 |  |
 Tool - Lateralus [Volcano - 2001]A lot of things can happen in five years. People can meet each other, get engaged, married, fed up with each other, divorced, remarried and lots more several times in those five years. Musically speaking, a band can release two, perhaps even three decent albums in that period of time. And then we have the perfectionists. Tool's third full lenght album, Lateralus, came out on the 15th of May this year - and is the follow up to the band's masterpiece Aenima from 1996. As said, a lot of things can happen in those five years, and is Lateralus so much different from Aenima? Yes and no. Taking Tool's (rather short) discography into consideration, the debut EP Opiate was somewhat simple (although featuring plenty of potential), the first full-lenght, the massive Undertow, was very technical and aggressive, and Aenima was more laid back and in control. To me, Lateralus is a mix between these two latter albums.The first thing to note when getting a CD is always the packaging - and Tool have always tried to be different here (as in every other corner of their artworks). Slipcase format, 100% plastic, and not a single letter when the slipcase is removed. Only a semi-transparent booklet. The songs are very diverse in nature. We never have a real radio hit (the single "Schism" comes in close, but at its 5+ minute lenght, it was never meant to qualify anyway), but on the contrary songs that needs a lot of digesting. The repertoire goes from aggressive, Undertow-ish songs, lyrically mostly concerning emotions and relationships ("The Grudge", "Ticks and Leeches") - and in the other end of the spectrum there are the more introspective tracks, accompanied by spiritual and otherworldly themes ("Parabola", "Lateralus", "Reflection"). In between are the usual little strange tracks that were featured on Aenima as well - although some of them aren't as well chosen here as they were on the predecessor. Where they were used on Aenima to build up an atmosphere before the song, some of the last tidbits on Lateralus are more annoying than interesting.All the songs of Lateralus are pushed to perfection (then again one would expect that after five years of work). Great production, distinct and powerful songs, excellent lyrics, an extremely impressive skill level (Oh, those drums! Those drum patterns!) and everything that should please a Tool fan. BUT. Despite this reviewer's absolute dedication to the album's excellence, there are a few glitches... first of all, the end of the album is somewhat flat, which is due to the fact that where Aenima ended with the legendary psychedelic "Third Eye", Lateralus' last two tracks are without real vocals and present real anti-climaxes. Speaking of the vocals; Maynard's ingenious voice has been mixed pretty low in the production, which probably is the reason that these songs simply don't have the level of identity that Aenima had.But even with these things in mind, all my negative criticism comes from my comparison with the predecessor, which simply was something in the vein of a blueprint for musical absolution. When comparing Lateralus to most other albums, however, there are no competitors. Thus, I am very confident when I declare this my personal "best album released this year", even though 2001 is only halfway through. It is simply magnificent and - yet - unrivaled.  Jacob Avlund
|
|
|
|
 |
|  | | Tool - Lateralus | A lot of things can happen in five years. People can meet each other, get engaged, married, fed up with each other, divorced, remarried and lots more several...
 | |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
| | | HNW fest- Barcelona- 12th April 2... | An event completely dedicated to harsh noise wall (HNW), with Uitgeschakeld as the headliner. It’s not that I thought David López Saludes (of So...
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
