Excuses and apologies

I'd like to apologize for not posting anything new for some time. Truth is, I've been listening to Lateralus for 2 straight weeks non-stop. I'm starting to listen to some more jazz, though, so I may be writing something on that soon.

More to come...

Lateralus (2001) - Tool

Track List
1. The Grudge

2. Eon Blue Apocalypse

3. The Patient

4. Mantra

5. Schism

6. Parabol

7. Parabola

8. Ticks & Leeches

9. Lateralus

10. Disposition

11. Reflection

12. Triad

13. Faaip De Oiad

                                                                   

Let’s start this whole blogging thing right from the top. Lateralus is one of my favourite albums of the aughts, and was also the album that got me into prog metal. I remember the first time I heard “Schism” I was blown away by the complex rhythm changes and overall beautiful cohesive sound of the group. It’s really incredible how each member of Tool manages to make their part so complex and yet maintain such beautiful unity with the others. They are all on completely the same page, and you have to applaud them for their professionalism.

My favourite track on the album is probably the first, “The Grudge”. I wake up to this track every morning, and it sounds like an angry tribe of cannibalistic Indians has raided my room and placed me on the sacrificial altar. Suffice it to say it wakes me up quite well. This track is completely driven by Danny Carey’s epic drumming. Every beat courses through you like a lightning strike. Around 3:21, the build up begins, slowly peaks then breaks down at around 4:50, where we’ve got a nice little instrumental interlude. The best part has got to be at 6:50 when Maynard James Keenan, lead vocalist, lets out this primal scream that is enough to scare the shit out of anyone. A pulsing beat and intricate guitar work contribute to making this song a must-hear on my list.

The next track that matters is “The Patient”, which seems to be an interesting play on words. On the surface, it’s about some patient whose patience is being tested by the tedium and length of the tests being performed on him. He decides to “wait it out” because of the rewards that wait for him at the end of his journey. Who knows what Maynard is really talking about, but this song is truly haunting. Its got this eerie/sad/pained vibe to it – to be honest, its kind of reminiscent of the story of Job, whose faith and patience were tested by God through a series of horribly cruel punishments. God basically made some dumbass bet with the Devil that Job would always remain faithful no matter what God threw at him. So God decides to decimate Job’s farm and kill his family and livestock. Pretty interesting parallel, although I really don’t know if that’s what MJK was going for. When I hear this song, I like to close my eyes and concentrate on the melody… it puts me into a sort of meditative state. Reminds me to persevere through the ten inches of shit sometimes put in my path.

Next up is “Mantra”: this is a true testament to the eccentricity of Tool. Maynard squeezed his cat once and the cat appropriately let out a yelp. Maynard found this sound to be hysterical, slowed it down, and named it “Mantra”. I don’t know what to tell you.

The most popular single from Lateralus is no doubt “Schism”. This track is truly exceptional in its musicality. Just thinking of the time changes makes me want to vomit: apparently, it’s in 13/16 time (according to Wikipedia), with a multitude of time changes throughout the song. As the name suggests, the lyrics deal with some sort of schism Maynard sees in humanity. Some people think he’s talking about religion, others say relationships. In my opinion, its about all of that. The line that makes everything clear to me is “cold silence has a tendency to atrophy any sense of compassion between supposed brothers, between supposed lovers”. Basically, relationships of any kind need to be maintained like a well-manicured lawn. If you leave them unattended, they will disintegrate and the so-called schism opens up. This also refers to one’s relationship with God – if you don’t keep up your relationship, the schism grows to be too wide and nearly impossible to cross. Interesting concepts, meaningful lyrics and very complex rhythms.

For the sake of this review, let’s combine “Parabol” and “Parabola”. “Parabol” is a short, soft lead-in to “Parabola”, which features a heavier electric guitar and more pulsing sound. The themes from the first carry on into the second, but are slightly more amplified, both lyrically and musically. The theme seems to be sex, but not the physical act. Rather, MJK seems to be focusing on the reminders sex brings – “this body holding me, reminding me that I am not alone”. The closest you will ever get to someone, intimately, is through sex. MJK is saying that sex serves as a reminder that we are not alone. All of this pain and suffering is just an illusion, because we are eternal. Memories of us will live on well after we are gone. He's trying to think from an eternal outlook, which is a new concept to me.

“Ticks & Leeches” is next and, boy, this is an angry fucking song. It’s literally about ticks and leeches stealing our blood, but there is clearly a deeper meaning (as with every Tool song). At 3:26, the song slows down beautifully and there is a nice little interlude. The peace lasts for a minute and a half before the band comes back with one of the angriest sequences I have heard in any song ever (and that’s saying a lot).  I’ve heard that this song is actually about the record company screwing with Tool, and I could see how that would make them angry. But, come on, the anger here is palpable. The last words: “I hope you choke”. ‘Nuff said.

NEXT is the big one, the title track, and probably my track pick on the album: “Lateralus”. You really get to appreciate Danny Carey in this song. I mean, this guy is probably one of the top five living drummers in the world, and you really get to hear it on this song. His rhythms are unbelievably intricate and impossibly difficult. What’s really cool about this song is how the lyrics are laid out. The syllables for the first bit of the song are separated in a manner that imitates the Fibonacci sequence. The Fibonacci sequence is when the next number in the series is the sum of the previous two. So, for example, it would start 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21 etc. Apparently, this was all intentional. I’m not too sure the meaning of it, but it’s still really freaking cool. This track basically deals with the dangers of taking things at face value – “Black and white are all I see/in my infancy/ red and yellow then came to be”. At first, we take everything at face value. As we mature, colours appear in our analyses and it elevates our knowledge. It’s all about lateral thinking, probably where the name “Lateralus” came from.

The next three tracks, “Disposition”, “Reflection” and “Triad” are what I imagine a prog metal jam session to be like. Only, on acid. “Reflection” is driven by a really cool drumbeat that I can’t even explain – just check it out. The lyrics are about letting go of your ego and elevating to a higher realm of spirituality. Some pretty deep shit, and it’s a good song to listen to when you are feeling discouraged. The other two tracks are basically instrumental, but beautifully complex, and I can only imagine how they must sound live (a dream of mine is to see Tool live.  Their light show is probably out of this world).

“Faaip De Oiad” is completely terrifying and should only be listened to in the daytime, if at all. It’s a phone call of some dude ranting and raving about “extra-dimensional beings” and some conspiracy theory at Area 51. Faaid De Oiad means Voice of God in Enochian, which is an occultist language that supposedly was biblical roots. I usually stay away from this track because, to be honest, it scares the shit out of me.

Anyways, I guess that’s the end of the album, and I should probably wrap up. Next time you are bored on a Wednesday night, and you’re in the mood for a musical journey, you should smoke a bowl and listen to Lateralus. I wouldn’t recommend doing anything but listening to the album – make it the activity of the night. Just close your eyes and listen. I promise it's more interesting then most of the shit on TV nowadays (except Mythbusters, that show rocks).

Here are some links, if you are interested into looking more into the album:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wS7CZIJVxFY - Lateralus and the Fibonacci sequence

http://allmusic.com/album/lateralus-r528279 - I don’t think they go into enough detail – this album deserves more.

http://www.amazon.ca/Lateralus-Tool/dp/B00005LAIB/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295132680&sr=8-1 – if you want to buy the album.

http://www.nutsie.com/playlist/Tool%20-%20Lateralus/981637 - if you want to listen to it online - I would recommend buying it because the artwork is exceptional. Speaking of artwork...

http://toolshed.down.net/pix/official.html - scroll down to "Lateralus" to take a look at this incredible artwork by Alex Grey.

Intros and Hellos

Hello everyone, welcome to my blog!
My name is Zack, and I love music. Pretty generic, right?
Not so much. To be honest, I listen to everything. That means everything from Bach to Radiohead to Townes Van Zandt to Joe Henderson to Rammstein. Really, the only exception is Kanye West, and that's because his breathtaking douche-baggery has tainted his music.
I'm creating this blog because I want everyone to hear what I hear when I listen to music. People will hear death metal and think it's shit, same with jazz. They just don't know what to listen for. I want to share that with you guys.
I'm going to write album reviews on whatever I'm listening to at the time, and it truly varies by the day. Any album I write about, you should listen to.
Anyways, I think that's all for now. I'll come back tomorrow with a review.
Cheers,
Z