What is "prog" about Tool and similar bands?

Well that goes for me too then
I am just as bad at derailing threads.

Anyway back to the topic people

^They're not on the top of my hit parade either Steve, but at least you gave them a second chance.

^ Enough said.

I have only Aenima so I can't speak for other albums, but when I first starting discovering which bands I knew were considered prog, I thought I would see if Tool were on PA and they are. To me, one important factor for being prog is writing music that explores possibilities outside of the standard song format. That can mean longer track lengths, more complex compositions, very technical playing, or lots of imagination. On Aenima, Tool dispose of a lot of standard song format ideas. They simplify by repeating a bass theme while changing music intensity, they change tempo, ignore choruses, add spoken parts and sound effects, play with recording techniques and generally create songs and music that make the album more of a journey rather than just a collection of songs. That's my general impression, though I haven't listened to that album all the way through now for a few years.

Ha, ha! Not skipping it all the time. But I listen to the tracks at the beginning more than the tracks at the end. Still, when I'm in the mood, I like this song!

verslibre wrote: Guldbamsen wrote: I think Undertow is a somewhat overlooked Tool album Steve. It's not as weird as what came after but it is on the other hand not as exhaustive. The melodies as well as the snarly post-punk feel I get from the guitar make this into one of my faves from them. Then again, it was the first album I got of theirs too, so that might be why I have a soft spot for it.   Trust me, Undertow is and has never been an overlooked album. It put them on the map. It made a noticeable splash in 1993 and the videos for "Sober" and "Prison Sex" got plenty of airplay on the eMpTyVee. Virtually everyone I met liked Tool as a result of that album, and then went back and bought their debut EP Opiate.   As far as weird goes, I think Undertow, AEnima and Lateralus are fairly consistent, the latter two are less straightforward but there's nothing as drastic as going from Drama to 90125.   I confess I don't think the last album was too hot. Several really good songs, but overall a disappointment compared to the previous three albums.

dr prog wrote: Great prog is about strong melody coming from jazz/classical influences combined with rock/folk. (...)

Are they always prog? No. Then again neither is Genesis,Yes, ELP, or Jethro Tull, so I say yes indeed, they are progressive metal.

They've always been one of my favourite bands, when not THE favourite one, but I've never seen them as a prog ensemble, in a 70s sense. More like alternative metal. If you consider calm-storm-building climaxes and non-traditional song structures as prog, then sure, they have that aspect in many songs. Anyway, a lot of the 70s prog rock dinosaurs, while in progs peak (first half of 70s), wrote many pop and rock songs.

Edited by Free like an Hydra - January 11 2015 at 14:39

Don't believe any metal should also be considered prog but that's a music argument that was apparently lost long before I joined this site.