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Tool - Lateralus review



Reviewer:
10

1446 users:
9.03
Band: Tool
Album: Lateralus
Release date: May 2001


01. The Grudge
02. Eon Blue Apocalypse
03. The Patient
04. Mantra
05. Schism
06. Parabol
07. Parabola
08. Ticks & Leeches
09. Lateralus
10. Disposition
11. Reflection
12. Triad
13. Faaip De Oaid

One of the best alternative metal bands in the scene with incredible imagery, very cool, and grotesque videos. One of the best voices in the genre, high-quality production, undecipherable, and mysterious tunes. These talented musicians could easily be playing in a Progressive metal band. Everything above describes Tool, and this time Lateralus pushed all the limits of innovation, an album filled with crazy tracks, puzzling intros and amazing music in general.

The album opener "The Grudge" gives us an idea of what to expect for the rest of the album with almost 9 minutes of blasting composition, mixed with melodic parts and odd musical passages. The drumming is just insane (sometimes it even sounds like a huge heavy ball bouncing) and irregular beats are all around the track giving incredible feelings to it. The second song on the album is called "The Patient" which makes for a good interlude song because it is the slowest track on Lateralus, none the less it has great parts with a lot of irregular beats (3:27) (4:40) and incredible guitar riffs (4:40).

"Schism" is the most popular track in this album so I won't bore you with this song details and the same goes for "Parabola", we all know the quality and greatness of both songs so let's move on. Now with "Ticks And Leeches" you think you've heard cool complex drumming in alternative metal? Well my friend just check the intro for this song (and the entire song now that I remember), one minute of beating the toms and the bass in the most spectacular way, then the song starts with Maynard screaming "?Suck and suck?" great vocal power all along this song, the bridges (3:22) give the song a shivering atmosphere with wind effects and all that cool stuff, and then a blasting riff recovers the great power of the song (5:56) with a trembling scream "?Suck me dry?", this is the best song in "Lateralus" so if you want to be impressed just check "Ticks And Leeches" and you'll see what am I talking about.

"Reflection" is another impressive song, the intro is a fight between the spectacular drumming and the ultra low bass playing. It also has some odd Indian melodies filling the environment, and then the song starts after almost 6 minutes of weird but talented execution. "Reflection" pushed the music critics into giving Tool the genre of "Progressive Rock," this particular tune is not for everyone I might add and some people will hate it and others will love and worship this song. Personally I love it and I think this track is a surreal passage of mellow yet complex riffs, original bridges and great musicianship in general, but you be the judge.

I would like to talk about every track in this album and I would like to talk about the greatness of every single song in it, but that would ruin the surprise. So just take my word for it that this is the best alternative metal album ever created. Music critics catalogue this band as Progressive rock, not heavy enough to be Progressive Metal, and way better than Alternative Metal, so buy this album right now I am not kidding.

Written by Herzebeth | 14.07.2005




Comments

Comments: 28   Visited by: 495 users
14.08.2006 - 05:51
Rating: 8
Talvi

Ticks & Leeches is the best song. I've heard that toms sound about 1013+ times. In only 8 minutes. And it isn't a fast song...
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14.08.2006 - 05:58
Rating: 9
Dangerboner
Lactation Cnslt
I love how the song Parabol leads into Parabola. I don't like Schism much, but everything else is incredible.
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15.08.2006 - 03:09
Bitch Boy

Same as Pyroleprechaun, I love the intro of Parabola. Both songs together as one great song are amazing. The entire album is very cool. I like those little tracks with no lyrics like Mantra or Eon Blue Apocalypse.

Good review.
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10.09.2006 - 07:49
Somniferous
Account deleted
Bloody brilliant album! I love the Patient and the songs that do not have lyrics. I love all the songs on this album. Schism I could really do without tho, but I tolerate it
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07.10.2006 - 07:11
Introspekrieg
Totemic Lust
Flawless. Disposition-Reflection is the most aesthetically pleasing sequence of frequencies I have ever had my auditory receptors stimulated by. It's a shame that Tool is being exploited by meatheads...damn shame. Dude.
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07.10.2006 - 12:32
Valar
IndianSteel
No Disrespect to any one but i cant find a single thing i like about this band. I just hate there music.
Again No Disrespect.
Peace!
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"It's a dangerous business, going out of your door, You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to." - J.R.R. Tolkien, "Three Is Company," The Lord of the Rings
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09.10.2006 - 02:54
Rating: 8
Talvi

Written by Valar on 07.10.2006 at 12:32

No Disrespect to any one but i cant find a single thing i like about this band. I just hate there music.
Again No Disrespect.
Peace!


Then you must hate music, because it's impossible to not find anything good from this band

And well, I thought of writing another review, but this describes perfectly the album. 10.10.10.10.10.=10. Perfect album, one of the bests ever. Really, I just wanted to say something about it, but that just sums it.
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14.02.2007 - 22:33
Rating: 10
jadawal

You got it right Largos, everything about this album including Schism is absolutly excellent, I started loving this band when this album came out, and I'm still fucking hooked, I'm amazed that Tool only got added to this site last year, and now they have two or three albums in the top 100, haha fucking right man!!!
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11.06.2007 - 08:41
Rating: 7
Doc G.
Full Grown Hoser
I found this album boring as all f*ck when I first picked it up, but after giving it a few more chances its starting to grow on me and Im starting to see why its being raved about. So give me 2 months and ill probably understand your review & rating a little more.
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"I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck."
- George Carlin
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18.07.2007 - 03:26
Sonic Titan
Account deleted
theres a couple diffrent orders you can play the songs if you put em together ina certain order it sounds like one giant song i heard that rumour on the internet and i tried it for myself and it really works...
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12.02.2008 - 00:00
Rating: 10
+{Jonas}+
I R Serious Cat
Deffinitely Tool's best album... Complex, deep, relaxing... and all of them make an amazing job. Youc an hear MAynard's soft vocals in The Patient and the screams in Ticks and Leeches, A great guitar workby Adam in Lateralus, coming from teh soft acoustic to the sol that ends it; Justin's bass just can't be beaten by anyone, his style is unique, and Danny CArey does, as usual, a great drum work. They deffinitely deserved that Grammy. Although teh fact they've won it means absolutely nothing. It's a great album, with or without Grammy.
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"Nobody wants to be the weird kid, you just end up being the weird kid. You don't know how you ended up getting there" - Rob Zombie

http://jonas-bs.deviantart.com My dA, mainly photography, go check it out!
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20.02.2008 - 22:12
Rating: 8
Talvi

Written by +{Jonas}+ on 12.02.2008 at 00:00

Deffinitely Tool's best album... Complex, deep, relaxing... and all of them make an amazing job. Youc an hear MAynard's soft vocals in The Patient and the screams in Ticks and Leeches, A great guitar workby Adam in Lateralus, coming from teh soft acoustic to the sol that ends it; Justin's bass just can't be beaten by anyone, his style is unique, and Danny CArey does, as usual, a great drum work. They deffinitely deserved that Grammy. Although teh fact they've won it means absolutely nothing. It's a great album, with or without Grammy.


Well, with time I enjoy a bit more the 10k days album, maybe I was tired of Lateralus, or just that I like how 10k has more differences between songs, but still this is a great album.
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21.02.2008 - 01:36
Introspekrieg
Totemic Lust
Written by Talvi on 20.02.2008 at 22:12

Well, with time I enjoy a bit more the 10k days album, maybe I was tired of Lateralus, or just that I like how 10k has more differences between songs, but still this is a great album.


I have to admit that I was pretty upset after listening to 10K Days, it just seemed way too short and full of filler songs. I mean, they had 5 years to come up with new material, but I won't bitch and moan because the few songs they made were fairly awesome.
"The Pot" completely blew my mind just because of how surprised I was to hear that intro.
Vicarious sounds like it was a Lateralus leftover, and during the Lateralus tour they were experimenting with variations of this song.

Lateralus is timeless. I don't know what dimension they were in while recording this album but I hope they return there soon. Maybe Maynard is too busy making wine and feeding his ego...
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02.07.2008 - 12:17
Rating: 7
Hamird
Lieutenant
I like this album as the best work of Tool after Aenima. It's a complicated and great album!!
Specially I enjoyed the instrumental track called Triad! It's just amazing!
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21.01.2009 - 12:51
-DC-002-
Mastercommander
This album is amazing. Definitely my favorite of all the Tool albums. It embodies the sound that Tool is at its best and most basic.
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Coldgrits
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16.06.2009 - 23:59
Uirapuru
Liver Failure
Written by Hamird on 02.07.2008 at 12:17

I like this album as the best work of Tool after Aenima. It's a complicated and great album!!
Specially I enjoyed the instrumental track called Triad! It's just amazing!


Agreed with everything there. Triad is truly amazing.
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member of the true crusade against old school heavy metal, early 80s thrash, NWOBHM, traditional doom, first and second wave black metal, old school death metal, US power metal, 70s prog rock and atmospheric doomsludgestoner. o/
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16.07.2009 - 03:48
Rating: 10
Marcus
Doit Like Bernie
This is potentially the best album ever made. End of story.
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19.07.2009 - 14:34
Rating: 8
tea[m]ster
Au Pays Natal
I could listen to Danny Carey play drums everyday for the rest of my life.
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rekt
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09.12.2009 - 17:43
treptolemus
aphotic_zoning
Indeed a beautiful album! Actually that kind of music is my cup of tea. Deep and emotional and extremely spiritual i'd say. Well done!
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\m/etalstor\m/
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13.03.2010 - 07:20
Builtforsin88

I can't find anything wrong with this album. Perfection!
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27.08.2010 - 00:50
Daydream Nation
Account deleted
Actually a perfect album.
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05.11.2010 - 02:56
.Nemesis.

Lateralus is the album that got me into Tool. and my favorite song from there is a tie between Schism and Reflection






-every time you masturbate, a bunch of maggots fuck eachother-
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You try to awaken me, the flesh dripping with blood
My body is there, but my soul a perilous void
Aethereal existence coming off in ambient waves
I am nothing. I AM N1H1L.
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18.11.2010 - 02:47
Rating: 10
Axe Argonian

Lateralus is absolutely amazing, but in my opinion, "Ticks and Leeches" is the only song on this album that doesn't belong. Although musically this song is awesome, its meaning and philosophy are just belligerent and cynical. "Ticks and Leeches" would be an excellent song for an earlier and angrier record like Aenima, but does its philosophy belong on an album expounding so many positive themes like patience, forgiveness, healing, and the appreciation of life? No, I don't think so.
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"Man does at all times only what he wills, and yet he does this necessarily. But this is because he already is what he wills." - Arthur Schopenhauer
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13.04.2011 - 06:06
Rating: 10
Theberzerker

My favorite album of Tool
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12.06.2011 - 05:00
Rating: 10
godisdead

Great album I do consider them a progressive metal band though.
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13.12.2011 - 11:06
Rating: 10
apostleintriumph

Surprised no one has said anything about the title song..Blows my mind every time i listen to it..
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07.03.2012 - 23:56
Rating: 10
Sonic MrSumo

Written by apostleintriumph on 13.12.2011 at 11:06

Surprised no one has said anything about the title song..Blows my mind every time i listen to it..

Agreed...best track on what only can be described as a masterful album in my opinion.
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All the bridges in the world won't save you, if there's no other side to cross to.
- Rock poetry from Silverchair.
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02.06.2012 - 00:17
mayoarm

Amazing fucking album
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