Tabbool Would Signify the End of the World

For background on this entry, please read Monday’s post and comments.

The mere thought of ruining Tool songs by combining them with ABBA sort of makes me sick, I am however, fairly confident that it will never happen. Never. Mainly because, and I’m making an educated guess here, most ABBA songs are the standard disco dance beat registering in at 120 BPM. Tool’s time signatures? Off the wall wacky - not to mention the frequent and abrupt tempo changes.

That being said, the new Tool album, 10,000 Days, leaked and therefore, if you know how, you can go find it and listen to all of the crazy tempo changes, Maynard’s whispering and some more fun things that are sure to confound.

The album is much better then the first single “Vicarious” would indicate. There is definitely more of Tool’s classic sound in this album but at the same time there are several songs on which Tool uses a very generic, chugging, staccato guitar effect, like on “Jambi,” that sounds very dated. There is also a two-part, laid-back prog rocker that clocks in at over 17 minutes and makes me sleepy. Probably the best parts are the two “non-songs,” a bit reminiscent of Aenima’s “Intermission” and “Aenema.” Maynard, however seems to be fading into the background. Where his vocals were once soaring at the forefront, they have now taken a second to the guitar, disappearing into a wall of sound.

As good as 10,000 Days may be, it’s still no Aenima, or even Undertow for that matter. Which makes me wonder, did Tool peak at its third album?

Stuff to Sample: I’m not going to post anything, apathy has overwhelmed me.