then, this is Tool. When do you ever really know what the freaking f***k to make of anything they create? All you do is get swallowed by their unforgiving appetite for creative insanity.
Saying Tool is back would be a pathetic understatement and an insult to this band’s almost superhuman prowess as musicians. All I can do is humbly appreciate what they have delivered and absorb it to the maximum extent possible.
One Drive; To stay alive.
It’s Elementary. Muster every fiber. Mobilize. Stay Alive
Stir us from our wanton slumber. Mitigate our ruin.
Call us all to arms and order.