10,000 DAYS

10.000 Days is only the 4th Tool album in 15 years. It makes them even less prolific then Anekdoten who managed to churn out at least one more album over a similar period of time. But Tool make up for it by releasing a really long album again. And for the first time in their carreer they have me on board. And how!

Tool hasn't changed all that much compared to the previous album, but somehow they finally achieved to capture their live energy on a studio recording. The opening Vicarious sounds like someone set the band on fire. It's dark, urgent and poignant, even Maynard fully convinces me now. He has just a tad more melody in his rhythmic recitative. The band also perfected their compositional skills. While very similar to Lateralus, it's strikingly more varied. The songs ebb and flow nicely through various motions.

Maybe it's just due to an extra sparkle of inspiration and bite, but Tool sound ablaze on this album, Jambi continues to deliver on the genius that I had heard in Tool 15 years earlier during one of their early live concerts. They sweep me off my feet here. A few outbursts aside, Wings for Marie is the first quite moment on the album. Tool manages the dynamics between soft and loud very adequately now. 10.000 Days gradually builds up out of brooding guitar chords. The Pot continues with a catchy funk vibe. Not unlike Rage Against The Machine this one. Lipan Conjuring is a pagan chant that I'm sure I've heard somewhere before.

We're 40 minutes in by now and when Lost Keys begins, it's like the intro of a second album is starting, and I actually tend to play both halves in separate sittings. The first half if I want rock, the second if I want to dream away with the music. Rosetta Stoned is one of those Tool tracks where I can just sit and listen to the drums and the bass. Great playing abound. Intension is more brooding and post-rock oriented. Right In Two has a powerful emotional drive. Again Maynard puzzles me, did he take singing lessons or a course in writing memorable vocal melodies? What an improvement over the preceding albums. Everything ends with the nihilistic white noise of Virginti Tres. It's the type of track added at the end to make sure you don't shuffle the intended running order.

Seems like Tool continues to sound better with every album. If they continue at this pace (an album every 5 years) they will eventually release the most astounding rock album ever. Probably by the time they retire. Until that happens, this sure is a 4.5 star album for me.