New Tool Record: 10,000 days - B+

So I check the ol' blog this afternoon and notice HOP and I have gotten pretty lazy as of late...sorry about that folks.



Anywho, I picked up a copy of Tool's latest album '10,000 days' last week and I'm continually impressed by their originality and the way they are so cohesive as a band. Sure, Danny Carey is a badass but this one shows off every member's skills in one way or another.

This album compares pretty well to 'Lateralus', their last release that had somewhat mixed reviews (but I really liked it). It wasn't really an album of singles that most people enjoy; it was more like a journey album (no, not the 80's Journey). It wasn't the Sigur-Ros type constant crescendo variety nor was it consistently soft or drum. They picked their spots to shine, spots to hide away. More on to the meat of the album...

One thing you may notice after the initial listen is how the vocals are somewhat in the back of the mix. They are not so much in your face like previous albums but they remain effective. Some of the falsettos that MJK sings sound nothing like him and it makes you appreciate how much of a range that guy's got. The drums and tabla sound great as always but the two things that really jumped out at me in terms of greatness were the bass and guitar. Joe Barresi (mixer and engineer) did an outstanding job of getting these right. I've never heard bass player Justin Chancellor sound so good and tight and the guitars are among the best distorted I've ever heard.

My favorite tracks are their first single 'Vicarious' along with 'The Pot' and 'Right in Two'. Check the album out if you're a Tool fan (or even if you're just a tool).

(currently listening to: Office noise)