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It me, the 36 year old who was in-fuckin'-sufferable about TOOL in high school. The number of poor dates that had to listen to me talk about Aenima for an hour...  Anyway, I'm very curious how the new album is going to feel to me because I've outgrown almost every band I used to love in high school. I don't like any Deftones after White Pony, I don't like any Korn after Follow the Leader, I can't listen to Limp Bizkit at all anymore, I don't like any of Alec Empire's new output... Tool is like the last obsession that I haven't "engaged with" as an old. (I'm much more into atmospheric or minimalist electronic music, hip hop, and a little bit of doom metal now) As far as my take on the new title track (I don't like live versions so I'm avoiding the other two), I both agree with the "It feels like an AI procedurally generated a Tool song" takes and the "weirdly, it's growing on me" takes. It's nothing special and kinda whatever, but it's easy to vibe out on while at work or whatever. It's got that trademark "mystical prog" feeling that Tool excels at. I could see myself gettin' a good buzz or high going and just zoning out to an album that sounds like this. And maybe that's just what 2019 needs right now...
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Aug 12, 2019 13:23
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| # ¿ May 9, 2024 09:49 |
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I have now given this two listen-throughs aaaand my verdict is.... pretty good? I actually don't know what I want from Tool as a 36 year old who has moved away from prog-metal and into electronica and hip hop in recent years. I don't know what would make me go "Hubba hubba, this is everything!". I think my favorite and least favorite parts of the album are the same thing: it feels reaaalllly loooonnnngggg and I zone out during the songs. At their best, they are hypnotic and intoxicating, at worst, kinda plodding or exhausting for me (at least right now, FI grew on me over time). My favorite tracks currently are 7empest, Chocolate Chip Trip, Descending, and Pneuma. I actually really like the weird atmospheric interludes, I wish they were slightly longer and more developed like CCT, but then again, I'm into electronica a lot now. I agree with whichever of you thread pals said that it feels like Maynard has taken a back seat to the rest of the band. The lyrics really fall beneath the waves of sound from the rest of the band to me. Not a complaint, it's an interesting way to stand out from past work. Also, I think the mixing and sound design on this album is top notch. It feels REALLY sharp to me and I feel like I can hear everything really vibrantly. It might feel too "clean" for true doom metalheads, but I like the surgicality of it. Will I be listening to this next spring? I don't know, maybe not, but it's better than I expected
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Aug 30, 2019 16:15
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