Lateralus was Tool's Last Great Album

[LPMojoGL]

Picked up Lateralus on vinyl yesterday. Spinning it while working around the house. So freaking good.

10,000 Days was kind of disappointing when I heard it, after such a long wait. Even more so with the last album.

Back when it came out, on first listen, Lateralus seemed toned down to the previous albums. But it still hit hard. After a few listens, it reached further into the abyss. Found places we hadn't been before.
For me, that's their crescendo. Their peak of greatness. It somehow hit a different level of heavy, while stretching out into these rhythms and vibes they hadn't done before.
Anything after is over the hill, imo.

What yall think?

 

[thegame]

Agreed, Lateralus is far and away their best IMO. While I like some other stuff, it's the only album of theirs I really need.

 

[FourT6and2]

Aenima is my favorite. Undertow is number 2 for me. Lateralus, 10K Days, and Fear Inoculum are also amazing in the grand scheme of things but I prefer the vibe in those first two more.

Just heard they are working on their next album.

 

[LPMojoGL]

Aenima is my favorite. Undertow is number 2 for me. Lateralus, 10K Days, and Fear Inoculum are also amazing in the grand scheme of things but I prefer the vibe in those first two more.

Just heard they are working on their next album.

Cool, can't wait for 2030.

Undertow will always be my fav. I wore out the first cassette tape, had to get another. Was one of the first to get Aenima, so got the Pins n Needles vinyl. Love it, but Undertow was so trippy and different at the time. I was literally like, wtf when I saw the videos.

 

[LPMojoGL]

Agreed, Lateralus is far and away their best IMO. While I like some other stuff, it's the only album of theirs I really need.

I feel the same about the 1st 3 and Opiate.

 

[RaceU4her]

every few years for about the last 25 i sit down and go through the Tool catalog thinking something is gonna click with me and them.. and it just never happened. im probably actually due for another run through

 

[Juggernaut]

10k days is a GREAT album, took me a minute to get into it, but once it clicked, I was all in.

 

[Juggernaut]

every few years for about the last 25 i sit down and go through the Tool catalog thinking something is gonna click with me and them.. and it just never happened. im probably actually due for another run through

Smoke a big fat bowl, then give it a listen. ??

 

[RaceU4her]

Smoke a big fat bowl, then give it a listen. ??

i ripped bong hits and went for a hike with the earbuds the last album that came out, i see that was 2019 now already. their songs to me are like this build up that feels like something epic is about to come, but then that epic part never really comes. i do like undertow the most

 

[311boogieman]

every few years for about the last 25 i sit down and go through the Tool catalog thinking something is gonna click with me and them.. and it just never happened. im probably actually due for another run through

^ next time maybe just grab a few of their 'hits' and ease in that way. Taking on a whole album, let alone catalog, could be a little much for a casual listener. And the bong idea

Aenima is my favorite. Undertow is number 2 for me. Lateralus, 10K Days, and Fear Inoculum are also amazing in the grand scheme of things but I prefer the vibe in those first two more.

Just heard they are working on their next album.

Agreed.


On new album I just found this:
]Upcoming sixth studio album (2022–present)
In March 2022, drummer Danny Carey said that Tool had been working on new material for their sixth studio album: "I'm sure it won't take us this long for the next one. We even had some stuff left over from the last one that we'll develop. We have head starts on three or four new songs."[115]

In an October 2023 interview on The Vinyl Guide podcast, bassist Justin Chancellor stated that the band has "many ideas cooking" for their new album, and mentioned tentative plans to enter the studio in 2024.

 

[Techdeth]

I love 10000 Days . The tone on Jambi is glorious

 

[FourT6and2]

^ next time maybe just grab a few of their 'hits' and ease in that way. Taking on a whole album, let alone catalog, could be a little much for a casual listener. And the bong idea



Agreed.


On new album I just found this:

Upcoming sixth studio album (2022–present)
In March 2022, drummer Danny Carey said that Tool had been working on new material for their sixth studio album: "I'm sure it won't take us this long for the next one. We even had some stuff left over from the last one that we'll develop. We have head starts on three or four new songs."[115]

In an October 2023 interview on The Vinyl Guide podcast, bassist Justin Chancellor stated that the band has "many ideas cooking" for their new album, and mentioned tentative plans to enter the studio in 2024.

Yeah and there's a social media post somewhere of Justin saying this new record will get done much quicker. Probably their last album.

 

[Juggernaut]

i ripped bong hits and went for a hike with the earbuds the last album that came out, i see that was 2019 now already. their songs to me are like this build up that feels like something epic is about to come, but then that epic part never really comes. i do like undertow the most

Yeah, that last album, never reached its climax, kept building but never reached the top. The previous 2 were fantastic at that, Aenima even moreso. I'm still on the fence about the last one, but it's slowly growing on me.

 

[RaceU4her]

yeah i saw an article saying they are getting old and want to get stuff out lol

 

[LPMojoGL]

I love 10000 Days . The tone on Jambi is glorious

You must've been hiiiigh.
Oh wait...

 

[DrewJD82]

Lateralus is definitely my favorite and the album that got me into them. I couldn’t fucking stand Tool previous to that album. I had my head up my ass with the shred/virtuoso shit and despite my buddy showing me how much of a prog band Tool was, I just heard it all as “every fuckin’ song is the dude whimpering in the verses then getting angry in the chorus when the guitarist just bangs away in drop D”

It was the polyrythm section, the “With my feet upon the ground…” part of “Lateralus” that blew my fucking mind and turned me into a Tool fan immediately.

There’s a lot I love about 10,000 Days, but at that point it was kinda past the aggressive Tool point. While I prefer aggressive Tool, the last two albums did not surprise me when I heard a lack of aggression from Maynard. Dude’s been writing about unfucking himself for years, it’d be a bit of a downer to hear Fear Innoculum and hear this 50-something dude still bitching about shit some 20+ years after he was writing about not wanting to bitch about shit anymore.

 

[Jimty]

I agree that Lateralus is their best album, although there are songs I love on all of them. 10,000 Days (save for The Pot, Jambi and Vicarious) and all of Fear Inoculum took a few listens to get into, but the songs grew on me with each listen to the point where I pretty much like them all (eg: Pneuma and Invincible are up there with my favourites now).

 

[LPMojoGL]

The best thing that came out of Fear Inoculum, imo, is that clip of Danney Carey playing Pneuma live. Dude is ridiculous.
And now there are little kids playing that stuff. Blows my mind.

I listened to Parabola at least 3 times last night. Love the way it builds. I swear I hear things on vinyl that I don't on cd. Makes me want Undertow and Aenima on vinyl.

 

[angelspade]

Lateralus and Aenima tied for 1st place...followed closely by 10,000 days. Just an amazing band and Adam's tone is still 10 ten of all time in my opinion.

 

[JackBootedThug]

I have not listened to anything from them since lateralus. Heresy… I know…