Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1990. They are known for their unique and complex song structures, philosophical lyrics, and elaborate live shows. Some key questions to consider when deciding if Tool is worth seeing live include:
How good are they live?
Tool is renowned for their incredibly tight and intense live performances. The band members are all exceptionally talented musicians who recreate the complex time signatures and polyrhythms of their songs flawlessly. Frontman Maynard James Keenan has an arresting stage presence with his painted body, contorted movements, and raw emotional vocals. Guitarist Adam Jones and drummer Danny Carey, in particular, are masters of their instruments who shine in the live setting. Fans and critics widely agree that Tool puts on an unforgettable show.
Do they play a wide selection of songs?
Unlike some bands who only play their biggest hits, Tool constructs a different setlist every night drawing from their 30+ years of material. Hardcore fans can expect to hear deeper cuts and rarities as well as classics like “Sober” and “Schism.” Their shows routinely last over two hours to make room for their complex arrangements and improvised instrumental sections. Each tour provides a new opportunity to hear different songs live.
How is the visual production value?
Tool concerts are famous for incorporating stunning visual components like films, lasers, and stage props. Videos displayed on large screens sync up with the music to envelop viewers in the band’s dark, psychedelic imagery. Elaborate lighting setups in trademark red and blue hues accentuate the sound. State-of-the-art laser shows provide an immersive sensory experience. For a band with such cinematic music and mystique, the visuals are an essential part of Tool’s live excellence.
Do they play extended instrumental sections?
Unlike the trimmed down radio edits of their songs, Tool greatly expands on the instrumentals when playing live. Their shows feature 5+ minute drum and guitar solos in pieces like “Forty Six & 2” and “Jambi” that showcase the band’s technical skills. The songs take on a new life and energy through these improvisations and added textures that delight diehard prog fans. If you love complex instrumentals, Tool delivers in spades in a concert setting.
Setlist Variety
One major advantage of seeing Tool live is the wide variety of songs they choose from night to night. Here is a comparison of recent setlists from their 2022 tour to demonstrate the diversity:
October 9 – Buffalo, NY | October 14 – Newark, NJ |
Fear Inoculum | Fear Inoculum |
Opiate | The Pot |
The Pot | The Grudge |
Pushit | Eon Blue Apocalypse |
Pneuma | The Patient |
The Patient | Swamp Song |
Descending | Pneuma |
Hooker with a Penis | Jambi |
CCTrip | Descending |
Eon Blue Apocalypse | 46 & 2 |
Very few songs get played both nights. This allows fans attending multiple shows on the same tour to experience an entirely fresh set and highlights Tool’s massive catalog. The band pulls from early 1990s up through 2010s for an all-encompassing setlist.
Instrumental Talent
Seeing Tool guitarist Adam Jones, bassist Justin Chancellor, and drummer Danny Carey showcase their talents live is worth the price of admission alone. Here is a breakdown of what they each bring to the live experience:
Adam Jones
Adam Jones is praised for his minimalistic, textural style on guitar. But live, he also reveals his shred skills in extended solos and riffs. His versatile talent allows him to recreate the many complex parts exactly as they sound on album. And he makes it all look effortless, smoothly transitioning from gentle melodies to all-out metal riffing.
Justin Chancellor
Justin Chancellor’s thunderous basslines underpin Tool’s songs. His bass solo during “Forty Six & 2” shows off his signature slap bass technique that provides rhythmic foundations. The solo features Chancellor’s distinctive distorted bass tone that almost sounds synthetic. His intricate parts weave seamlessly with Danny Carey’s drums.
Danny Carey
Drum master Danny Carey is the heartbeat of Tool in a live setting. He flawlessly switches between odd time signatures as easily as most drummers play 4/4. His extended drum solo during “Chocolate Chip Trip” amazes audiences with his blinding double kick speed and rhythmic complexity using his enormous kit. Carey drives the tension and release in Tool’s music even in the longest songs.
Immersive Visual Production
Tool concerts are almost as much a visual art experience as a musical one thanks to the lavish visuals that accompany each song. Here are some examples of the spectacle:
Surreal Films
During songs, short surrealist films created by Adam Jones play on large screens. Jones’s artwork visually represents Tool’s cerebral, psychedelic style. The films feature cryptic, often grotesque imagery that draws viewers deeper into Tool’s headspace. Though abstract, the visuals sync with musical motifs.
Elaborate Lighting
Tool’s lighting setup is another star of the show. Banks of lights in red and blue hues flood the stage and audience. As the songs build in intensity, the lighting achieves an almost overwhelming climax before fading back. Spotlights shine down during intimate moments. The lights punctuate the music and dramatize the performance.
Mesmerizing Lasers
No Tool show is complete without lasers that fill the entire arena. The lasers shoot rapidly in time with Danny Carey’s frantic drum beats during the most climactic parts of songs like “Forty Six & 2.” Slow undulating lasers then complement psychedelic visuals during mellower sections. The lasers are perfectly calibrated with the music to entrance viewers.
Enhanced Versions of Songs
Tool takes their long, complex tracks to the next level in a live setting by expanding on them and adding new dynamics. Here are some highlights:
“Pushit” Slow Build
The album version of “Pushit” is 9 minutes long. Live, Tool often stretches it out to 12+ minutes. The extended intros and interludes ratchet up the tension gradually before exploding.
Pneuma Drum Solo
The already virtuosic drumming on “Pneuma” gets even more impressive live when Danny Carey adds a 5 minute solo. He showcases his rhythmic creativity and technical skills over the song’s odd-meter groove.
Epic “Third Eye” Visuals
The 15 minute “Third Eye” becomes a 20 minute opus live with the addition of transcendent visuals. Adam Jones layers live guitar textures over the track’s soundscapes for a true psychedelic experience.
A Spiritual Experience
Seeing Tool perform their music live feels more like a communal spiritual ritual than a traditional concert. Everything from Maynard’s mystic shaman stage presence to the hypnotic lights fosters an almost tribal, transcendent atmosphere. Audience members report feeling energized and motivated by the experience. The band’s crunching metal instrumentation paradoxically achieves a psychedelic effect enhanced by the visuals. Fans tired of traditional rock concerts find Tool’s cerebral, immersive experience profoundly moving.
Shared Musical Passion
There is a great sense of community and shared passion among Tool fans at their shows. Thecoverageband devotees who have followed the band’s evolution over decades sing along with deep familiarity. Tool attracts music lovers who appreciate prog complexity, metal catharsis, and psychedelic innovation. Hearing Maynard’s vocals accompanied by thousands of fans provides a chill-inducing sensation. Lifelong bonds can form among fans who share Tool’s music as a common language.
Once in a Lifetime Chance
Given their limited touring schedule and Maynard’s reticence toward fame, any chance to see Tool in concert feels special. They only do tours every 5 years or so. Their 2022-2023 tour is the first since 2019. Each show could be the last chance to see them for years to come. Missing the opportunity to witness a band with Tool’s singular musical vision and peerless talent seems unthinkable for big fans. Knowing time is limited makes soaking in the live experience now more meaningful.
Conclusion
In summary, Tool concerts offer a chance to see all-time great musicians performing challenging, manifold songs with immersive visual accompaniment for devoted audiences. The talents of Maynard James Keenan, Adam Jones, Justin Chancellor, and Danny Carey shine even brighter on stage. Their genre-smashing amalgam of metal, prog, psychedelia and more achieves full manifestation in the live arena. For fans, Tool represents a musical passion and shared ritual rather than just another show. Despite Maynard’s onstage remoteness, a profound sense of connection occurs. Given the rarity of their tours, seeing Tool in concert provides a once in a lifetime transcendent experience for devotees. The power and intricacy of their performances make Tool more than worthwhile to catch live.