Cannot get into Tool

Charterhouser wrote: Well I listened to Aenima and Lateralus, encouraged by the positive reviews I had found on this site, some of which compared to Pink Floyd and marked Lateralus as the new millenium Dark Side of the Moon. I didn't really care about that- I immediately thought that statements like these aren't generally reliable- but I was interested by the feeling of their music so positevely described by many reviewers. And I have to tell that... I was really disappointed... I truly could not get into it! Couldn't appreciate nor found any particular technical skill (except for the drummer), any melodic talent... I liked some of the atmospheres, but overall the songs seemed to me just sick, monotonous and... a bit pretentious... and the vocals just played an alienating effect on me, I just couldn't stant them. I'm speaking, of course, in personal terms, without criticizing Tool for what they are... Tool fans please don't slander me ...

Why would we slander you for that? It is so much more mature to say that you dislike something but it isn't necessairily bad then it is to say that something outright sucks. I hate people who say  something along the lines of "tool sucks because they are boring."

Well now, my advice for you if you still want to get into tool is to fixate on one song. Since you have lateralus, try the title track. Listen to it with the lyrics out in front, trying to interpret it. Look up the music video for it on youtube. Listen to it again and attempt to count out the time signature. Try to figure out the mathematical structure of the lyrics. Watch one of the countless videos of some amateur trying to bang it out on drums. If you still don't like it after all that, then give up


Edited by Nuke - February 07 2008 at 14:14

i agree with nuke in the respects that finding one song at least that you like from a band your having trouble with is important. thats how i got into pretty much every prog band out there. its such difficult listening sometimes, and demanding, that its hard to really attach yourself to a style of play immediately. This happened for me with Yes, Genesis, Floyd, Pain of Salvation, Jethro Tull (im still in that one song stage but im slowly revolving out of it) Devin Townsend, Godspeed you! Black Emperor, TOOL!, and many others. The first tool song i really liked was Stink Fist. I listened that to death and by the time i was done i was slowly becoming a Tool fan.  

It probably does on youtube. In one form or other. Lateralus is a great song, but 10.000 days is better. Very moving.

p0mt3 wrote: Nuke wrote: Charterhouser wrote: Well I listened to Aenima and Lateralus, encouraged by the positive reviews I had found on this site, some of which compared to Pink Floyd and marked Lateralus as the new millenium Dark Side of the Moon. I didn't really care about that- I immediately thought that statements like these aren't generally reliable- but I was interested by the feeling of their music so positevely described by many reviewers. And I have to tell that... I was really disappointed... I truly could not get into it! Couldn't appreciate nor found any particular technical skill (except for the drummer), any melodic talent... I liked some of the atmospheres, but overall the songs seemed to me just sick, monotonous and... a bit pretentious... and the vocals just played an alienating effect on me, I just couldn't stant them. I'm speaking, of course, in personal terms, without criticizing Tool for what they are... Tool fans please don't slander me ... Why would we slander you for that? It is so much more mature to say that you dislike something but it isn't necessairily bad then it is to say that something outright sucks. I hate people who say  something along the lines of "tool sucks because they are boring." Well now, my advice for you if you still want to get into tool is to fixate on one song. Since you have lateralus, try the title track. Listen to it with the lyrics out in front, trying to interpret it. Look up the music video for it on youtube. Listen to it again and attempt to count out the time signature. Try to figure out the mathematical structure of the lyrics. Watch one of the countless videos of some amateur trying to bang it out on drums. If you still don't like it after all that, then give up   I agree with this completely!    . . . except the song "Lateralus" doesn't have a music video.

Holy crap you're right! I must have been thinking of parabola. How embarresing...

p0mt3 wrote: Evans wrote: It probably does on youtube. In one form or other. Lateralus is a great song, but 10.000 days is better. Very moving.   Forgive me, I just thought he was saying to watch the official music video in order to get a taste of the band's indepth philosophy. If he meant to simply watch a fan-made video that means nothing, then I was mistaken in my correction.     ! I just now noticed what your avatar was of, Evans! So, are you a Miyazaki fan?

Oh yes, most certainly! I have seen pretty much all by studio ghibli, and most of it is great, but my favourite anime of all times is "Spirited Away", everything about it is great. Except that i have misplaced my DVD, but ah well.. :)

Nuke wrote: Well now, my advice for you if you still want to get into tool is to fixate on one song. Since you have lateralus, try the title track. Listen to it with the lyrics out in front, trying to interpret it. Look up the music video for it on youtube. Listen to it again and attempt to count out the time signature. Try to figure out the mathematical structure of the lyrics. Watch one of the countless videos of some amateur trying to bang it out on drums. If you still don't like it after all that, then give up

Just my opinion, but if you're going to focus on one song off of Lateralus, choose the two songs that are one song: Parabol/Parabola. If you ask me, they're more engaging and more central to the album than the title track. They just really do something special.

Other suggestion: listen to the album version of Push*t a couple times, and then switch to the Salival version, and never go back :)

I can completley relate with you meinmatrix, I have the same problem...I do like Lateralus (the album as a whole) but that is the only Tool release I can really listen to. I've tried to get into them on several occasions..I'll wait for the release of their new album that they are apperently already working on and give that a listen to see if I like it or not.

I want to,but it might seem like I'm biased or something.

If you can't get into them, just skip 'em and don't bother with it anymore.

Tool takes a bit to finally hit you.  I dont think Ive ever listened to a Tool album on first listen and thought it was anything spectacular.  Just one of those bands that takes a couple listens.  I had a friend who was so persistent about his dislike for Tool.  After years he finally realized what it was all about and now he constantly praises them. The songs are very climactic, and when you get into them, its truly an emotional experience.

Whether they are prog or not, I will leave that to the experts, I always thought they had prog elements.  Who cares about the genre anyways, if you like it, you like it.

Its really hard to recommend songs, if your just starting out I would just put the album on from the beginning (skip the fillers too, lot of times they aren't necessary).  Lateralus and Aenima are the masterpiece albums, definitely start with those.

Though like everyone else says, if you dont like it, whats the big deal? Tons of other great bands to listen to.