Tool - Live in Toronto 05/08/2009
Despite suffocating in clouds of tobacco and pot smoke, the Tool concert last evening was a hypnotic experience. Amid the throngs of white-trash and spotty teenagers, I could still revel in the cosmic death-dance that was Tool’s set list, which primarily focused on songs from 10,000 Days and Lateralus.
Maynard and his band were in top form as they hammered through densely textured performances, extending their already lengthy songs with spiraling solos and haunting drones. Revisions of “Stinkfist” and “Lateralus” in particular were stunning, as unexpected twists and turns in songwriting gave the night an almost tribal sense of spontaneity.
It was also strange and fascinating to watch thousands of lighters creep above the crowd as the high pitched guitar drone of “Lost Keys” split over the Molson Amphitheater like a haze of incense, showcasing Tool’s otherworldly mystique. As the intro led into the colossal “Rosetta Stoned”, a song about receiving messianic truth from aliens (only to forget it), I had to admire the band’s ability to weave dark humor with insatiable spiritual longing.
The ying/yang of destruction and creation was revealed with greater clarity with “AEnima” and “Lateralus”. The former, an apocalyptic diatribe against vapid excess (owing much to Bill Hick’s “L.A. Falls” on Arizona Bay), showed Tool at their most caustic, as screaming guitars echoed Maynard’s calls to “wash it all away”. The latter song took up the cause of rebirth and resurrection, as the slow-burning climax called for wholeness, catharsis and the opening of new possibilities. It is refreshing to see a metal band engage with both ends of an antagonistic spectrum, sending out deconstructive energies in the most creative and explosive light.
The most striking appeal of this show, and for Tool’s music in general, is the tension between harrowing despair and purifying release, a movement that can help characterize the band’s artistic development from the subterranean laments of Opiate and Undertow to the expansive and searching spirit of their most recent work. It is progressive metal that is progressive in nearly every sense of the term, drawing out deep personal (and perhaps universal) forces and letting them “spiral out” above and beyond the fallen everyday.
August 6th, 2009 at 10:09 pm
It was an AMAZING show! Felt the energy all the way back to the lawn section.
‘Tool’ is a very creative band and with their concerts you get a whole show!
Whoever hasn’t seen them live, definately woth the money so don’t miss them next time.
August 13th, 2009 at 12:00 am
First of all, the set list did not focus on 10 000 Days and Lateralus, rather 10 000 Days and Aenima. Seeing as they only played two songs from Lateralus and three from Aenima. Also, how can you explain, with such certainty, what Rosetta Stoned is about? How do you know?
August 13th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Well, my interpretation of the song comes from the lyrics themselves. Of course, given Tool’s cryptic nature, you never know for sure, but it was my best guess.
August 14th, 2009 at 12:15 am
i just read my previous post and realized how accusing i sounded. i was just bitter when i wrote it. i was looking for reviews of the show (and i found yours was very well written, overall)…but i am very surprised that very few people have included anything about the atrocity of the french fries. and even people that have written about it didn’t find it offensive. it left a bitter taste in my mouth.
August 14th, 2009 at 8:44 am
Oh, the french fries. I was too far away from the stage to see what was going on. What was that all about?