frogproduction

I forgot the grades.

Please forgive me two observations. One: when Lateralus came out, everyone started crying because Tool had made a crappy album, without memorable riffs, boring, less violent, and in short, Undertow had already said it all and Tool could have not even recorded Aenima. I can almost hear those who, at every new Radiohead release, say that the Pablo Honey days were better (which is frankly horrible), the same ones who panned OK Computer (go check out Rumore from that time, if I remember correctly...), and then Kid A. I'm listening to 10,000 Days quite a bit, not to try to understand it but because I'm liking the songs more and more: if the album makes you want to listen to it and re-listen to it, and if with each listen I find new things, it means that, at least for me, it’s a great album. Songs like "Jambi," which seemed monotonous to me on first listen and based on a less inspired riff than usual, are growing exponentially (latest discoveries: Carey’s work on the cymbals in the third part of the song, some melodic nuances from Maynard). The same is happening with the others. It took me months to understand Aenima 11 years ago. Now I've grown up, but I guess I'll still take a few weeks.
Two: the greatest offense seems to be, for Tool, having gotten closer to APC. This is because Maynard modulates his voice more and because there are less “violent” passages than usual (but honestly: Rosetta Stoned doesn’t seem that soft to me, nor The Pot, nor the two at the opening... or what do you want?). Anyway, have you noticed that Tool is getting older? At their age, Metallica were producing a "masterpiece" like LOAD, making a terrible album. With the last one, they tried to act like kids and ended up not only making a terrible album but also looking RIDICULOUS. I prefer that Tool calms down and makes excellent albums (if they’re not masterpieces, oh well, they’ve already made their mark), rather than pretending to be the kids they were when they recorded Undertow. If the next album is all acoustic and slow, and at the same time is as enjoyable as 10,000 Days, I’ll be the first to shout masterpiece. The others can listen to the new works of Metallica.