Tool - Undertow
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Free Music Notes for Undertow
Free Music Review: a masterpiece
Hit: 5 Stars
This album changed my life in so many ways I could not possibly explain.Anyone who discounts this album as anything short of genius is simply not worth your time.Everything about this album is original and masterful.Dig a little deeper my friends, don't fear what you don't understand, embrace it. I have been a fan of Tool since '92. For all of you that only like Tool for what they have released post Anemia are just eating up what media hype has fed you. Opiate is an amazing album as well in it's own way. Every record Tool releases is great in it's own right.Trust me nothing they do is by chance. They are all excellent musicians with they're own styles and together they are really something special. Danny Carey is probably the best drummer in rock ever, he never just plays a basic beat. there are so many layers and beats within beats, and he only gets better with every record. Adam Jones is so original in his playing style. As a guitarist myself I can truly appreciate the subtle complexities in his movements. There really is no other guitarist I can think of that has mastered odd time in quite this way. Though he doesn't just shread out fast leads like some players that are very good his playing is an entirely different entity. There are leads but they aren't just an excuse to show his chops they actually add to the landscape of the piece. His style is something you can't quite put your finger on.And both bassist they have had are amazing and powerful, most people see the bass as an additive to the guitar but Tool definitly uses the low end to they're advantage. That low end makes they're sound very dark and haunting.indeed it is a very important piece to the puzzle. Disagree? just listen to schism for example, would that song be the same without that incredible bassline. Last but not least true visionary. A lyrical genius , a madman, Just his vocal style alone is enough to make him great, but hear his words and they will truly complicate you. He never seems to stop. With him nothing is at face value. He is a great writer, like Adam he posseses a subtle complexity that must be examined to be appreciated. No other band has gone where Tool goes, No other band could go where Tool goes. Music is just music but this band has made it something more something that I can't even understand. There is something very strange that happens between these people. something that reaches inside something that knows us better than we know ourselves.All I can say is that there are alot of great bands out there but they are not Tool.Thank YouFree Music Review: Minimalist rock
Hit: 5 Stars
I first heard this record when it came out in 93'. Undertow was my introduction to Tool and I must admit that I was far from impressed. "It's all in drop D tuning. Every song is in the same key! The mood never changes." These were my thoughts as the music seemed to drone on and on. I wrote them off as another boring metal band and threw the tape in the back of my car and forgot about it.
Yeah, well, I was wrong. I was very wrong. Two years later I found the tape and gleefully rediscovered Tool, wondering how in the world I had dismissed them before.
Undertow is one of those rare rock records that makes a clear and concise musical statement from start to finish. The songwriting and the production conspire to create a visceral, sinister mood that is deep in scope and seething with tension.
For example, listen to the first track, "Intolerance." It begins with twenty seconds of an unidentifiable sucking, bubbling sound effect. The opening riff in 14/8 (phrased with a bar of 6/8 and a bar of 8/8) is dark and serious, intelligent and determined. When the verse begins, Maynard's vocal line is a simple four note motive that rhythmically counters the riff. His voice sounds ghostly, filled with a sincere angst that threatens to break into indignant rage at any moment. The lyrics are contemplative, intelligent, (dare I say it?) philosophical. Maynard makes bold and, yet, humble (because of their sceptical nature) ethical assertions about his own intolerance for what he sees as an amoral and irresponsible consumer society. When he screams "You lie, cheat and steal!" he really means it. But he does not ignore his own reluctant role in the perpetuation of this system by his mere connection to it: "I am not innocent. No one is innocent." I usually don't comment on lyrics, but there is usually not much to comment on.
For just one example of the simple, yet effective production, pay attention to the flange effect on Danny Carry's cymbols. It gives the entire track a sizzle and a seething quality that adds a great deal to the overall feel.
Adam Jones' guitar tone is amazing. Maynard is one of the best rock singers - period. Danny Carry is one of the best rock drummers - period. These compositions are simple but smart and have just as much in common with Stephen Reich as with Black Sabbath.
The band got better and better and their latest release, Lateralus, is, by far, their best release. Still, Undertow is a classic and is, in a way, it's own genre.
Free Music Review: Pull me under.
Hit: 5 Stars
As a progressive rock fan who entered Tool's world with Lateralus, I've been collecting their albums in reverse order. It's pretty strange going from Lateralus (their most progressive) to Opiate (their "simplest"). It must have been very interesting for fans who started at the beginning and watched this remarkable band grow into the powerhouses they are now.At face value, Undertow seems simple and heavy, pulled down because of a muddy mix that never seems to raise the guitars above a buzz or Maynard James Keenan's voice to the heights where it should soar. It's more song-oriented than the multifaceted epics of Lateralus and even ::whoa!:: catchy at times. I love the rapid, quick-fingered picking of the infectious main riff for "Bottom". Heavy stuff can have hooks too, right?
At face value...
Undertow, however, is a pretty rich heavy metal album. Only traces of the alternative/grunge sound hover around Undertow's edges -- mainly the production style and some of the riffs. But in most respects, this is very much a metal record. Intellectually, however, Tool steps well beyond most metal bands with innovative musical intricacies and astute lyrics. Keenan is one of the most powerful vocalists in rock/metal, and his delivery is perfectly dramatic on songs like "Sober" (with its powerful ending) and "Crawl Away", where he whispers and roars. Adam Jones is a very unique guitarist, not playing conventional solos, and usually basing his playing on just a few chords per song. However, Tool is more about band interplay than individual playing: Danny Carey's exact and meticulous drumming; Paul d'Amour's gritty, growling bass; Jones' scratching guitar sounds, silent nuance, or earsplitting power chords. The title track is the most dynamic musically, with clever riffs and awesome vocals. "4 Degrees" shows the band's interest in Middle Eastern influences (which would inform parts of Lateralus). I recommend getting the lyrics from Tool's site and following along as you listen. It really gives the songs more impact.
And, of course, we expect a Tool album to have something weird on it. The trippy 16-minute "Disgustipated" finishes off the album, starting on track 10 and ending on track 69. Tracks 10-68 are just blank, 1-second bits. Then, on track 69, things start to happen. There's some dialogue, some sounds, some singing, and a *bit* of music. Listen closely to the words and think about it...interesting stuff. It's amusingly weird and cool.
Explore one of the best bands out there.
Free Music Review: One of my favorites
Hit: 5 Stars
This album is pinacle of progressive metal in the states. it's got a vibe to it that continues throughout the entire album. Although, that exact characteristic can make it seem repetative; but don't get me wrong. This album is anything but boring. The bass in my opinion is beyond any bass I've ever heard. It's extremely heavy and intense. I think if you like that trait alone you should pick up this album. Although, the good aspects of this album are endless.For one, the lyrics. Although weak at parts they are angry and pure, so if you don't like that this album may not be for you. Songs like the swamp song and intolerance truly extend the full meaning of my point. With the lyrics, comes an odd spin of a industrial rock style to the singing that i think maynard james keenan makes the best of. It's kind of like that guy from third eye and trent reznor mixed together (i know, makes no sense). Although, hes got a voice inseparable to his style and i believe that the important part. However, if the voice doesn't do it for you this album won't, so if you haven't already check the samples above.
The drums are a grand display as well. Although not demonstrated to their fullest i think the overall feel of it was amazing. If, you'd like faster drums and love tool than get lateralus instead, but if well measured and steady drums are you're style then this is right up your alley. In addition, the drums and the bass match beautifully and i think any hard rock fan would agree after hearing this.
Finally, the guitars and the overall sound of the album. The sound and the guitars connect alot and thats why i mention this. The guitar have a creepy quiet ring to it until the chorus usually comes out. Then, the progressive metal begins. Ingenious in all it's simplicity. I loved it in other words. But still it's not for everyone. It you like bands like NIN and have maybe picked up a Manson album then you'd already know the sound. And i think you'd would love it, but if you're confused by the term progressive metal, than this isn't for you just yet. Although, this album in my opinion is incredible it differs from person to person. I hope i helped anyone out there.
Free Music Review: Quite impressive
Hit: 5 Stars
If you read any interview by just about any of Tool's four members, including former bassist Paul D'Amour, they will more than likely bring up their beliefs in the process of evolution, especially of the human race. Tool is living evidence of the evolutionary process, as they started their musical careers with their "Opiate" EP, a heavy and straightforward, but nonetheless impressive disc, then followed it up with the even heavier, angrier, more heavily layered "Undertow". Following was "AEnima", which blew both previous discs out of the water, then "Lateralus" which is on par with "AEnima".Though "Undertow" is not their best album, it still captures that original Tool sound of angry desperation, frustration, growth, and abuse. Fearing to tread on no ground whatsoever, Maynard James Keenan leads the band with superior vocals that touch a number of subjects deemed "offensive" by the "normal" music world and which are largely avoided by most musicians, let alone people. Dealing with child abuse/molestation/rape ("Prison Sex"), alcoholism ("Sober"), self-hatred ("Bottom"), and religious hypocrisy made into a joke ("Disgustipated") and what some listeners consider sexually explicit material because they can't look for what the song is really about ("4 Degrees").
Backing Maynard's ferocity is a band just as equally deadly, with Adam Jones churning out trippy, crunching guitar riffs layed down by the solid guitar-like bass lines of Paul D'Amour and the perfectly timed drums of Danny Carey, easily one of the best drummers I've ever heard. None of the musicians stand out over one another, as all of them move in one seething mass, like a machine pumping out adrenaline rushing tunes.
Literally every track is a standout, and the frightening sound effects and terror-filled answering machine message of "Disgustipated" will be enough to frighten most listeners away. Anyone who can take their music with an open mind but sometimes with a grain of salt and is looking for something outside the norm definitely needs to look into Tool. However, if you must buy one of their albums make it "AEnima" or "Lateralus" first.