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User
Reviews 17
Approval 87%
Soundoffs 9
News Articles 1
Band Edits + Tags 6
Album Edits 12
Album Ratings 232
Objectivity 70%
Last Active 07-05-13 1:58 pm
Joined 01-23-10
Review Comments 3,065
| Secret To Tool's Success?
I've always been somewhat intrigued by Tool's success. Unlike most
bands, Tool achieved both immense critical and commercial success
simultaneously, whilst maintaining their artistic integrity in
discouraging radio and video airplay. They never tried to sell an image,
but then again, perhaps their image was characterised by a lack
thereof; an air of mystique and enigma that people somehow
connected to. Considering that they came out in the early 90s, a time
when there was no internet and bands relied on airplay and press
coverage for exposure, I wonder how the hell Tool 'exploded' with
their second record in the way that they did, given their lack of singles
and a highly inaccessible sound (at least from my point of view). | | 1 |  | Tool
Opiate
Tool were pretty much hermits around this time. There was a music video for Hush
(the infamous shots of the band naked with censors covering their genitals), which
didn't get a great deal of airplay. Although it went on to sell around 1.5 million units
in the US, it certainly wasn't well received in the initial stages. The band toured a
great deal around this time, and released their first full-length around this time. | | 2 |  | Tool
Undertow
The big single off this one was Sober. Of course there was the controversial yet lesser
known Prison Sex. Both were largely successful, earning the band moderately high
spots on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Chart. Undertow was an exceedingly dark
hard rock/metal album in a time where Grunge was at its height and pop punk was
starting to gain momentum in the mainstream. Vocals low in the mix, dirty and eery
guitars, industrial ambience (Disgustipated, anyone?) and occasionally unorthodox
song structures were features which characterised this record, which makes its even
moderate success all the more puzzling. I had once discerned that it was the
combination of Sober and the challenging longevity of the album which brought them
a large and eventually dedicated audience, which paved the way for Aenima's
success. | | 3 |  | Tool
Aenima
With that said, nothing intrigues me more than the way this album exploded into the mainstream. It just
doesn't make any sense. How does an album with no accessible songs (in a pop music sense), a highly
inaccessible sound and vocals seemingly indiscernible upon first listen gain popularity of mainstream
proportions? The band refused to sell their image, they refused interviews, they discouraged radio play;
they did everything wrong and had the opposite effect. Aenima's success is truly one of the great oddities in
rock history. | | 4 |  | Tool
Lateralus
Regardless of how they managed to do it, Tool had a massive and highly dedicated following by the
time they released Lateralus. At this point, they were essentially in Radiohead's position in the sense
that they could write the most progressive, unorthodox record they wanted and their fans would
simply listen to it until they 'got it'. And, of course, Lateralus went on (along with Aenima) to be
considered one of the greatest albums of all time and rightfully so; Lateralus is a multi-tiered concept-
laden masterpiece with unmatched longevity and complexity in mainstream music. By the time the
touring cycle for Lateralus ended, Tool had it all. | | 5 |  | Tool
10,000 Days
To most Tool fans, this was the album where the band seemed to be 'phoning it in'. It wasn't quite the
artistic jump between albums that fans had come to expect, but it had all of the 'Tool' elements that they
had come to love about the band. What 10,000 days did was cement the band's position on top of the
progressive rock ensemble and bring in some new fans with the 'singles' Vicarious and The Pot. This album
didn't clarify the reasons for the band's success at all, nor did it make it any more odd. Nevertheless, it
remains, how did Tool explode in the way that they did and stay on top as they have? I don't have a
fucking clue. | |
Puzzles
05.20.12 | Do you? | Puzzles
05.20.12 | I can't even tell if you're joking because you're such a goddamn clown. | Wolfhorde
05.20.12 | "never tried to sell an image"
Are you kidding? Maynard is definitely going for an image. | Puzzles
05.20.12 | How do you sell an image if you don't let people interview you, take pictures of you or film your shit? Of course he had an
image, he just never tried to sell it en masse. | jefflebowski
05.20.12 | i always thought that tool were looked down on by critics somewhat | Ovrot
05.20.12 | Image salesmen | Puzzles
05.20.12 | That's funny; I thought they were every critic's darling child. | Wolfhorde
05.20.12 | Maynard was or still is an actor, he played Satan, he played a cop and he did let people interview him. Idk where you got that info from. | jefflebowski
05.20.12 | yeah, lateralus has 75, which is OK but nothing special. 10,000 days has 68 which isn't very good | Puzzles
05.20.12 | In more recent years, sure, but so far I've only found 1 pro shot video of Tool ever released (lots of bootlegs though). I've only come across 3 video interviews taken in the 90s. Considering Undertow came out in '93, that's not a lot. | faux
05.20.12 | A large, moronic fanbase who will eat up whatever they release
They're the kind of band children graduate to after really getting into the philosophy behind The Matrix | Wolfhorde
05.20.12 | So what? That doesn't mean they're not going for an image. This whole alien, pseudo sci-fi spooky whatever bullshit probably wasn't bad for their publicity. Especially if they rarely ever issue any official statements.
"A large, moronic fanbase who will eat up whatever they release"
Wow, great. You just described the "fanboy/girl" phenomenon in general. | jefflebowski
05.20.12 | 'They're the kind of band children graduate to after really getting into the philosophy behind The Matrix'
bit harsh, but yeah p much | Wolfhorde
05.20.12 | Still, just because they don't give a lot of interviews doesn't man they're not going for an image or at least using the controversy to their advantage. | Dimor
05.20.12 | @Faux Such an idiotic statement so say that Tool fans devour anything they put out. Tool is a truly great group of musicians and i highly doubt they would put out anything less than interesting, but if their next album is total shit then i would definitely stick to that opinion instead of tricking myself into liking it. | Dimor
05.20.12 | Then don't do it, stupid clownshoes | Dimor
05.20.12 | Too bad Deuce is such a shit band. And if this is one of Fades alts then just gtfo already. | Puzzles
05.20.12 | So nobody has any theories as to why they're successful despite all of the things they have going against them? | Dimor
05.20.12 | I believe the sort of mysticism about them made them interesting tbh. Anything out of the ordinary has potential to make most people somehow intrigued | Dimor
05.20.12 | And ofc as Michael says, they are damn exceptional musicians to begin with. | Wolfhorde
05.20.12 | Dimor basically summed what I was trying to say, so yeah. What he said. | SitarHero
05.20.12 | Tool has made several, and highly acclaimed, music videos. They're not mainstream in the sense that they are trying to write crossover pop hits, but they have cultivated a large fanbase of people who appreciate their music and/or MJK's lyrics. Not EVERYONE listens to music because of the pretty boy frontman in the video you know. If that were the case, Bob Dylan would have ZERO fans. | wabbit
05.20.12 | It's a simple/ easily accessible band that has a aura of faux-complexity that gets 14 year old guys with no friends a feeling of superiority and a hard dick.
It's the exact same as Radiohead but for ugly people | owen
05.20.12 | It's only logical, without tools we wouldn't be able to build things | scissorlocked
05.20.12 | Tool is maybe the band that played the media game with the best way possible
they simply created a name around them just by setting the bait always at the right time. They created anticipation, they surrounded themselves with intentional mystery, they spoke a little about them and their songs, so everyone had to "construct" his own Tool profile step by step through a personal trial that includes hours of listening, checking themes and obscure lyrics, searching at sites for answers and participating in endless conversations about fibbonacci sequenced drum parts and lsd inspired visions. This whole thing is proved to be fertile and somehow addictive- everyone's interpreting the whole cosmos through Tool's art and feels that it reflects millions of different aspects leading to a mystical artistic vision. Together with some indisputable songwriting skills, it is probably the best way psychedelic music can interact with the listener without drug addictions. Tool are smart. | Spec
05.20.12 | Band rules. | YoYoMancuso
05.20.12 | as for 3 i think stinkfist was pretty accessible, but other than that spot-on bro. | Hyperion1001
05.20.12 | its called promotion and the only reason bands are ever popular you should look into it | InFiction
05.20.12 | I like Tool as much as the next guy, but I think they're hideously overrated. | Kellerdeck
05.20.12 | To be Keenan you have to be a douche. | Foaming
05.20.12 | They're talented.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyDWYHGCRYY
| AtomicWaste
05.20.12 | It's the Fibonacci Sequence. That's the secret to their success. | Foaming
05.20.12 | @ InFiction So is Isis, what's your point? | paxman
05.20.12 | Good list | LifeAsAChipmunk
05.20.12 | Baseline, that's not really fair when you yourself don't have a lot of ratings. : ) | paxman
05.20.12 | Don't worry, all of those are pretty legitimate fives | bloc
05.20.12 | Never understood their appeal | YankeeDudel
05.20.12 | Tool came up around the grunge/alternative explosion. They were able to capitalize on fans of Nirvana, AIC, Soundgarden, Faith No More, Rage Against The Machine etc. Again Tool had some hooks that played towards the alternative crowd, but clearly stood out with their progressive elements. Its pretty clear to me. All a band needs is one or two hits to cement themselves. | PuddlesPuddles
05.20.12 | Body slam each fan that comes your way | ChuckyTruant
05.20.12 | they have no secret. they aren't good | TheFonz123
05.21.12 | I don't know if i agree, they have an active gimmick going on, and I think that's part of it. They also incorporate classic 70's prog which the mainstream likes. Nu-metal was HUGE when they came out, and their distoration/angst really fed off that success even if they weren't "NU" | TheFonz123
05.21.12 | I hate their music, and their gimmick but I respect them as musicians and so music fenatics always love it when a band incorporates odd time signatures and poly-rythms etc etc. The biggest tool hater in the world has to marvel at danney carey's playing so there's that | Puzzles
05.21.12 | "they have no secret. they aren't good"
One of the dumbest things I've ever read on this site. | Dimor
05.21.12 | ^Yep, that comment doesn't make any type of sense whatsoever. Chuck can only accept the Methulchoreez, nothing else is Hc enough. | ChuckyTruant
05.21.12 | boring. and stfu Dimor you don't know me |
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