concert reviews firsthand, immediate, from the heart

09/21/2001

Review written by: AJ BARRY (apc_tool_46and2@lycos.com)
Review posted on: 09/21/01 23:50:28 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Fantomas was good but Tool is amazing. Whats left to say.








Review written by: Lord Neep (macssuck@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 00:41:49 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  First off, Fantomas sucked. Sorry folks, maybe I just don't 
get it.

Oh my god. I have listened to tool since Aenima came out, 
and I view Maynard as an idol/god. I spent the first hour 
with my mouth open, mouthing the words. Sheer sensory 
overload. I know no other way to describe it. I was actually 
moved to tears for pushit, and disposition/reflection. I could 
not get over how much energy the put off. No wonder they 
took that break in the middle.
Those contortionists were amazing. I bow to them, and their 
superior ab muscles. They certainly added something to 
Schism, and when they were hanging above the stage.

The grudge packed a hugely powerful punch to start, then 
stinkfist, oh my god. I was happy to see them do Pushit. 
That was perhaps the best rendition I've heard them do of 
that, ever. Schism was amazing, seeing that I never knew 
maynard played the guitar for any of Lateralus.



I'm going to the hartford show tomorrow night, so look for 
another review from me :)








Review written by: Josh Winslow (jw32767@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 00:49:38 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Set List:
The Grudge
-Ions (?)
Stinkfist     }
Prision Sex } Order unsure
Pushit        }
Disposition
Reflection
Parabol/Parabola
Eon Blue Apocolypse
The Patient
Opiate
Lateralis


Description:
Where to start?  I got there quite early (6:30 for a 7:30 
start) and stood in the large mudflat known as the Lawn for 
about an hour until Fantomas started.  I think they really 
sucked.  Their 45 mintue set was a waste of my life.  It was 
raining off and on throughout their set which just 
compounded the misery.  

While the techs were setting tool up, there was some odd 
german techno/ska playing.  Once they got setup, tool 
started off with a bitching rendtion of The Grudge.  The large 
screens were quite cool; I also thought it was cool how 
Maynard was siloutetted in front of a smaller one.  He and 
Danny were set up on some sort of raised platform so they 
were the only two I could see from my vantage point.

The crowd really got into Stinkfist with most people singing 
along.  Maynard sung a couple extra lines, but I couldn't 
hear them over all the cheering.  Prision Sex was killer, 
there was a nice long solo.  I was surprised that they played 
the shorter, harder version of Pushit rather than the slower 
version on Salival.

Sometime durring either disposition or reflection, a couple of 
ropes were lowered and a couple people were hoisted up in 
front of the big screens where they did some cool moves 
back and forth.  Relection seemed slower than the verison 
on the album, and the last guitar part lasted almost 8 
minutes while the rest of the band when off stage.  After 
Adam finished, the climbers did some cool swinging back 
and forth while there was some technoish music playing.

They opened back up with a perfect rendition of 
Parabol/Parabola.  I was pissed at first when they started 
playing The Patient because it started off really slowly, but 
by the end it was quite loud and heavy.  

Mayard then thanked us for coming and after some calls for 
more, they fired up Opiate.  There was an extended 
breakdown, but they finished it up with a ton of energy; the 
crowd was really rocking.  Maynard asked us to take the 
energy we got from the concert and go do something 
positive with it.  Then they launched into an awesome 
version of Lateralus to finish the night off.  

Rating:
This was a great show, I really enjoyed it.  Desipte the 
miserable seating and weather, the band and the fans made 
this a night I'll long remember.  I was glad that they played 
dispite what sounded like Maynard having a cold. The major 
downsides were the horrid opening act and the accoustics.  
Base can through perfectly, but the higher ranges were 
slightly distorted.  90/100








Review written by: Greg - TaprootMaster@aol.com (TaprootMaster@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 00:51:21 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  First off the set list:

The Grudge (sounded okay, could've been better)
(-) Ions 
Stinkfist (with extra verse that everyone messed up = )  )
Prison Sex (oh so happy to see this!)
Pushit (AEnema version, my favorite song,  sounded great 
live)
Schism (what a great song)
Disposition (Maynard on guitar)
Reflection (Maynard on guitar, Danny playing like. . .Danny)

Intermission

Parabol (sounded great in a crappy sounding venue)
Parabola (awesome, everyone was into it)
Eon Blue Apocalypse (good. . .)
The Patient (What I was waiting for)
Opiate (I think it was Opiate, far and away the best 
performance of the evening)
Lateralus (Everyone was so tight)

Followed by the gropu hug at the end

...Look for my review when I have more time...

-Greg








Review written by: Sean (grifan2440@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 01:14:05 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

      Tool was incredible!  That was the best concert ive ever 
been to.  After reading reviews of past shows Tool had done 
on the tour, i had some expectations.  Tool met all of my 
expectations and then some.  They really try to give u an 
experience; they dont just play one song after the other and 
then leave.  There was a very toolish mood throughout the 
concert.  The breaks in between songs were not just silent 
pauses but instrumental connections that sometimes took a 
few minutes to prepare the next song.  And the whole time 
there were video screens playing a new video to every new 
song - Adam Jones will never run out of ideas for music 
videos i think.  It was a cool feeling to be in the audience of 
a tool show - ill never forget it.
    Some things i liked: the extended version of stinkfist 
made my second favorite tool song even better; prison sex 
had a cool guitar solo and really rocked the crowd; reflection 
was very cool - the bass vibrated the entire pavillion of the 
tweeter center; opiate was a nice surprise - i think it was the 
crowd favorite; they could not have picked a better song to 
end the show with than lateralus - absolutley awesome!
    Some things i didnt like: fanotmas, the opening band, 
sucked - people were cheering at the end of their set 
because they were finally leaving; i had lawn seats - far from 
the stage, standing in mud; i wish they had played aenima, 
but if they had played aenima there wouldve been some 
other song i wouldve wished theyd played, and the set was 
awesome, so i cant really complain.
    If you havent seen Tool, you should, because they put on 
a great show.  I dont think ill ever see anything like it ever 
again, until they come back!!!








Review written by: DASMICO (dasmico@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 01:20:30 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  first off, fantomas kicks ass. there was nobody booing, but no one was really into it. i loved it.

second Tool kicked ass. everything was awesome.

lastly, the moshers were annoying because the tweeter center sucks and i kept getting thrown almost over the 
rail. 



all in all a fucking tight ass show. cant wait to go again.









Review written by: PaulC (PaulC880@mediaone.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 01:44:41 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

  This show was great.  Even better than the show in Maine.  
They played more songs that aren't on the radio.  It was 
great if you were in the seats, and not soaking wet on the 
lawn.








Review written by: Erik (escinct@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 01:51:38 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Grudge
Stinkfist (extended)
Prison Sex (extended)
Pushit (mostly studio version)
Schism
Disposition/Reflection

Intermission (cool & very short)

Parabol/Parabola
Patient
Opiate
Lateralus

Maynard says:
After Stinkfist- "Good Evening" (that's it)
During Prison Sex- Giant black balloon makes its way to the
stage and Maynard comes out of his area in the back, gets
on top of it and pops it with microphone near.  We hear the
bang and everyone cheers.  (Later on, another of the same
type of balloon gets up there, but a stagehand runs out and
takes it away.)
Somewhere around intermission- "Thank you for joining us in
this moment."
Before Lateralus- "Thank you for coming and braving the 
weather." Then the standard line about what to do with our
feelings.  (It didn't rain at all really.)

My story:
We had every intention to arrive exactly on time, but traffic 
was massive for the last minute person.  We were stuck in 
traffic long enough to completely miss Fantomas.  Our 
tickets were lost in the mail, so we had to go to the Will Call 
window.  At that time, I could hear the bagpipes and Monk 
chanting, symbolizing that Tool was about to go on.  We had 
to find a specific gate to go through because these tickets 
were special copies of the ones that were lost in the mail.  
While finding the gate, The Grudge starts.  We had lawn 
seats.  By the time we get in, Maynard is just completing the 
growl (about half the original growl).  I was really a little 
dissapointed about the 'lawn' at this place, it doesn't slope 
enough for you to see well, and it's not so much a lawn as it 
is a mud pie.  So I basically couldn't see the front of the 
stage and barely saw the contortionists during Schism.  
Seeing the outline of Maynard and the video screens was all 
I really needed.  It was particularly cool in this venue 
because it has 3 or 4 MORE screens than most others, not 
just the two on stage.  The set was played flawlessly.  The 
highlight was definately Opiate and Lateralus.  Particularly 
the scream/growl at the end of Opiate, more powerful than 
the potential one in The Grudge.

The Audience:
There was chanting of "u.s.a." outside the gates, the 
audience tried to chant it again 2 or 3 times during the 
performance, but it was quickly silenced by Tool breaking 
into another song.  One time, they started chanting in my 
area, and a girl with a piercing voice yells, "Don't...... They'll 
stop the show.... Last time, Maynard heard that and stopped 
the show.... This is not a political forum!"  Which worked, no 
matter how uninformed she was.
There was a group of drunken fools, one of which was 
shirtless, all of them attempting to mosh about 1/4 of the 
way through the show till then end, they were even moshing 
to Reflection.  Whenever there was a slow part, they would 
walk around and sort of size each other up, like they were 
freaking Bruce Lee or something.  I guess the slope of the 
lawn was too much for them, cause one of them kept 
stumbling his ass off.  And whenever they felt it was 
necessary, they would do this stupid dance a la Fred Durst.  
It's like a fist-twisting, foot-stepping MTV dance.
Still overall a great experience.
I'm going to the Hartford show tomorrow and have much 
better seats, and yes, they are actually seats.








Review written by: David (ddesola34@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 01:59:56 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  If I had to sum up my first Tool show (a band I'd been 
meaning to see for almost 3 years since I got into them in 
winter of 98) with one word, it would have to be a resounding 
WOW.  

I was sitting about 10 rows back from the stage and had a 
great view of everything.  

Fantomas - I was pleasantly surprised by their live show.   
Sure, their music is weird to say the least but I did like their 
live show.  After they finished, I went down to the barricade 
to meet their drummer Dave Lombardo (formerly of Slayer) 
to say hello and tell him how much I enjoyed the show and 
his drumming.   He was pretty quiet, but he's a nice guy.   
Definitely keep an open mind when you see these guys 
perform, don't set any standards or expectations because 
their music is radically different from anything else I've ever 
heard in recent times.  

Now, back to Tool...    

Maynard wore his usual black facepaint and a black pants 
and t-shirt and sort of lurked in the background while 
singing.  He was pretty animated tonight, he writhed/danced 
around quite a bit during the set.  Adam was pretty energetic 
too, he moved around quite a bit based on what other fans 
were telling me.  Justin was his usual brooding self and he 
was pretty fierce on the bass.  And then there's Danny - 
damn, that guy's limbs are a blur when he starts to play.  
When I wasn't looking at the visuals, I spent most of the 
night watching him play.  He has the most ridiculous (as in 
over the top, excessive) drumkit I've ever seen in my life 
and plays the hell out of it every night!   

Song by song recap: 

The Grudge - Kicks things off with a bang.  All four band 
members are clicking on full cylinders and Maynard 
culminates this song's performance with his brutal 20-plus 
second wail.   

Stinkfist - Adam did a few "false starts" while messing with 
the feedback from his amplifier but once the main riff kicked 
in, everyone in the building was into it.  They played the 
extra instrumental section before "I'll keep digging..."  
again.   Does anyone have any idea what Maynard was 
singing/chanting right before the guitar/drum solo and in the 
outro at the end of the song?   

Prison Sex - The sole representative of the Undertow album 
in this night's set and got a pretty enthusiastic response 
from the audience.  They played it with the extra verse.  Is it 
just me or did the naked guy shown in the video during this 
song look like Adam?   

Merkaba / Pushit - Maynard crouches behind an amplifier 
while Justin and Adam get down on the floor to mess with 
their effects pedals to do this instumental jam.  There were 
some pretty interesting visuals to accompany this, during 
which Adam began playing on the keyboard he has set to 
the side.  Then they kicked right into the Aenima version of 
Pushit.       

Schism - Maynard straps on a guitar (even though he didn't 
play it) and osseus labyrint join the band onstage to walk on 
all fours and bob their heads just like they do in the video.  

Instrumental jam / Disposition / Reflection - The band 
played some weird little jam I've never heard before while 
the image of the guy with 3 eyes flashed on the screens.  
Then they went straight into Disposition / Reflection.  After 
seeing it live, I have a newfound appreciation for this song, 
even though it really did test my patience and attention 
span when I got the album.  Adam played the final guitar riff 
standing by himself onstage over and over and OVER for 
what seemed to be a good 5 minutes at least.   

INTERMISSION - The wacky boys (?) of osseus labyrint set 
up shop while suspended by their ankles at the top of the 
projection screens.  The spinning man from the DVD 
interface of Salival is shown on the screens while osseus 
labyrint hang upside down and try to replicate the position 
and spinning motion of the Salival man to the best of their 
ability.  

Parabol / Parabola - The band come back on and keep 
mellowing the crowd out with the first part of the song.  
Osseus Labyrint are moving around delicately, like a ballet 
dancer or something, while suspended a good 25 feet from 
above the stage.  Then when Parabola kicks in, Tool and 
Osseus Labyrint take the intensity of their performances up 
a notch and keep going till the end of the song.  

Eon Blue Apocalypse / The Patient - Adam and Justin start 
out playing Eon Blue by themselves before starting The 
Patient.  This is the one song I definitely wanted to see 
tonight and it was all I hoped for and then some.  More 
weird visuals on the projection screens.

Opiate - Got one of the biggest responses of the night, and 
Maynard again showcased his tremendous vocal range 
during the final "To rape yooooooooou!!!" verse.   The whole 
abnd was pretty intense during this song, especially Danny 
who beat his drumkit like it owed him money.   

Lateralus - My favorite track on the new album and probably 
my favorite performance of the evening.  Everyone huddles 
around in front of Danny's drumkit for the beginning of the 
song before going back to their regular positions.  Everyone 
sounded great, and the crowd gave a standing ovation as 
soon as the song began dwindling to its end.  All of the 
band members had a massive group huddle / hug in the 
middle of the stage after they were done.  Maynard grabbed 
Adam's ass.  Then Danny and Maynard threw out drumsticks 
and water bottles.  And that was the ball game... 

RANDOM NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS: Maynard wasn't being 
too chatty tonight.  He said "Good evening" "Thank you for 
coming" and his usual "Do something positive with whatever 
you're feeling right now" lines and that was it.... A couple of 
idiots threw 2 huge FNX balloons/beach balls up towards the 
stage, one of which Maynard popped.  This isn't a baseball 
game or a weekend at the Cape.  It's a Tool show, go to 
see the music, not to do shit like that...  The crowd 
chanted "USA! USA!" a few times between songs but it died 
down pretty quickly without any comment or observation 
from Maynard...  I have yet to see the Salival version of 
Pushit, Eulogy, Aenema, Undertow, or 46 and 2 done live.  
I'm hitting the Virginia Beach and Washington DC shows, so 
hopefully I'll be able to see at least one of these.   I also 
want to see Intolerance a whole lot but I'm not going to 
count on it, especially after it got blacklisted.   

One down, two more to go.  Everyone must go see this 
band...   








Review written by: Rich (rich568117@usa.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 02:02:56 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Oh MY God! 

I hate to repeat what everyone else has said, but hey I 
thought I would rush home and be the first reviewer and i 
wasn't! 

FANTOMAS SUCKED! OMG for where the band members came 
from, they certainly didn't live up to what they were capable 
of!

My Seats weren't great, I was Lawn, but i showed up at 5, 
and was tenth in line, so i got to sit on the cement landing 
right at the front near the railing. 
It rained off and on, but my a**hole parents made me miss 
TOOL in '97 at the Tweeter Center, and I wasn't about to let 
a little rain stop me this time, as I have been a huge TOOL 
fan since Opiate, even though this is my first concert!
Every song rocked, although Pushit dissapointed me, as on 
the Salival DVD, the song is like 14 minutes long, so I was 
expecting the same thing, being live and all, but instead i 
got maybe 10. I guess I can't complain though, as they 
added a new verse to one song (can't remmeber which one) 
and added at least another minute to most of the other 
songs. Also liked how Maynard was hidden in the back. 
Kinda gave me a second to sit back and watch the videos, 
as they add a whole other element to TOOL's music, and I 
love it!

The only thing that really got to me was the stupid people, 
and they were giving them alcohol, as they do at all 
concerts! Nothing i hate more then going to see a god-like 
band and having some muscle headed jock acting like an 
a**hole cause he found the damn beer garden! 


Anyways, an all out kick a** concert, and it was definately 
worth the 4 year wait from Lollapalooza 97. Again, Fantomas 
did SUCK!









Review written by: Brad (braddawg03@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 02:24:43 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Setlist:

The Grudge
Stinkfist
(-)Ions
Prison Sex
Pushit
Disposition
Reflection
-Intermission-
Parabol
Parabola
Eon Blue Apocalypse
The Patient
Opiate
Lateralus

All in all, a most memorable experience.  Prison Sex was 
amazing with the extended outro, and Parabol/Parabola 
were flawless.  The songs just take on an entirely new life in 
this live atmosphere.  Even from about 100 yds. away, I had 
the time of my life, and can not wait to once again venture 
to the other side with Tool.








Review written by: Tool fans should be smacked! (i'm smacking you now!)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 02:43:18 ET


This was this reviewer's 3rd Tool show

  yeah, you read correctly...you're all fucking idiots.
here's a pretty clear definition of what i mean by idiot-

1. anyone who buys a 35 dollar ticket and just talks to his 
buddies through the ENTIRE show.

2. anyone who yells FUCK YEAH to maynard while they are 
playing.

3. anyone who was to drunk to remember the show [or 
stoned]...fuck you. you smell bad.

4. aaaand last but not least...[the following people may not 
be tool fans]....the Tweeter Center sound guys...boy did 
they blow it...no high end...all bbass..thundering kick 
drum...and booming bas sguitar....no snare drum...no guitar 
until Opiate....you blewit....once more YOU FUCKING BLEW 
IT.

..but all in all the show was awsome...[don't take it 
personally if you fall into any of the above categories]..

oh, and try to do something "positive" [as maynard said] 
and shut the hell up!
[myself included]
haaaaa/.... wild turkey man in a big furry cave aaahhhh!

.









Review written by: Alias (powallaby@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 02:47:21 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  First off, this was my first time seeing Tool live.  I was blown 
away by the 2 recent shows by A Perfect Circle, so I couldn't 
wait to see Maynard performing with his original clan.  I can 
now say that Tool is the best live band I have ever seen.  
The perfect vocals, the UNBELIEVABLY tight musicianship, 
and the mindboggling visuals all added up to a truly 
memorable experience...enough said.  One thing I do want 
to address is how people reacted to Fantomas.  Everybody is 
entitled to their opinion, but any band fronted by Mike 
Patton deserves more respect than what they got tonight.  
Patton is one of the most unique rock vocalists EVER, as far 
as I'm concerned.  His music is an acquired taste, yes, but 
to hear people booing and yelling "You suck" made me 
sick.  I'm willing to bet that the people who had that reaction 
were of the "younger crowd" - they probably don't realize 
that a musician like Patton is tough to come by these days.  
Fantomas was EXCELLENT, as expected.  Here's one guy that 
hopes Mike Patton keeps making his fucked up style of 
music...









Review written by: fantomas was great (better than tool)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 02:49:56 ET


This was this reviewer's 3rd Tool show

  yeaah, people who think fantomas suck...are entitled to 
their own pig headed, ignorant, fucking plain stupid opinion...
fantomas was the best thing [sound wise] at the show...
they are on the edge...[,,,NOT STAIND OR GODSMACK...OR 
god forbid ...ahhh shut it....they kicked ass...and you know 
it...
people don't understand good music anymore...
wild turkeys in a......hmmm.....goya!
[bean]








Review written by: ff (dd@gg.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 03:22:44 ET


This was this reviewer's 2 Tool show

  i cannot stress enough on how much fantomas was complete 
shit, a waste of my time, a waste of my oxygen, a waste of 
good equipment they use, complete trash. Please dont rush 
to be there early to see them. no lyrics just high pitch 
screams and an asshole who tries to sound like a human 
beat box which he sux at, wow are they putrid









Review written by: Dave Nailling (nailling@brandeis.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 03:24:38 ET


This was this reviewer's 3rd Tool show

       First off, let me start out by saying that anybody who 
didn't respect Fantomas' set had his/her head up his/her 
ass...  Fantomas were probably the single most original act 
I've ever witnessed onstage...  So to all those who I heard 
yelling "WE WANT TOOL!!" and "GET OFF THE STAGE!!" 
during Fantomas' set, I wish you nothing but grave bodily 
harm...  Show some respect, for fuck's sake...  I should stop 
before I get too angry...  Tool was pretty good...  I saw 
them once as the headlining act on Lollapalooza, and once 
on Ozzfest, so this is my first "full-length" Tool show, to be 
precise...  To be honest, I didn't find "Lateralus" too 
amazing when it was released...  I didn't think it held a 
candle to "Ænima..."  However, it was very nice and 
refreshing to see some of the songs from "Lateralus," 
specifically "Parabol," "Parabola," and "Lateralus," in a live 
setting...  It's given me a much larger appreciation for the 
album as a whole...  That's always a good sign of a live 
show...  My only problem with the show was that it hit me as 
a little too "artsy..."  While I appreciated the projections 
behind the band, and the appearance of the performance 
artists, I found them to be really out of place...  Very cool 
stuff, don't get me wrong...  But I don't see how an 
ampitheater full of drunk idiots has the ability to appreciate 
that sort of material in the way that Tool hopes that they 
will...  Go on and call me elitist...  I'll just call you correct in 
your assumption...  Anyway, before I get entirely too long-
winded, I have this to say...  Musically, Tool was a solid ten 
out of ten...  A very tight performance from Maynard, Adam, 
Justin, and Danny...  My God, just watching Danny was worth 
the ticket price alone...  As for the asthetic aspect of the 
show, I'll say about a six out of ten...  Maybe I'm wrong, but 
Tool just came off as a little bit pretentious...  But then 
again, I went for the music, not the stage show...  And the 
music was delivered in spades...  








Review written by: Rob (rholmes@assumption.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 03:35:26 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  "All Indians, No Chiefs." is definitely correct here.

I don't understand how people did not even care for 
Fantomas in the slightest bit.....their show was fucking 
amazing.  Yes, the music is very hard to catch onto, but 
honestly it was like Mike Patton conducting an orchestra.  
The musicianship onstage was fucking incredible.  In my 
opinion, Fantomas blew me away more than Tool.

BUT!  Tool were fucking amazing.  GREAT fucking live show.  
No band can hold an audience in the palm of their hand by 
having the guitarist just play two notes over and over and 
over and over between a song.  The sound was really really 
good in the pavillion section......not overly loud, perfect 
instrument mix.  They were sooooooo tight.  Great 
performance.

Dave, I have to agree with you.  I would've much rather 
heard like "Eulogy" or another song instead of watching 
those two people just climb ropes and grab each other.  I 
totally dig what Tool does artistically, but in cases like this 
its just like they're doing it because they can do it.  I dunno, 
maybe I'm longwinded as well.  Strip it down and just rock, 
like Fantomas.  I didn't even have a second to catch my 
breath during their set.....










Review written by: Sean (sbowden@bu.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 03:54:30 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Let me just say this...I got into Tool in 1996, when Aenima 
came out, and they have been THE driving force behind 
every creative endeavor of mine since then.  The inspiration 
I find in Maynard's lyrics never ceases to amaze me, even 
after listening to the same songs over and over and over.  
That being said, tonight I attended my first Tool show...what 
can I say other than total, utter sensory overload.  

I arrived just as Prison Sex was winding down unfortunately 
(horrendous traffic), but the rest of the show made up for 
anything I missed.  I'd like to say that I understand the 
complaints in previous posts about Maynard's stage 
position, but after tonight I can't.  Watching him writhe and 
just move to the energy of the music, silouhetted against 
the screen, I was just enthralled...his performance, both 
vocal and artistic, was flawless.  On to specifics...

My favorite performances this evening were Parabola and 
Opiate...I mean, Parabola had a mind boggingly amazing 
breakdown...even more amazing than the record, and 
definitely than any of their other live renderings.  And as for 
Opiate...I'll be the first to say that I'm not a huge Opiate 
fan compared to say everything off of Aenima and 
Lateralus...but holy shit.  The audience was pulsing with 
energy the whole song, and the visuals and light show 
throughout it was intense.  Just...wow.  I also was reallllly 
glad to hear The Patient, that was awesome, except for the 
bright yellow spotlight that tamed my cornea.  

I can truly say that there were only two disappointing things 
about tonight...1.) arriving late and 2.) the moron in front of 
me who was drunk off his ass and kept yelling "U.S.A." at 
the most inappropriate moments just to try and get some 
attention.  I mean c'mon...this is Tool, go expend your 
abundance of testosterone elsewhere.  Right now I am just 
basking in the moment, just totally amazed that I saw the 
band that means so much to me...I hope you all find your 
moment with Tool as beautiful as mine was.









Review written by: Brett (sniper1710@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 04:03:42 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  This was my first Tool show and I must admit that I couldnt 
wait to ge there and see them.  The Setlist has already been 
posted so I will delve right into it.  I cant explain how happy 
I was to hear Opiate and Patient which havent been played 
that much on this tour.  Opiate was unbelievable my fav 
song by far and to hear patient (my fav on Lateralus was 
just amazing).  I had lawn seats so the view was obstructed 
but I didnt care.  The moshers kinda got in the way but 
added to the atmosphere.  I cant say enough about these 
guys.  See ya all tomm in Hartford.









Review written by: Jay 9779 (bobbyjones62@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 04:06:54 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  This was my first show....... I've been wanting for sooo long 
to see them live..... and all I have to say is..... the Tweeter 
Center SUCKS ASS.  If you are in the seats then its pretty 
good, you get a nice un-obstructed view of the band from 
wherever you are.... but on the lawn, you basically get no 
chance to see the band at all unless you arrive early enough 
to be in front or go way off to the side and get a view of half 
the stage. 

I didn't even know those naked contortionist guys were on 
the stage during SCHISM until I came home and read about 
it!

I sincerely hope that TOOL comes back to Massachusetts 
and does a show in the Worcester Centrum, Tsongas Arena, 
or Foxborough Stadium because all of those places are 
better then the crappy Tweeter Center.

As for the crowd there, since TOOL started with the GRUDGE 
right into STINKFIST right into PRISON SEX, the whole crowd 
started up riled and tried to get a few mosh pits going.  But 
then when they slowed it down with PUSHIT, SCHISM and 
DISPOSITION/REFLECTION, the crowd REALLY mellowed out.  
Like other have said, REFLECTION went on and on and on 
and on at the end with just Adam (or was it Justin, hell I 
couldn't see from where I was) playing the same note over 
and OVER AND OVER for at LEAST 5 minutes after the regular 
song had ended.  From that point on, everyone basically just 
stood there and watched the band and the video walls, for 
the REALLY long intermission when the naked contortionist 
guys started climbing up, PARABOL/PARABOLA (I was 
surprised people didnt start moshing when PARABOLA kicked 
in), THE PATIENT (really good live), and OPIATE (the definite 
highlight of the evening, the crowd started singing along 
again, the band played it perfectly, it sounded amazing for a 
10 year old song).  Then Maynard talked for the second 
time to say that we should the feeling we have right now and 
bring it home and do something positive with it.  I was 
hoping after that he would launch into Aenema to end the 
night, but then I realized since it deals with the destruction 
of a major American scity, they will probably never play it 
again :) ......also, looking back, it woudln't have fit to play 
it.  They ended with Lateralus, which was a perfect way to 
end the night.  We were all hoping for an encore (This being 
my first TOOL show, I really wanted to hear Eulogy & 
Aenema since they are my favorite TOOL songs besides 
Stinkfist, and others likes PART OF ME or SOBER or SWAMP 
SONG)...... but I realized this wasn't a night for TOOL's 
greatest hits.......this was a night to show us what they've 
been working on for 3 years, and to show us what they've 
done with their older material...

Looking back, it was an amazing night of music....and not 
just music........art.......the sounds and sights.....everything 
in the videos.....everything they were doing on stage....was 
all like one big message.

One of the people I went with summed it up the best when 
she said that it didn't matter what Maynard was saying.....he 
was just using words as part of their art.....that the specific 
words were nothing, but the whole ensemble brought across 
something........ a feeling that you get.  She said she had 
never seen a band ever that was so in tune with each other, 
so all together in trying to portray something.  Each of the 4 
was a necessary part of the whole.  It was all about giving 
you feelings.

A great show overall, and I can't wait for them to return to 
MA, hopefully at a better location.

Thanks, TOOL.








Review written by: katie (telemetry@bolt.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 04:37:23 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

  Mansfield was my third Tool show on this tour, and despite the awful
location [I hate the Tweeter Center] and the weather [rain] I must say I
think it was the best. The opening band, Fantomas, were strange as hell
but IMO pretty damn decent. I spent a significant amount of their set
tonight watching two guys dancing in the front of section 5. I think they
were some of the only people really getting into it, unfortunately. I was
happy at least to not hear any booing like at the Portland show. If anyone
was booing and I didn't happen to hear you, well, fuck you. If you don't
want to see/hear the opening band, then show up late. If you show up and
think they're shit, go drink some more goddamn beer. But don't bother
everyone who's trying to appreciate the band. now, Tool....ahhh, how to go
about this....they opened with The Grudge, of course, and I thought
Maynard was getting into it more physically than he was at the last two
shows....but maybe my memory's skewed. Then they played the extended
version of Stinkfist, but I can't recall if Maynard sang the extra lyrics
tonight. I was ecstatic to hear Prison Sex, which was also extended and
with extra lyrics. They also played the Ænima version of Pushit rather
than the Salival version that they played in Montreal and Portland. During
one of the earlier songs [I can't recall which] someone threw a balloon
from FNX [radio station] onto the stage. Maynard then proceeded to kneel
on it and pop it. I thought he'd say something about it after the song,
but no. Keeping with the pattern of recent shows, he didn't say much at
all.  During Schism and a couple of other songs, Maynard picked up a
guitar. I didn't see him actually playing it, so I'll only say he picked
it up. The contortionists came out on stage during Schism and again after
Reflection through Parabola. During the second part of the show they
played The Patient, which was lovely despite the drunken morons screaming
lyrics a couple rows behind me; and Opiate, which was amazing. They closed
with Lateralus and their group hug. A few guys in front of me were staring
with their eyes wide and motioning to each other how short Maynard was. I
found it amusing.  So three shows down, one [Hartford] to go. To the guy
in the Pink Floyd shirt, maybe we'll get lucky and hear Third Eye :)









Review written by: Greg Pepin (greg@gregpepin.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 07:47:02 ET


This was this reviewer's 6th Tool show

  Great Show.  Didn't expect anything different.  You all know the setlist, so I'll skip on 
to some specific highlights of my night.

As much as I wasn't into Fantomas, I thought that Dave Lombardo(drums) has got 
some serious chops - Buzz was also in rare form.  I can't say I hated the performance 
- they are definitely good at the performance of thier art, but the music didn;t do it 
for me.

Moving on.  Being the serious gearhead I am, I payed close attention to what Adam 
had for gear - If I remember correctly, he used to have a Boogie Triple Rec for all the 
tours prior to Lateralus, but I noticed he replaced it with a 2nd Diesel - to now he's 
running a chain of 2 diesels and a Marshall Bass Head through 2 Boogie 4x12s and a 
Marshall 4x12.  My seats weren't the best, bust I saw that he had a little synth next to 
his rack.  Very cool addition - Fripps soundscapes must have really turned him onto 
this.  Cool thing about Fripp's soundscapes is that there are no synth's involved - they 
are all driven by countless numbers of racks and played through his guitar.  Nice!

The guys were very tight, and I had read that Maynard had been playing guitar on a 
few songs.  When I saw his roadie bring out a guitar, I payed extra close attention to 
him, and I didn't see or hear him play it once...  Could be mistaken.

Gr








Review written by: Ben (Cynic462@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 08:45:55 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

  I am not going to bore everyone with a setlist and 
an "OHMYGODISAWTOOL" diatribe. Instead, I am going to 
leave a quote I got from Adam Jones in Alternative Press:

"I want Tool to be a powerful escapism. I want Tool to be 
like a drug. Take Tool and kick back into your own little 
world."

Quite simply, this show, for Tool live neophytes and 
veterens alike, was amazing. Not just because of what they 
played, but they proved they are the greatest live band on 
earth. I felt myself in a state of esoteric bliss: meditative 
and yet still aware. I was able to process what was 
happening around me with a heightened sense of 
awareness. Tool became a drug for me, getting me higher 
than any substance. I walked out of the show speechless 
and amazed. Wow. Four times, and they still make me lose 
myself. Anyone not a convert needs to be. This is the 
feeling of nirvana, if only for a moment.









Review written by: Zack (sych0@tellink.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 09:29:50 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Let me just start by saying what i thought of the show last 
night:






No words to describe it. Or perhaps if unfuckingbelievable 
was a word, itd be it. I was just blown away at how good they 
were. I wont say too much cuz most has already been said. 
One thing i havent heard tho, is they played every song 
(cept for some intros/outros) off lateralus EXCEPT TICKS & 
LEECHES!!! Damnit. :( I REALLY wanted to see this one. I 
wanted to watch danny drumming the amazing beginning of 
this song. This is one of my favorite tracks. how cool would it 
have been to hear "I HOPE I HOPE I HOPE YOU CHOKE!" oh 
well, maybe next time.

My fav performance of the night would have to be 
disposition & reflection. And of course lateralus ...and the 
grudge. Hell, they were all fucking amazing equally. 












Review written by: Andrew (Ares007311@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 09:41:10 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Sincere.  That is all I can say about these guys.  They are 
the most sincere preformers that I have ever seen.  With 
the band, there is no sissyasscorperatebullshit going on... 
just music.  I'm sure that there are a few hundred other 
reviews out there that will tell you about the songs that they 
played and how incredible the intro was to this, or the 
interlude through that was, so i will let those tell you about 
them.  I just have to say, to anyone that has never seen 
Tool before, and thought that it may verywell be the best 
concert of your life, well, you're absolutely correct.  They 
start out playing amazingly, but by the end of the show, 
there isn't just skill behind the music, there is a pure love 
for actually playing it.  I don't think i have ever seen, heard, 
or felt something quite as amazing as tool playing live --- 
the boston show was truely something inspired.
On a personal note, I must say that, though they played 
nearly all of the songs off of there new album, one shouldn't 
be either scared away, or upset at the exclusion of some of 
the older songs.  I had hoped to hear 46&2, or jimmy, or 
even sober, but upon leaving, i don't think any of that 
mattered... they played a most incredible set.  Also, I would 
like to thank every person there... chanting USA showed me 
that truely everyone, no matter what their age, background, 
or taste, truely appreciates the country and freedom that we 
enjoy.  I had thought about such a chant before the concert, 
and what the bands reaction would be... saying anything 
would be rather un-Maynard.  Of course, he didn't.  But that 
didn't mean that it wasn't still appreciated... it added to the, 
excuse me for the corniness of this, "love" that the crowd 
had... it was truely amazing.  Lastly, I'd like to say that the 
fuckers at FNX shouldn't bother setting people up with 
ballons... save stuff like that for shows where it doesn't fuck 
with the vibe.  Maynard handled it just as he needed to, by 
popping that stupidass beachball advertisement.I'm sorry to 
everone outside of new england that has no idea what i am 
talking about, but just realize that when you are seeing Tool 
in your area, the last thing that you are going to want to see 
in the middle of the best concert ever is a giant bouncing 
radiostation add.  Thank you to Tool, as well as the 
incredible people that were there, for making my first Tool 
show far more amazing than i ever thought it could be.









Review written by: t.m. (tmat2565@postoffice.uri.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 10:03:49 ET


This was this reviewer's  Tool show

  Having Fantomas open the show created a sense that once Tool appeared, they would seem that much better.  
There is no offense intended to Fantomas(or any fans) in that statement.  Just simply, the edge I was looking 
for 
last night couldn't be found in their music.  Once Tool came on, and I got past the crowd induced annoyances, 
the 
show evolved into something beyond just watching a concert.  It's hard to find a reference point around which 
to 
explain the show that hasn't already been mentioned by other reviewers, but I will say focusing on the show as 
a 
whole created a compressed, head clearing experience.








Review written by: Charlie (cooly5446@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 10:16:04 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  The setlist is already posted, so you know how that went. 
The show was spectacular, with very few drawbacks. 
Fantomas was good musically, but they had horrible vocals 
and almost no real lyrics that I could make out. It could 
have been worse, though. Tool's set was profoundly 
amazing, I had looked forward to seeing them for quite 
some time and they came through beautifully. The only 
thing that annoyed me was people coming into my row, the 
back row, from the lawn and taking up way too much space. 
Other than that, I have no complaints. Tool played an 
awesome show, the venue did a great job with security and 
organization, and everything went smoothly. I can't wait to 
see them again in Washington!








Review written by: jimmy (breadzeppelin@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 10:29:33 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Best concert of my life tonight. 

Adi, Talya, Josh and I jump out of Talya's parents' car and 
in front of Great Woods. We promptly walk to the front, 
where Talya's umbrella and bag are confiscated. Talya and 
Josh have lawn seats, and it is raining, so an umbrella would 
be nice. Oh well. 

It is about 7:00, and we begin to walk around and check out 
the place. No noticeable free stuff, only really expensive 
food and Pringles cans. At about 7:15, huddled under a tarp 
waiting for the rain to stop, Paul finds us. He is wearing his 
Opeth shirt. Hooray. We talk for a few minutes, and then we 
lose him in the fact that Fantomas is going on in five 
minutes. Josh and Talya begin to walk towards the lawn 
section, and Adi and I begin our trek towards our seats. Adi 
and I split up, and decide to meet at the Pringles can after 
the set. 

Fantomas were an interesting blend of art death/sludge 
metal, and they were much different than everything I have 
ever heard. Mike Patton was less a singer and more of a 
human beat box. The lyrics were mostly "Rat ta tat tat", and 
the songs were as short as five seconds and as long as 
fifteen minutes. They had oriental and Italian-based songs, 
even. It was fucked up. At about 7:40, I see that Adi has 
moved into my section, but in a closer seat. I move up to 
him, and we sit and watch Fantomas together. 

They finished at about 8:10, and Adi and I made our way to 
the Pringles can to find Josh and Talya standing there, 
soaking wet. It is still raining at this point. Talya has bought 
a really tight Tool tank top (that looks extremely cool). Adi 
goes to wait in line for the bathroom, and I become a 
corporate sellout by paying thirty some bucks for a Tool 
shirt. After Adi returns, all four of us make it up to the lawn 
seats so Adi and I can check out the area. It is still raining, 
but not bad. There are four massive television screens that 
face the lawn so people can actually see what is going on, as 
opposed to just hearing it. After about a minute, Adi and I 
decide the rain is too much, and we return to the lobby. 

It was about 8:40 when Talya and Josh made their way back 
to the lawn and Adi and I headed back to the seats. As 
people begin to fill the place to capacity, we survey the place 
and stop. I tell Adi to have fun and meet at the giant 
Pringles can afterwards. "See you on the other side", he 
says. 

I got to my seat at about 8:45, but the lights did not dim 
until 8:50. The crowd waiting in anxious anticipation, as 
chants of "USA!" filled the 19,900 people's voices. The band 
comes on to the stage, and the crowd goes wild. The drums 
and the bass begin...

1. The Grudge- Justin and Adam are both standing at the 
front of the stage, but Maynard is tucked away in the corner 
and the only evidence you have that he is there (besides his 
voice) is the sillhouette he has cast on the video screens. A 
high octane performance of an extremely well-played song. 

2. ions (-)- The famed zapping. Goes on for about 30-45 
seconds. 

3. Stinkfist- One of the best songs of the night, high level of 
intensity. There is an added extra verse right before "I'll 
keep digging..." which makes the song about 7 minutes 
long. There are two big video screens and one small one, 
and they are all playing the Stinkfist video. During the new 
bridge, the video flashes an insane frame after another. 
Maynard says "Good evening."

4. Prison Sex (O.T.R.M.)- Not a great live song, in general. 
Also had an added extra verse, which made the song about 
6 minutes long. The video of Prison Sex is playing in the 
background. Towards the middle of the song, there was an 
odd (?sex?) scene on the screens. 

5. Merkaba- The old Sober intro. About two minutes of it, 
mostly Adam and Justin fucking around with their effects 
pedals. I actually thought they were going to play Sober. But 
we got something better...

6. Pushit- The Aenima version. Best song of the first half of 
the show. Maynard screams "There's no love in 
feeeeaaaaarrr" and the audience goes nuts. Maynard pops a 
giant black balloon that floats up on stage. 

7. Schism- A good song, but without the harmonies it just 
does not have the same feeling. It wasn't meant to be a live 
song, I guess. Osseus laybrint comes on stage and start 
walking on their fingertips and their tippy-toes and bobbing 
their heads through their arms in a pendulum-like manner. 
You HAVE to see this for yourself. Schism video was playing 
on the screens. 

8. Disposition- Mylighter goes up. A long wait before this 
song begins, possibly some sort of instrumental? The video 
screens show a recurring picture of a man with three eyes. 
For a moment I thought we had "Third Eye" coming...As the 
bass drowned out and the drums get closer to Reflection, 
the crowd lets out a defeaning roar. They know whats 
coming. 

9. Reflection- Maynard sings the violin part in the beginning. 
On the screens, there is some sort of video of an animated 
bathroom. Through out the song, the shot goes into the 
toilet. The ending is dragged out by Adam Jones for about 
seven minutes, making Disposition/Reflection last over 
twenty minutes. 

INTERMISSION- Osseus labyrint comes back, hanging from 
their ankles and swinging hundreds of feet high. The 
intermission lasts about ten minutes, and the band returns 
to the stage. 

10. Parabol- Lighter goes up. The contortionists remain on 
the video screens and stay there until the end of Parabola. 
The video was very trippy. 

11. Parabola- The videos remain from Parabol, but get more 
intense. The visuals in the show are superb. The 
contortionists get a standing ovation as they leave the 
stage. Maynard thanks the audience for "braving the 
weather", and it wasn't even raining anymore. 

12. Eon Blue Apocalypse- Adam seemed to be the only 
person on stage during this. It lasted the standard minute. 

13. The Patient- Generally a good song live. The lights came 
much brighter as the distorted guitar and drums came in. 
Kinda annoying. The crowd was so loud that I could barely 
hear Maynard whispering "And I still may...I still may..." 

14. Opiate- In-fucking-credible. I think a lot of people were 
expecting and wanting "Aenema", but as the first few notes 
of Opiate played, the crowd seemed very much for it. The 
show was brought back to a high-energy point, after hearing 
The Patient, Parabol, and Disposition/Reflection. The 
intensity leading up to "Jeeeessssus Christ why don't you 
come save my life now?" was definitely the most intense of 
a live song I have heard. I had a Tool-gasm. 

15. Lateralus- before the song, Maynard makes the speech 
about how we all should turn what we are feeling this 
moment into something positive. I was really moved by his 
speech, especially in light of what is happening during the 
world. An amazing last song. Best live song off 
of "Lateralus" (the album). I clap and yell for a few minutes. 
The band huddles up on stage, Maynard grabs Adam's ass, 
and they tramp offstage. 

I begin to make my way to meet the rest of the folk at the 
Pringles can. For about ten minutes of searching for it, I 
can't find it. I call Talya and tell her to meet me at my 
mom's car. At about 11:05, we find all of each other. Talya 
and Josh tell me that they got seats better than I had for 
the final five songs from some old man, but left before 
Lateralus ended. What the fuck? Adi tells me that he moved 
up as well, but he moved up at the beginning. As my mom 
is leading us to our car, Paul catches up with us and talks to 
us for a few minutes. My mom kept looking at him and 
wondering who the fuck he was. At about 11:10, we made it 
out of there, dropped Josh and Talya off, and Adi, my mom 
and I were home at around 12:20. 

I'm tired. G'night. 









Review written by: mkb (mkb@ele.uri.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 10:49:03 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Well, due to the legalized scalping of tickets (some 
company in Johnston, RI is selling tickets they probably 
bought from Ticketmaster, grrr) I had to volunteer to work 
security to get into this show.

I got to start off patting people down IN THE RAIN! Some 
people were assholes. Most were very nice. 

Right before Tool started, I got assigned to seat people. No 
sweat, most of the assholes were security this time.

I had never been to the Tweeter Center before last night, 
and I don't think I'll go again. The sound was TERRIBLE if 
you weren't right in the middle. Maynard's voice started 
wavering a little bit after the intermission.

The little keyboard that Adam was using is an ACCESS 
VIRUS Indigo. I couldn't see whether it was hooked up to 
anything else from where I was standing. 








Review written by: Jay (iceinc@bellatlantic.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 11:07:51 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  There is nothing more to say other than nothing.  I can't 
explain how incredible the show was, just see TOOL..









Review written by: Kyle J. McBride (BlakNo1@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 11:08:00 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

  
Second night in a row, more observations.
First off, despite the bad location, I LOVE shows at Great 
Woods(I will never call it that OTHER name). Even getting 
drenched on wasn't so bad(bought a poncho). Longer show 
than usual with the bonus "oldie"(Opiate) I completely 
missed Fantomas, I'm sure i would've been dissappointed 
by the crowd reaction anyway. I hope they come around on 
their own. Unfortunately,now is a sad day because it is the 
longest time before more TOOL. The only way this show 
could've been better would be with a longer show and a 
more diverse set list but I'm just being picky. 2 4-star shows 
in a row, thank you so much guys.








Review written by: sally (dandecker@mediaone.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 11:42:20 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  FANTOMAS SUCKED!   TOOL was fucking awesome best show 
ever!









Review written by: Lin268E (lin268e@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 11:42:28 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  I'd give the show a 3.5 out of 5, mostly because I was 
somewht dissapointed in Maynard's performance during 
some of the songs.

During the softer songs (disposition, parabol) and during the 
verse part of lateralus, he didn't sound too good. It sounded 
like he had a cold or something, and his voice was rather 
nasal.  So I don't really think it was his fault, he probably 
just has a cold.  However, he did give a top notch 
performance during opiate.

The highlights of the show were parabola (with the two 
contortionists dangling around) and opiate.

Other than the Maynard thing, it was very good.  The rest of 
the band was always fantastic.









Review written by: King Nothing86 (unforgiven191@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 12:16:08 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  alright dude,  pretty much this was the most incredible 
concert ive ever been to,  even though it was rainin a ton 
and i had lawn seats so i got soaked and all my hair gel ran 
into my eyes so i could hardly see BUT even after that it was 
soo good, i hated fantamos,(sorry fantamos fans) everone 
around me was doin a "you suck" chant when they were on 
and i joined in a few times but shit when tool opened up with 
the grudge i nearly came my pants. probably the best song 
they played was either pushit or lateralus i think but 
everything was so retartedly awesome. i had never seen 
them before and just the fact that i was seein this band that 
ive idolized for so long was amazing but hearing them was 
something else. ah damn good stuff man ill tell ya that 
much!









Review written by: Andrew Corcoran (vidfreak@altavista.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 12:39:24 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  The show last night was the most amazing experience I 
have ever...well...experienced.  Fantomas sucked.  Period.  
They were terrible.  But when they left the stage, everyone 
started cheering because we all knew that TOOL was coming 
on.  The entire show was just amazing. The Grudge was a 
great starting song, and The Patient, Pushit, Prison Sex, and 
Stinkfist also impressed me.  The way the finished up with 
Lateralus was also incredible.  I cannot wait to see them 
again.








Review written by: armadillo (remaining@anonymous.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 12:42:58 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  I won't get into the songs too much, because I don't have 
much to say that hasn't been said already.  But I wanted to 
talk about Fantomas, because "they sucked" just doesn't 
really explain why I found them intolerable.  Yes, Mike 
Patton is a great vocalist.  But he didn't sing here.  And I'm 
sure the rest of the guys are great musicians, but nothing 
they played lasted longer than a minute.  Ireally liked the 
Godfather thing in the beginning, but the rest was so 
disjointed I couldn't enjoy it.  They could have been playing 
20 really short songs or just one long one, I couldn't tell.  To 
sum up, I think they attempted an ambitious sonic 
experiment, and perhaps a clever one, but it alienated me 
more than it drew me in.  

As for TooL, it was phantasmagoric.  I'm still amazed that a 
band that demands emotional vulnerability (and more than 
a little patience) of their audience can be so successful.  I 
had seats, so the sound was pretty good where I was; 
Maynard's voice was shaky once or twice, but compared to 
what passes for vocalists in rock music, I would listen to him 
if he had bronchitis.  I think the choice of setlist was very 
much affected by the recent tragedy; no way would we hear 
Aenima or Eulogy, but Opiate was chillingly apt.

I could go on and on...









Review written by: strates (strates@rocketmail.)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 12:43:02 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Damn, shortened set list for some reason, maynard wasn't 
exactly talkative, and they didn't play anything pre Aenima. 
But itw as all  tool, and it didn't matter. Camella is quite the 
babe, but she wouldn't let me have here setlist. Thanks to 
tooldvn for bringing me to the show. 

as the performance has already been discussed ad nausea, 
I will just tell you guys my reaction to it. 

My heart hurt through the whole damn show, it was beating 
so hard. I was standing slightly behind Camella's position in 
the sound booth, watching her was quite interesting, she is 
as much a part of the live show as the band. I would have to 
say extended Stinkfist and Pushit were both great treats, but 
my favorite would have to be Parabol(a). 

Now, I am beginning to wonder, (though this is my first 
show, I have heard some where between 75 and 100 
bootlegs of the band) Does it seem to anyone else that the 
band is heading in a different direction after the KC shows? 
looks like Adam is starting to work with soundscapes a little 
bit.

And by the way, for those of you that hadn't figured it out, 
Maynard plays the notes which are sustained for a couple 
measures at a time, the ones that sound synthesized, in 
Reflection. 









Review written by: Krist (Ravenblue9@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 12:46:09 ET


This was this reviewer's 3rd Tool show

  Besides the fact I spent more time sitting in the car than 
actually at the show,  

TOOL was awesome as always. 

We missed half of it which was almost as dissapoinmtng as 
having to be smashed into the over crowded mudpie of the 
lawn. There were some points in time where I was actually 
able to catch a slight glimps of maynard doing his maynard 
dance, between the bobing heads in front of me.  There are 
some people who do not respect the meaning to TOOL...  
They were the drunken assholes who insisted on screaming 
to each other throughout the whole show(irrelevent to 
TOOL), the ones who felt the need to mosh in the most 
inapropriate time...You know who you are....  They stole my 
show from me and i just want to thank you all  for ruining 
my night!!!
Im sure i would have more to say if i was actualy able to 
experience the show the way it was intended...








Review written by: damn.. (mrs_zebra@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 13:25:03 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  hi.  i'd respect tool a lot less if they respected their "fans"... 
christ..i can't believe some of you fucking people.. i'd 
say "to each his own" here, but when you bastards affect 
other people with your ignorance and inconsideration by 
pushing people around for no other reason than you can't 
manage to get laid even though you're in a frat.. yeah, i 
hope someone knows where i was headed with that..  the 
show was wonderful, i've been smiling for days (except when 
i think of you rebellious sheep, but don't worry, i think of the 
show again and all of the mind-expanding details bring that 
smile right back).

  i was and still am surprised to find that the people that 
actually mentioned the "naked people on stage" always 
followed it with a simple "interesting"... i guess i'm just ...not 
you, but i really, REAlly enjoyed those naked people... AND i 
didn't see a single one mentioning the symbolism of 
their "dances"..but then again, maybe you felt it was 
obvious and didn't need mentioning and you're a fuck of a 
lot brighter than i think..  i actually went and bobbed my 
head politely for meshuggah again because in a large part 
of them.. i don't know why just yet, but...   i was on the floor 
second row, so i just put my leg out behind me (i had so 
much room here!!) in the exact position that would smash  
an averagely sized male's balls if he were to try to push or 
mosh anywhere near me.. it wasn't hard and it worked!  
yippee for pain!  SO. tool.. i'll never forget this experience.. 
ever..  thank you, and instead of just following what 
maynard says blindly, if you could think about it, understand 
it, and follow as you see fit instead..it'd make the world a 
better place and we all know how nice that would be right 
now.  
compassion, not anger and fear. *i apologize in advance for 
the below being even less concert review material*  
to show disapproval of racism, did they have a black hand 
shaking another black hand?  should we therefore symbolize 
unity at this time, something that is so incredibly important, 
with one flag?   

*if you are either thinking, "i'll mosh all i want"  and/or have 
a great big american flag and a sticker saying to kill all of 
the sand jockeys on the back and front of your 1979 ford 
bronco, save me a lot of time and effort by not writing 
anything anywhere near a tool web site.. or anywhere for 
that matter.. you know what.. it'd be really cool if you didn't 
say anything either... just...kinda keep to yourself for a 
while.. i'm begging you.. 

lora  











Review written by: Ir Vigilus (fatedistortion@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 13:35:55 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  I'm completely speechless when it comes to last night's 
show.  For that very reason, I'll be brief.

Fantomas was absolutely terrible.  A lyricless mess of 
screaming idiocy, more or less.  They were your basic death 
metal band, which is fine by me, but they tried a bit too 
hard.  They used awkward time-signitures in horrible ways.  
And the lead singer didn't exactly sing.  He just made goofy 
noises.

Tool, however, was the most beautiful experience of my 
life.  There's nothing else to say.








Review written by: Harrison (harrison@ebeband.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 13:53:28 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Last night was one of the most beautiful nights I have ever 
experienced in my life.  I have a habit of saying every 
concert I see is "the best I've ever seen," but last night was 
more than that.  It was beautiful, profound, and made my 
friends and I feel like we were on some kind of euphoric 
drug.  "We were riding on the crest of a high and beautiful 
wave..."

I'd like to say that I thought FANTOMAS was amazing.  I find 
it funny that such close minded people who can in no way 
appreciate FANTOMAS love TOOL so much.  How is this 
possible?  Oh well.  I think FANTOMAS must get off on 
the "You suck" comments, at least I hope they do.  I would 
in their situation.  Mike Patton is a totally talented and 
visionary individual so I think it was perfect for this band to 
open for TOOL.  

After their set finished, I watched the roadies set up for 
TOOL.  I had been waiting for last night for many many 
years, so it was the pinnacle of the excitement which has 
built in me since I bought the tickets a few months ago.

The band came out, and Danny clicked them into THE 
GRUDGE.  I lost control, and I did not care about appearance 
or anything superficial, as every human usually does.  I was 
raw and exposed and so incredibly happy to be seeing my 
favorite band in the entire world.  To be honest, I cried when 
the set started.  My friend also informed me that he had a 
full-on erection for the first 25 minutes.  The entire show was 
pretty intense and overwhelming.

Of course I wish they played certain songs like THIRD EYE, 
my favorite, but I made up my mind before the show that 
whatever they did would be perfect.  And I was right.  It was 
completely beautiful and wonderful and worth all the work it 
took to get there.  It was worth every cent put into it.  TOOL 
is the next level.  Lateralus is an amazing album that 
inspires me to play the music that I do.  I only hope that 
some day I can contribute to the world something as 
valuable as TOOL has.  Thanks for reading.  Spiral Out.








Review written by: eric (everydayatrocity@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 13:55:45 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  First of all, the setlist:

The Grudge - (-) ions - stinkfist - prison sex - merkaba-ish 
type noise - pushit (album version) - schism - disposition - 
reflection - break/contortionist climb the ropes - parabol - 
parabola - eon blue apocylypse - the patient - opiate - 
lateralus

  This was far and away the best show I've ever been to, and 
I've been to a whole lot of shows. The story of this show 
starts back when tickets went on sale. 
   I had to order tickets for five of my friends and myself. I 
got onto ticketmaster.com seconds after tickets went on sale 
and even in such short amount of time there were only lawn 
seats available, but I wasn't complaining. After getting the 
tickets I called my friend Mike and he asked who I ordered 
tickets for and I told him " you, tom, pat, dan, and ryan". 
My dad was in the room at the time and thought about what 
I had just said and he looked at me and said " what about 
you?" to which I replied "OH SHIT!" and hopped back onto 
ticketmaster.com to order a single ticket... and by golly I got 
myself a reserved seat.
   Now, the day of the show arrives and me and my buddies 
had a straight crew going up there, there were 10 of us... cuz 
at the same time as I was ordering tickets so were a few of 
my other friends. All of us are diehard tool fans so this was 
to be an amazing experience.
   We showed up at the Tweeter Center at around 5 o'clock. 
At around 6:15 they opened the gates and searched 
everyone pretty well with hands as well as metal detectors. 
We all got through the gate and ran like hell for the lawn. 
They got a pretty good spot on the lawn and I told them if 
the view from my seat isn't much better I'll watch the show 
with them... but the view from my seat was just too good., 
but before Fantomas and before tool I chilled with them cuz 
they had a spot right on the railing. So, yea, they had a 
good spot... but it started raining on and off, so that 
must've sucked for them.
    OK, 7:30 rolls around and Fantomas takes the stage to 
play for a less than half full amphitheatre. The response 
they got from the crowed was easily a few dozen steps under 
friendly getting numerous 'you sucks' and 'boo'. I enjoyed 
them myself. I think Mike Patton is absolutely amazing, a 
mad man, a legend. Part way through their set Mr. Patton 
started saying "hey! how's boston? can you say 'chowda'? 
Say it! 'chowda!' Fucking hilarious, the crowed didn't seem 
the appreciate it... partly because the venue is a good ways 
outside of Boston, and probably partly because that's how 
people around there talk, and Patton was getting on them 
ever so nicely.
    So Fantomas plays about a 45 minute set which I myself 
enjoyed. After they finished I went up and visited my 
soaking wet friends who also enjoyed Fantomas' set. Then 
the wait for tool. I couldn't stand still. I just couldn't wait. 
And I didn't have to wait all that long. It couldn't have been 
much more than a half hour before the house lights went 
down.
    Before the lights went down there was some interesting 
music being played... first some sorta jungle shit was 
played, then some sorta weird German trip hop shit, then 
some very dramatic 'I- don't-know-what-the-hell-to-call-it' 
music was played right before the lights went down.
    Time for tool. The lights go down and the now full 
amphitheatre rises to its feet. Two large video walls are 
revealed and one small one behind  Maynard's little 
platform. Some interesting music was played and some 
Lateralus art images were displayed on the video walls, and 
a gong to the right of Danny's drumset began to glow with 
some geometric symbols on it. 
    It seemed like forever but the band finally took the stage 
and went right into 'the grudge'. The crowed was into it of 
course... but they didn't seem to be as into it as they 
should've been. The stage setting for this tune was dark, 
nothing fancy with the lights or anything. 
    Next came a bit of (-) ions with some excellently 
controlled feedback from Adam and Justin which was 
followed by an amazing rendition of 'stinkfist'. With this tune 
the crowed really started to get into it. They played an 
extended version of this number and it was incredible. I 
couldn't tell what Maynard was singing in the extended part 
but it sounded beautiful. It was funny, during this song at 
the expected "I'll keep digging..." much of the crowed, 
including myself began to sing... but we were ever so wrong.
   I believe it was after 'stinkfist' where Maynard finally 
spoke, simply saying 'good evening'. 
   Next came a few minutes of feedback supplied by Adam 
and Justin. Tool is amazing at keeping a crowed in 
suspense, keeping people wondering what they were to play 
next. After a couple minutes some extremely enlarged 
guitar strings appeared on the video wall giving a less than 
subtle hint that the next song would be 'prison sex'. I was 
THRILLED to hear this one. From this point on the crowed 
was as enthused as they should've been from the 
beginning. This version featured an extra verse and an 
extended bridge.
    After 'prison sex' AJ and JC (no, not the ones from N'Sync 
and Backstreet Boys) gave us some Merka-ish noise as 
Danny went off on the drums as some amazing imagery of 
the Lateralus man was displayed on the video walls. For a 
while it sounded like they were about the burst into 'third 
eye'... but instead they went into the album version 
of 'pushit' and I nearly fell out of my skin. I nearly blew a 
load in my pants as Maynard sang " i must persuade you 
another way".
    Next they went right into an amazing rendition of 'schism' 
as the video was played on the walls. during the bridge the 
contortionist did there weird-ass head bobbing walk on all 
fours and crowed gave them a very warm response.
    Next we saw Adam on a keyboard and Maynard with a 
guitar. well, I couldn't really SEE Maynard with a guitar, as he 
was hidden darkness throughout the whole show, but I knew 
he had one. Here the band jammed out some weird shit for 
a few minutes. It was at this point that two stupid bitches a 
couple rows in front of me began chanting 'sober, sober, 
sober' Despite the warm, peaceful feeling I had running 
through my body I couldn't help myself from screaming at 
them to "SHUT THE FUCK UP!", then a few people around 
me followed my example, it was a beautiful thing. Anyway, 
after a short jam the guys went into a beautifully 
peaceful "disposition" then, followed predictably so 
by 'reflection'. during 'reflection' the most amazing stuff was 
displayed on the video walls. I won't even try to describe it... 
but it seemed like scenes from an actual music video... so 
who knows? Maybe sometime in the future we'll be seeing a 
video for 'reflection'... but that is kinda hard to believe 
seeing as how it's an 11 minute song.
   So the band plays 'reflection' and Adam played the last riff 
of the song for what seemed like it could've been 10 
minutes... people around me were getting visibly annoyed 
but I was just sucking it all in, loving and appreciating every 
second of the show. 
   Eventually Adam leaves the stage (the rest of the band 
had walked off long before) and some weird music begins to 
play (note: during this point I actually saw some people 
leave! they must've been to too many Disturbed shows 
recently, getting too used to headliners playing 1 hour 
shows) and out of nowhere to two contortionists begin 
climbing ropes dropped in front of the video walls and hang 
themselves upside down. Those two are really amazing. 
They up there forever. For atleast 5 minutes while the 
strange music was playing and all the way through the next 
to songs which were 'parabol' and 'parabola'. It was amazing 
performence of each song. During 'parabola' there was an 
amazing amount of positive energy flowing through the 
venue.
    Right as 'parabola' ended the contortionist lowered 
themselves and got a great response from the crowed. Then 
Adam began 'eon blue apocylypse' and went right into 'the 
patient' which is one song I've never been sure if they'd be 
able to pull off live, but they did and did it very well.
    Next was the big suprise of the night, a powerful 
performence of 'opiate'. The crowed really got into this one. 
At one point during this song Danny tossed a stick into the 
crowed a played for a few seconds without missing a beat. 
This song ended with amazing energy, it was extended a 
little bit.
    It was after this song that Maynard finally decided to talk 
to us. Over the course of the night all he'd ever said to us 
was stuff like "good evening" and "thanks for coming", but it 
was at this point that Maynard left his platform and ventured 
over to Danny's to talk to us. What he said was something 
along this lines:

 " thanks for coming. thanks for sharing this moment with 
us. i have an assignment for you. i want you to remember 
this feeling. i want you to remember what you are feeling 
right now. take it home, and in the coming weeks create 
something positive with it" 

   It was at this point that a weak USA chant was started, 
which I think was stupid. Then the band began their last 
song of the night, 'lateralus'. it was an inspiring 
performence, marvelous end of the evening. after finishing 
the band put down their instruments and went to the center 
of the stage and shared a group hug which was beautiful 
and walked off stage waving to the screaming crowed. and 
as quickly as they came, they were gone.
   Now I must say that the band performed perfectly which 
the exception of some minor phasing problems 
during 'lateralus' and a couple off key notes 
during 'reflection'... and I forget what song it was during but 
at one point Adam had to stop playing to fix a peddle... but 
3 mistakes and a 2 hour set, that's nothing to complain 
about.
   Now all I can do is hope hope hope that I can be fortunate 
to see this amazing band again.

that's a long review write there.

eric - NTA

spiral out... keep going...








Review written by: Brad Desjardins (KoRn40oz@juno.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 13:59:34 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Where to start. I've been following TooL for a few years now, 
and I've been dying to see them live. I don't know what to 
say about Fantomas. They started off ok...it actually 
seemed kinda funny at first, but then they just would not 
end it, I got a little pissed. Then there was the routine lull 
between acts when the sound guys setup for the greatest 
fucking band in the world. Then the lights go down, TooL 
comes in with a bang, and the crowd engulfs the band in 
cheers and applause. I could have cried right there. Here, let 
me just get the setlist out of way:

The Grudge 
(-) Ions 
Stinkfist 
Prison Sex 
Pushit 
Schism 
Disposition 
Reflection 

Intermission

Parabol 
Parabola 
Eon Blue Apocalypse 
The Patient 
Opiate 
Lateralus 

The show was incredible. I was amazed by some of the add-
ins that Maynard put in the songs like Stinkfist and Prison 
Sex...he did it so well. They may as well been part of the 
origials. They had videos for all the songs being projected 
on one huge split screen and one smaller one. I think it was 
about at the end of Prison Sex that the guy behind me 
spoke to me...apperently during my head-banging binge, I 
hit him in the face with my hair a few times. (I have about 
shoulder-length hair, and I was one of the few people in my 
section who was really actually head-banging.) I went with 
some friends and we all agreed that for the lawn, we 
probably had the best lawn seats possible - a great view of 
the stage. 
But on with concert. I found Schism particularly moving, 
because honestly, I was not expecting to see the twins from 
the video onstage. More about them later. I was so glad to 
see them perform PushIt. They did the album version, which 
surprised, but did not dissapoint me. A couple of fucks threw 
a beachball from the WFNX radio station onstage. I did not 
see this, but apparently Maynard popped it with his 
microphone...just as he should have. I did see another one 
onstage towards the end of the show, but this time it was 
just removed by a stage-hand. 
And now, the intermission...and I'm not talking about track 
8 on AEnima. During the intermission, they lowered about 
three cables from each side of the big screen. The schism 
twins were actually climbing up the cables, and just hung 
there upside down in front of the spinning Salival dude for 
about 15 minutes. Medically speaking, they should have 
been dead. Once the music started up again, they started 
doing these back and forth swing motions...somewhat 
acrobatic really. As the show dwindled down, with what would 
be two songs left to perform, Maynard says something 
rather profound. He requests that over the next couple of 
weeks, we preserve the feeling that we all had, and make 
something positive out of it. They then proceed to finish up 
the show with Opiate (an unexpected treat which in my 
opinion was a definate finishing touch on the show), and 
Lateralus. Afterward, we actually met up with some friends 
who I'd kinda been scanning the crowd for periodically during 
the show. It had to be my number one experience to date.

Oh yeah, I was the one with long bleached blonde hair, the 
TooL shirt with Jesus Christ on it (All Indians No Chiefs on 
the back), the 40 inch pants, and the shirt tied around my 
waist. If you saw me, or think you did, e-mail me and we 
can talk TooL. 

Later









Review written by: Eric C. (nevvermind183@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 14:13:02 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Ok it was a great show and Fantomas was great. They are 
really talented, you can say he just screams but hey its 
really good, and TOOL had them play with them cause he is 
friends with them.

    TOOL was great, some of the noises during intermissions 
were tedius and drove me to want to kill myself, but all in all 
it was a great show. I was upset that they didnt play Ænema. 
and Eulogy, i was looking foward to hearing them.  i give it a 
10!!!!!








Review written by: Aziz  (twiztidzee@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 14:23:54 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Last night was my first tool show and it was hands down the 
best night of my life. 

fantamas the first band in my opinion blew nuts. 

right after they got off it finally hit me that i was about to 
see tool. Once the lights went out i was more psyched then i 
have ever been before.as my friends sparked the joints you 
could see the members of tool walking out onto the stage. 
as maynard walked onto his platform i realized i was in for 
one of the best expieriences of my life. Then they started to 
play... the first song was the grudge, it kicked fucking ass 
anyone who says it sucked or could have been better is just 
a fag. after that they played ions and went into stinkfist 
which was fucking nuts.maynard had an extra verse or so 
that nobody got. people tried to sing the song but stopped 
when they realized maynard was singing a different verse.(i 
think it was at this time i can't exactly remember when it 
happened a wfnx beach ball got on stage and maynard 
popped it which was a riot. and sometime later during the 
show another ball got on stage but a guy that was part of 
the staff walked on stage and took it off.) right after that 
they played prison sex which was awesome. then they 
played pushit which was also just fucking genious. after 
pushit they played schism which was better then i expected. 
then the band palyed disposition. when maynard was 
walking around on his platform it looked like he had a guitar 
or something i couldn't exactly tell because of the lighting. 
then they played reflection and maynard still had that 
foreign object in his hand. watching danny carey go nuts on 
his drums and seeing adam jones crazy guitar work was a 
very surreal expierience. after reflection there was a short 
intermission...

After the band hit the stage again the played parabol into 
parabola which was so amazing. there wasn't one person i 
saw that wasn't getting into the music which is sweet.after 
that they played eon blue apocalypse which was very good. 
right after that they played the patient which was incredible. 
then they played hands down the best song of the night 
which was my favorite tool song... opiate! definatley the best 
song of the night the only way to describe it was that it was 
so good that it was ridiculously silly that a song could be that 
good live. once they stopped playing it all i could think was 
that this is the best live performance ever. After opiate they 
played lateralus which was the mother fucking shit. once the 
song was over maynard told everyone there to take the 
expierience they had that night and do something positive 
with it. the the crowd started chanting usa and as that 
happened all the members got in the center of the stage 
and had a group hug. after that wonderful scene i really felt 
that i was going to definatley do something positive like 
maynard said. watching them hug as we chanted usa was 
awesome. after they stopped hugging you could see danny 
standing next to maynard  towering over him and the rest of 
the band with his height.

after that we had the worst time getting home because 495 
north got closed down so we went through boston go lost in 
there for hours and i didn't even wind up home until about 
3:30. even though that part of the night was hell nothing 
could ruin the expierience i had. it was hands down the best 
night of m life... 









Review written by: Avid Concertgoer (none)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 14:32:42 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Fantomas was a joke.  We laughed at the silly "singing", if 
you could call it that.  More like Alvin of Alvin and the 
Chipmunks clearing his throat at high speed.  A lot.  
There was nothing to hang on to, it's like they badly played 
one long "song", if you could call it that.
Apparently some other reviewers liked them so I won't barrel 
into them too much, except to say that of the many (and 
varied) concerts I've been to in the past 30 years (yes, I've 
been around awhile) Fantomas was the worst band I've ever 
heard.

Tool was great!  Thy're clearly the frontrunners of current 
rock music.  Sort of like Sabbath meets Zeppelin meets 
Floyd.  Sorry for the 70s references, but Pearl Jam petered 
out after their first two albums (they were basically 70s rock 
anyway) and Soundgarden was more a comtemporary of, 
rather then an influence to, Tool.  You can hear Tool's 
influences in their music, yet know they're completely 
original.  They've listened to what's out there and learned 
from it, not copied it.

Highlights: Too many to list.
Lowlights: The Tweeter Center's sound and sightlines.  It's 
fine it you're up front center.  But anywhere else, forget it.













Review written by: Dan Mackin (fischer_pc26@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 14:45:48 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Dude last nite was insane! TOOL proved to me once and for 
all why they have been my favorite muscians (not just bad) 
but muscians for the past 8 years of my life@! I love these 
fucking guys and last nite 2+ hour set just blew my fucking 
mind! They played my favorite tune since like fucking nam 
when they busted out OPIATE@@!!! Fucking right also my 
boy told me they played nothing off of undertow in Portland 
Thur night, but last nite a killer version of Prison Sex rocked 
the place!!! ALL IN ALL THEY ARE STILL NOW AND ALWAYS 
WILL BE THE BEST FUCKING GROUP EVER!!! LONG LIVE 
MAYNARD!.









Review written by: serjiCAL (elysisticfailure@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 15:00:39 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  There is so much that is different between us all, that we 
sometimes are oblivious to that which brings us together. 
Sometimes this can be a character trait...a quality....a 
flaw...or in this case an experience. I could flap my gums all 
I want  but, no....in this case anything i say would be an 
injustice to what happened in Mansfield. A sea of bodies 
from fron row to back, all feeling this one moment. Of 
course with different people, there will be different thoughts, 
different opinions, and different feelings, but in a way, they 
will all relate, because there is nothing that can describe last 
night. In light of recent events, this was really a time to 
escape. In the book "The Pursuit of Lonliness" by one Philip 
Slater, our behavior as a society and as Americans is 
dissected and brought to new light.....accordingly, this night 
was our time to struggle to grasp onto a remaining strand of 
sanity. This is what Slater calls our "Grappling Impulse." In 
general, this is a way that we dettach ourselves from the 
perils and shortcomings of society, much like a drug. Unlike 
any type of drug though, this euphoria is everlasting and 
branded on the brain. It will always be there as a reminder 
that not everything is that bad as long as there is Tool. I 
must agree with another review that, how can you appreciate 
the stylings of Tool, if you can't appreciate and respect that 
same uniquness in Fantomas? I was intrigued and I know 
I'm not the only one. On a more literal note, during THE 
GRUDGE, I was hit in the head with a beer that some jack-off 
on the lawn threw, everyone around me was pissed, but 
before any anger could materialize, I was infested by the 
sound of "Wear the grudge like a crown, of negativity, 
calculate what we will and will not tolerate" and I immediately 
smiled and sunk back into my interpretatious coma. Even 
though I had been reading the reviews posted the last few 
shows, I was pleasantly surprised! though I would've been 
anyways! the set list has been posted, but fuck it...THE 
GRUDGE.....(-) IONS.....STINKFIST 
(EXTENDED).....MANTRA.....PRISON SEX 
(EXTENDED)......PUSHIT.....JAM SESSION (FRAEKING WIERD 
AND AWESOME)/DISPOSITION/REFLECTION.....OSSEUS 
LABYRINT.....PARABOL/PARABOLA.....EON BLUE 
APOCALYPSE/THE PATIENT.....OPIATE.....LATERALUS
The energy was absolutely incredible, and the visuals, like a 
mad acid trip, who needs drugs, when you got this!? The end 
was followed by a deafening standing ovation and a group 
hug, it was really refreshing. The band played great and I 
evaluated their individual performances.

MAYNARD - He was amazing, I disagree that he was singing 
like he had a cold, he was in better key than he was back in 
NY on May 20. Hypnotizing, lots of movement.

DANNY - FLAWLESS!! how does he do it? and loud! every 
beat on the kick drum sent mu shirt blowing backwards! It's 
like he's got four arms and four legs.

ADAM - He was relatively animated tonight, played a great 
guitar, the only thing was that he kinda fudged his solo 
in "Parabola" but it's certainly nothing to complain about. In 
fact shame on me for mentioning it.

JUSTIN - Totally into it, jamming and playing bass like it's 
nobody's business, the unsung hero of the night, especially 
on Schism, Disposition, and Opiate.

But, dont trust what your eyes see here, what this is is 
opinion and does have meaning, it is up to you to figure out 
what and why, everything that passes through registers as a 
certain aurical interperetation, one of many different layers, 
dont just wear the blanket, dissect the layers and learn to 
appreciate how each layer is made and its sagacious 
translation, everything creates a reflection on the brain, let 
this reflection be more of a distortion, allow absorbtion and 
in turn create your own, one that defines and maybe even 
one that completely disproves this, make it yours. And enjoy.

See you all soon










Review written by: Mike A. (spider@bc.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 15:37:40 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  One of the best performances I have seen... I have been 
listening to Tool since Undertow, and saw them play Ozzfest 
back in 98. Lateralus is my new favorite song, and it was 
quite an end to a great concert. My only complaint about 
Tool, is that Adam's guitar wasn't loud enough, especially 
during the Patient. Opiate rocked!!!!

Fantomas...definitely not your traditional rock band. Patton 
has a cool voice, and was awesome in Faith no More. 
However, this new band was way too odd for me, and EVERY 
song sounded exactly the same (shitty). I didn't boo at 
them because I felt sorry for the band. I mean, really, did 
they know how much they blew??? Patton acted like a human 
turntable. It made Tool even better. 

I heard people chanting "USA" during breaks, and while it's 
true that the concert is not a "political forum" as one 
IGNORANT reviewer so blatantly put it , it might have been 
nice to hear Maynard say SOMETHING about what happened. 
All in all, a great show. 

By the way, Fantomas, the show was not in Boston! 
Mansfield is 40 minutes away. 








Review written by: Lynne (evyl_lin@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 15:45:58 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  I went to the Tool show last nite in Mansfield, MA. Its  the 
first tool show ive ever been too and i think it f'n rocked!! ive 
been to many concerts but this was my FAVORITE concert 
that ive seen. Maynard is just awesome and Tool is my 
favorite Band... they have been so i was really excited about 
going. The illusions were so kool... I had the best time.. 
even tho i didnt mosh or ne thing.. it was great to watch.. I 
think Tool needs to come here again some time soon =)









Review written by: $$ ($$@dollardollar.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 17:02:00 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Baaaaaaaaa   BAAAAAAAAAA Baaaaaaaaa









Review written by: DEVOn Clapp "I LIKE PIE" (muffinman107@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 17:06:00 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE
  Set List:
The Grudge
(-) Ions
Stinkfist  (extended)   
Prison Sex 
Pushit     
schism
Disposition
Reflection
Parabol
Parabola
Eon Blue Apocolypse
The Patient
Opiate
Lateralis

        Fantômas  was incredable, no matter what anyone 
says, I thought this was better than the show they did in NY 
last may. But that was still a good show. Awesome seats, 
maynard humped a ballon. Great accept for some guy 
pouring beer on me, and the guy on my right along with hid 
girlfriend, screaming every lyric, in my ear, off key, it 
sounded like a fucked up Sunny and Cher version of a 
cannibal corpse song.
         Great show, at the end there was a group hug, during 
which Maynard grabbed Adam's ass. 

    ~DEVOn Clapp

EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE EAT PIE










Review written by: Pudunda (Pudunda@beer.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 17:49:37 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Fantomas: very original, well executed music. too bad they 
absolutely sucked ass.

Tool: not what I expected. I was hoping for a mindbending 
experience but all i got was loud music. I think I was able to 
focus during only one song until the agressive ticket holders 
of the lawn seating began to demonstrate their amazing 
ability to push things. 

Tool was perfect
Tweeter Center security and drunk fans were not.

Highlights were moshing to "Parabola" and "Opiate".
Lowlights were moshing to "pushit" and "the patient"
              That was just retarted.

and the worst part of all:  FANTOMAS

thank you for youre time.








Review written by: princess.Sam (romangoddess@itookmyprozac.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 18:44:20 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  well i had no idea when i got my tickets that tool was playing in hartford so i bought the mansfield tickets and 
drove 2 1/2 hours with my friend carolyn and my dad to the tweeter center.  i am a LONG time tool fan 
(considering im only 15 and i got "undertow" right when it came out) and so i was practically dancing in 
anticipation to see them. we got to our seats about a half hour before Fantomas came on, and i could NOT sit 
still.  i feel i must mention that i personally LIKED Fantomas...i thought they were funny and original.  but 
apparently a lot of people didnt like them, so ill move right along.  
i dont know if i can put into words how much this show has impacted my love of music.  it was as close as i 
think i will ever get to a religious experience.  the visuals were amazing, and the people from Schism doing 
their dangling act were really wild. but the thing that hit me hardest was tool's incredible talent.  you hear a cd 
for years and think "oh i bet they just sound this good in the studio" but i was proven horribly wrong.  tool is 
by 
far the greatest musical talent out right now, and in my opinion stands as one of the greatest bands of all 
time.  the band was fantastic, loud but not annoyingly so, and i was shocked by how well they played. 
(although i should have known they would be that good.) i was NOT prepared for the emotional impact 
maynard's voice would have on me, however, and i am still reeling. during "parabol" i just closed my eyes and 
let the whole experience sink in. i am pretty sure there is a Heaven cause last night i think i died and went 
there for 2 hours or so. i was so happy and totally in musical shock that i didnt sleep the whole ride back 
home, and im cursing myself for not getting tickets to tonight's show. thanks you tool for being the most 
emotional and overall wonderful band on earth. im a bigger fan now than i ever was.








Review written by: Jason (jfbitt@bu.edu)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 18:55:42 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  Tool was allright, not worth paying 40 bucks for a ticket or 15 
bucks for a key chain, but that is just my opinion, and it is 
probably because i am not a major tool fan.  Just something 
about them doesn't sit right with me about them.  Anywho 
on with the review of the Fantomas show.  Fantomas was the 
most amazing thing i have ever been a witness to. They 
were the reason I went.  They were well worth the 40 dollars.  
Their set blew me.  They played a lot of Frames from the 
first disc, i think that is what pissed people off the most.  
The opening with Godfather was genius, all those not in the 
know were really psyched to hear it until.... yep!  Until Mike 
Patton had his way with it.  Mike Patton's energy is 
unparalled.  He is all over the place, conducting the band, 
singing, dancing, you name it. His stage presence is huge. 
his energy level was off the hook.   He is the man.  He is 
the BEST singer in rock hands down, the man can sing any 
style his twisted mind wants to.  I just hope they do an east 
coast club tour afterwards, seeing them at the Middle East 
would be, in the words of David Lee Roth, "it would be 
amaZING!".  Well Fantomas rules. Buzzy, Trevor, and Dave 
were awesome as well.  I am sick of writing so i am gonna 
stop writing.  Keep on livin' that la vida loca.
Jason








Review written by: Greg  (TaprootMaster@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 20:09:40 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  I'm warning you now, this will be a long post.
I already posted the set list, but I think I'll get more into 
how great the show was. 
I arrived at like 5:30, I live ten  minutes away across town 
(Mansfield, not Boston, like Mike Patton said). Fantomas 
had a pretty strange set. . .some  of the stuff was okay, 
especially the human beat-box part. But on to Tool.
Watching Fantomas made me want Tool even more, even 
though my seats were pretty good, the tallest guy in the 
venue sits in front of me. Still, I had a perfect view of  
Danny, Maynard, and Justin, but most importantly the 
visuals. 
I went in to the concert with high expectations and  Tool met 
all of them and then some. 

Best Performance(s) of the night: Pushit and Opiate. The 
crowd got into it and the energy was great. I, along with 
most of the crowd, was singing along with Maynard, feeling 
every bass drum beat, hearing every bass note.

Highlights:
       Watching Danny Carey. He is by far the best drummer 
in the music industry today, and watching him play was a 
gift. 
       The Visuals: Amazing, amazing.
       Everything: Everything was flawless, at one point 
during 'The Patient' I closed my eyes and it felt like I was 
listening to the CD.
       Maynard popping the balloon: I don't know if he did it 
intentionally, but it was pretty hilarious.
       Hearing every song I wanted them to play: 'Prison 
Sex', 'Pushit', 'The Patient', and 'Parabol/Parabola'.


Lowlights:
       "The Grudge": I'm sorry, but honestly they could've 
done without this song. The sound quality sucked. 
       The guys smoking dope next to, and in front of my 
father. You suck

Song by Song Recount:
       "The Grudge": Probably my least favorite performance 
of the evening. The sound quality was off, and you couldn't 
really hear anything.
       "Stinkfist": They played this great, I'm not sure how the 
intro/outro was played, but I think I saw Danny on the 
electronic drums, correct me if I'm wrong.
       "Prison Sex": Flawless, perfect, amazing. What more 
can be said.
       "Pushit": The Aenima version was great. Possibly my 
favorite performance of the night, and my favorite Tool 
song. And Maynard popped the balloon.
       "Schism": I'll admit I got sick of hearing this song. But 
the performance made me like it so much more now. Played 
amazingly.
       "Disposition": Maynard had a  guitar, but if he played, 
his fret hand didn't move. Everything was on, another 
flawless performance.
       "Reflection": It's crazy how good Danny Carey is.

  -Intermission- : Naked contortionists did some cool stuff, I 
thought it was pretty interesting, though I couldn't see most 
of it, due to people in front of me.

       "Parabol":  My co-favorite Tool song off the new album. 
If Maynard had a cold, you couldn't tell. The vocals were 
perfect.
       "Parabola": Everyone got into it, great crowd response.
       "The Patient": Great to hear it live. My other co-
favcorite song. The vocals again were good, and Justin and 
Danny played amazingly.
       "Opiate": The best performance. The crowd sang every 
word along with Maynard, and got the best response.
       "Lateralis": A perfect song to cap off a perfect night. 
Followed by the group hug at the end, where Maynard 
grabbed Adam's ass.

Maynard said "See you soon", I hope he's right.
-Greg








Review written by: Drum Machine (GPACLM@mediaone.net)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 20:31:47 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  This had to be the greatest stage show i have ever seen 
they had people (contortionists) walking around and also 
climbing up the three screens they had just 
themselves.Although i was only in the lawn seats and the 
expeirience was very inpersonal it was a great one .If I had 
the chance to i would see them again in a heart beat.The 
best part I thought was when he gave us a mition and said 
that we sould take the feeling that we have while listening to 
them and us it to create something positive.I found this 
touching because I now know that they are not satanic 
freaks of nature but very talented musicians who love what 
they do.









Review written by: Siddhartha Journeyman (Spiral987@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 20:45:36 ET


This was this reviewer's 3rd Tool show

  Well Kabir, I understand that "life moves pretty fast", but 
there are things to be said....

The following review will cover both the Sept 19th show in 
MOntreal and the 21st in Boston/Mansfield.....


Myself and four friends arrived at Penn Station in NY at 
exactly 12 Midnight the evening of tuesday september the 
18th. Nine hours of good old Greyhound driving, we were in 
downtown Montreal... Interestingly enough I could have 
brought a sub atomic rifle into the country without a hassle 
thanks to the laid back attitude of the Cnandian Customs 
(woohoo)...After a day of Guinness drinking, museum 
hopping, french lessons, we arrived at the the Molson Centre 
by 800...missing Meshuggah entirely...::shit::

But i didnt go 36 hours and 300 miles without sleep for 
Meshuggah...did I...


A very different show....
No undertow, no opiate....
All lateralus, ande aenima... extended versions of stinkfist, 
and the full salival version of Pushit....Crowd was amazing, 
no USA chants or apebrained bloodmoshing....(no ticks or 
leeches)...It was all about the love on this night, and 
Maynard was in rare form...his usual convulsions and 
stomping were amplified to new levels, especially during 
lateralus when he threatened his spine into whiplash on 
more then one occassion....ended the show with a emotional 
embrace on stage....amazing...couple the show with the 
atmosphere...and the city of Montreal itself....it was 
incredible...one of a kind...

I also wanna say something about Montreal itself...I want to 
thankall of the people their for the aittitudes, their 
compassion, and their general aura of calm..These were an 
unassuming, openminded, caring group of people...I must 
have shook the hands of a hundred strangers, and not one 
treated me with any kind of pessimism or prejudice because 
of my origion...in fact  when most of them heard I was from 
ny i was met with genuine concern, and compassion....i love 
that city, and it is in no small part to the people of that 
great city...in fact,, it was so fucking beautiful in their that 
uppon crossing back into the usa border i was nearly blown 
away by how REALLY FUCKING STUPID WE CAN BE.....the 
american border is a cocaphony of low-mindedness....i felly 
and unconditionally welcome a thorough search of my 
baggage,,,i encourage it in fact, since hey, i live in ny,,,BUT 
the attitude, and the absolutely disgusting heirarchy , and 
ethnocentricsm that was displlayed , frightened me... And if 
that wasnt enouhg there is a five by five poster of GW Bush 
over the door....with a big shitass grin on his face...smiley 
gladhand in deed....


WELL...

nine more hours later i was home on long isalnd to meet 
four of my other friends with whom i was headed for boston 
to see the mansfield show...We arrived in Boston at 330-4 
and couldnt find a hotel...why ? because its city law that all 
persons in a hotel room must be 21....so because three of 
us were not 21, we had to beg a holiday inn to save us at 
430 in the morning....Yes yes, i am in amercia again.....Not 
only that...but we figured since we drove all this way we 
might as well grab a couple sixpacks and get drunk in our 
newly acquired room...nice idea, but not in boston!!! the 
place where Cheers was found in absolutely stone cold 
sober...no one sells after 11, no 711, no stop n shop, 
nothin!!!....sum girl whispered to us that there were stores 
called "afterhours"  where we might be able to find sum 
beer... "where can we find these little place"..."oh i dont 
know, i dont drink, ive only heard of them"...its like a 
straightedge convention....they made it sound liek i was 
looking for crack.....yes, YES i am in america agaijn....

Woke up in the morning at headed into the downtown area 
of Boston. Beautiful architecture...no pollution....(well, some, 
but not much)...i didnt even see one homeless 
person...which was impressive...thgis was cut short as we 
had to drive the hour into mansfield....Spent about three 
hours getting smashed in an unusuallly large tailgating 
event in the parking lot....(mansfield had no shortage of 
liquor stores).....

and then it started to rain....\

which is exciting if u ask me....i was allready pumped about 
being outdoors for a tool show, so the though of rain and 
some pushit sounded delicious.....


we got nice and close (for the lawn), was there 15 minutes 
and what did i hear...forty drunk , shirtless, 
slobs :"USAUSAUSAUSAUSA"...i closed my eyes, breathed in 
an out and imagined them stopping..... they did! bonus...

Show was not the same as Montreal...Prison Sex OTRM was 
added in place of 46&2... They closed the THe Patient (which 
wasnt in Montreal) Opitae and then Lateralus....Stinkfist  was 
like seven and a half  minutes long, fucking sweet...a whole 
nother verse...Also, that flute-like sound that is heard at the 
begging of Reflection...it was replaced by Maynard moaning-
wailing the melody of it....absolutely fucking incredible....the 
man is insane....funny note: At one point someone threw a 
inflated ball on the stage with like some radio stations logo 
on it....This was in the bridge of Pushit, so the boys are very 
into it, especially Justin and Adam...Justin was leaned over 
real far swaying like a madman and this ball goes over his 
head...it distracts him and he looks back..maynard was 
none to pleased by this and walked of the podium (which he 
NEVEr does) picked it up, brought it back to the podium with 
him and proceeded to pop it with his knee, without a 
word....HAHAHA...i love him....this aint lollapalooza kids

drove home...got here...ive got two days before wilkes barre 
and then a week before the two night stand at MSG.....

thanks for listening  , if u went to either show, i was the one 
with the big green fuzzy hat....you could NOT  miss that hat...

thanks to the band for sharing themselves with us, and to 
you all for reading....and ofcourse , kabir.....for..well for 
everything damnit....peace kiddies!!!!!

-siddhartha








Review written by: Matt (anti1260@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 21:13:01 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Seeing TOOL was an AMAZING experience. It was nothing 
short of breath taking, and the visuals only added to how 
great it was.
I'll assume you've already seen the setlist.
       I hated Fantomas. For some reason, there are people 
out there who dig that style of 'noise', I'll never understand 
it. It was a forty-five minute waste of my life. Only until their 
set was finished did I find out that it was Dave Lombardo on 
drums........wow, I never imagined I would actually get to 
see Slayer's ex drummer.

       I had a decent view. The best I could get was tickets for 
the lawn, which turned out to be the mud...there was no 
grass. I was leaning against the metal railing out in front 
just behind the last row of seats to the left of the stage 
slightly.

       TOOL left me awe-struck. What an incredible display of 
art. What they create together is so deep, so intellectual, so 
inspiring, and so moving. I've listened to and been inspired 
by TOOL for years, and to see them was truely an emotional 
experience.

        and, unfortunately, as you might have heard, some 
people felt the need to yell, scream, and be obnoxious 
throughout the set. They just couldn't shut up and listen. I 
can't stand people like that.

  well, I'm glad to have been able to be there last night and  
been so moved. 










Review written by: Chris (ChrisMendillo@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 21:18:13 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Shall we start off by stating the obvious.  Tool is the most 
artistically amazing band that has ever existed.  Just to 
stand and absorb the music was truly moving.  I was sitting 
up in the top corner of the pavilion and my view was blocked 
by the giant PA speakers on the left side of the stage, so I 
really only saw Maynard a couple of times, and was surprised 
to here about the acrobats hanging from the ceiling because 
I had no idea that they were even up there. The band put 
on a flawless show, I just wish I could have got a better 
view.  I shouldn't complain though there were hundreds of 
people with far worse seats than my self.  
        OK   now to a subject that really did me some damage 
last night.   I see that the majority of the fans last evening 
did not enjoy Fantomas' set.  And if you didn't like it that’s 
fine, no one should ever be forced to like anything that 
doesn’t move them.  But not recognizing the amazing 
musical talent that was expressed during their set last night 
is truly ignorant.  Mike Patton, Maynard, and Thom York are 
probably the three best male rock vocalist on the planet 
right now. And to ignore a man who can be screaming his 
head off one minute, and singing Al Green the next, is just 
the purest act of stupidity that I have witnessed.  I expected 
more from a Tool audience. Mike Patton is one of the most 
versatile performers around, his music, though deeply 
insane is both, disturbing and breathtaking.  I encourage 
any one who enjoyed their set to watch out for Patton’s two 
new bands Tomahawk and Peeping Tom, and of course Mr. 
Bungle and Faith no More.  You cannot find a more 
enthusiastic musician/composer than Mike Patton.  
    All in all, I'd say that seeing two of my favorite bands 
combined in the same night was a wonderful experience and 
hope every body else got something out of it as well.

Good evening, 
Chris  









Review written by: JW (no@thanks.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 21:50:49 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  i figured i'd give my view of things.  unfortunatley, due to a 
4 car accident (a few people i see mentioned this) i didn't 
get to the show until after Fantomas had finished.  i was 
hoping that i'd at least get to see some of the set (got out 
of work later than i would have liked).  so i can't say if they 
sucked or not, but i wanted to go to listen and make my own 
opinion.  (the cd is definately different)

anyways, enuff on that. i was there to see Tool and see Tool 
i did.  unfortunately, seats were sold out in a matter of 
moments, so i was stuck with lawn seats, which in the end, i 
think it was for the best.  (my ears weren't ringing 
afterwards, good for me :-) )  the sound was a bit muddy at 
the beginning, and i felt everything seemed to be somewhat 
subdued.  the bad was dead on, and there seemed to be a 
moment where someone hit a wrong note, but it wasn't.  
(heh)  everyone was dead on, and the performance was 
flawless.  

the disapointments for me were the weather (fortunately it 
stopped raining for Tool) and anyone who seems to feel that 
they cannot enjoy a show w/o getting drunk or stoned.  i 
spent much of the show with my eyes closed and let the 
music be my drug, and i had a blast.  

i would have liked to have seen the Salival version of Pushit, 
but i was not disapointed.  the transition from (-) Ions to 
Stinkfist was great and i was hoping for 46 & 2, but Stinkfist 
rocked.  Prison Sex was great.  Parabol/Parabola was one 
thing that i was waiting for, and hearing Opiate fucking 
rocked, and Lateralus....what a way to end the show....

Maynard didn't say much, but i didn't expect him to.  
a 'Good Evening' at the beginning, a second one later on, 
and he then thanked us for enduring the weather and asked 
us to remember how we were feeling at that moment, and 
over the next few weeks, to do something positive.  i 
couldn't help but think when he said that, the anyone who 
was stoned will completely miss the point.

and yes, the Tweeter Center sucks.  








Review written by: Dustin (lateralusrebirth@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/22/01 23:57:23 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Alright, we got there around 3:30 so we'd get up front on the 
lawn (which we did). Waited awhile, then the show started 
and it rained. i loved it. and also loved fantomas, i dont care 
wtf anyone else says, they were awesome cuz they were new, 
different, creative, and sounded great. Then there was 
tool... Fuckin kicked ass. Me and some of my friends were 
literally moved to tears by reflection, pushit, and lateralus. 
The contortionists were very kool, i guess. There's nothin 
really to say bout em cept "huh?. They made me look twice 
like 5 times. Overall the show was about what i would've 
expected from tool.








Review written by: Boourns (wildfire49@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 01:49:53 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  First of all, I loved the music of Fantomas. The drums were 
amazing, the guitarist was awesome, and the bass player's 
hand was mostly just a blur. However, the singer absolutely 
sucked. Sucked like i have never heard anyone suck before. 
He looked cool, but i almost had to cover my ears to block 
out those high pitched screams (picture the velociraptor 
screams from Jurassic Park - you get the idea).  Anyway, 
after a very short set (30 minutes maybe?), I was all set for 
Tool to take the stage.  Even after hearing about their live 
shows, I was completely and totally blown away.  Tool is the 
best live band in the world. Period. By the third song I had 
lost my voice from singing the lyrics so loud. The best part 
of the night was either Stinkfist or Opiate.  The whole crowd 
was singing, and the energy put out by the band (especially 
during Opiate) was amazing beyond words. Everything 
seemed perfect- all the songs were expertly done, and each 
little indtrumental break flowed into the next. Anyone know 
what Maynard was doing with that kickass guitar?  And to 
whoever threw those FNX beach balls onto the stage - you 
are a fucking idiot. Have some respect for the greatest 
musicians in the world. If you want beach balls, go to a 
baseball game or something. Other than that, though, there 
really weren't any disappointments. Sure, I wwould have 
loved to hear Aenema or Eulogy, but the set Tool played was 
amazing anyway. Their music moved me almost to tears (I 
think during Reflection, or maybe Schism- whatever) and 
gave me a feeling I can't describe.  YOU MUST SEE TOOL 
LIVE AT LEAST ONCE IN YOUR LIFE. Maynard said he would 
see us again soon, and I am ready to go again. Thank you, 
Tool, for a show that went beyond mere words.








Review written by: Jeff (evilcow@cybercom.net)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 01:54:24 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Hm.

Well, I must say, i've waited 3 years to see Tool, and I 
dunno.  I can't say I really enjoyed the show, and I'm a 
really big fan too.

We got there a bit later than intended, but still got fairly 
close to the rail on the lawn (I know plenty of people 
mentioned that the Venue Formerly Known as Great Woods 
sucks, so I'll add my vote to that).  Fantomas came out.  
Everyone's bitching about them, I didn't like them, but 
there's no doubt that the 4 of them were VERY tight.  
Patton's very cool, the drummer was very impressive, and I 
could respect the musicianship there.  Fantomas just isn't 
my thing.

So Tool comes out about 30-40 minutes later, and they kick 
it off w/"The Grudge," "Stinkfist," and "Prison Sex," and the 
show seems to be going well.  Unfortunately, the energy 
level that I expected from the show didn't sustain, and 
although it's obvious that Tool is one of the tighter live 
bands I've seen over the years, it wasn't a show I was able 
to get into.  I expected a really high-energy show, 
something that would knock me off my feet, and I instead 
felt actually underwhelmed.  It was dissapointing.

But there were some good points.  The visuals on the screen 
were very neat, although I think they may have overdone it, 
because at times it took away from the music. Danny Carey 
was on fire, as usual (way to go for him on "Schism," eh?), 
and Maynard was a lot more active than I expected him to 
be.

The worst part?  A lot of people enjoyed it, but I didn't really 
see the need for the little "Schism" guys to come out and 
swing their heads around a bit.  Totally unnecessary, in my 
opinion.  And the contortionism later was kinda neat, but 
again, I must have missed the point.

So overall, I was a bit saddened by the show.  Perhaps I set 
too high a level for them to reach, or something.  








Review written by: Shannon (ximmortalravenx@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 09:52:39 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  I arrived just before Fantomas ended. I caught enough of 
their performance to decide that I'm not really into them. 
Their music is just not to my taste.. but who am I to judge, 
right>?! 

Ok now on to Tool.... I loved the show!!! Every friggen 
minute of it. It wasn't like anything I've ever been to. The 
whole mood of it all, it was nothing short of amazing!!! They 
had visuals on the screans during every one of their 
songs ... even during intermission when they weren't  
playing and they just had instrumentals going. 

So after the intermission they began Parabol the duo, 
osseus labyrint came back on stage (they also came out 
during Schism bobing their heads like they do in the video) 
and they slowly began to go up in the air, they appear to be 
climbing up, then they dangle their for awhile while Parabol 
is being played. Then when Parabola begins the duo begin 
to move niceley, while still hanging. 

But the performance that I enjoyed the most was Opaite, for 
a few reasons,  I was able to see the whole band ( my friend 
lifted me up on his shoulders, we were in the 'lawn' section.) 
and Opaite is just a great song in general!!!  Everyone was 
really into it. They ended the show with Lateralus, I was 
really hoping they would play this song. It was a great 
ending to a fucking increadable show!!!

Now I was really only able to see the visuals on the many 
screans that they had and a few other little things here and 
there but that was enough for me. I enjoyed every minute, 
even when it was raining. Truly an experience I will never 
forget!!! All I'm saying is... they proved once and for all why 
they are and always will be one of my favorite bands!! 








Review written by: BrianP (mundial@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 10:19:04 ET


This was this reviewer's 5th Tool show

  No one sounds like they do.  No one makes these sounds 
that embrace you and then throw you across the room and 
stomp you and then hold you, tighter...except THEM.








Review written by: Ev (drkdglr13@mediaone.net)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 12:32:14 ET


This was this reviewer's 6th Tool show

  Now the feeling I had when I walked out of the Tweeter Center was
exactly the feeling I expected to have every night after witnessing these
4 men who call themselves Tool.  UGH!  What an amazing show!  Here's the
set:

1. The Grudge
2. Stinkfist (extended jam with Elvis' 'Suspicious Minds' lyrics)
3. Prison Sex (with extra verse)
4. Pushit (AEnima album version)
5. Schism (with contortionists)
6. Disposition
7. Reflection
-=contortionist intermission=-
8. Parabol
9. Parabola
10. Eon Blue Apocalypse
11. The Patient
12. Opiate
13. Lateralus

Fucking A!  An amazing performance overall.  Prison Sex was extremely
powerful, especially with it's extra verse.  For those who were confused
or couldn't make it out, here is how it goes:

"Show me something. (4x)
Thought I could make it end.
Thought I could wash the stains away.
Thought I could break the circle if I
slipped right into your skin.

So sweet was your surrender.
We have become one.
I have become my terror.
And you my precious Lamb and Martyr"

Pushit was a religious experience.  It's ending echoing throughout the
venue.  Parabol/Parabola was fantastic.  And The Patient was gorgeous with
Maynard nailing the "I must keep reminding myself of this" when it changes
to an octave higher.  Opiate was probably the best I've ever heard it
performed with Maynard nailing the "we both want, TO RAPE YOU!!!" scream.  
I'm still on a 10!

And there would still be one more journey for me to take.  Next stop,
Hartford, Ct.  The Hartford Civic Center...








Review written by: Mr. Anonymous (none@fyourinfo.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 13:12:12 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  Fantomas was the WORST band I have ever heard, AND 
seen.  I believe the reaction to the entire audience was 
something along the lines of "what the FUCK is this?"

TOOL was really good, although I couldn't really see the 
stage, they appeared somewhat stationary.  I guess you 
were supposed to focus on the videos being displayed as 
they played, which were amazing.  Maybe that was a glimpse 
at the movie they said they wanted to make?

To sum it up, Fantomas sucks, TOOL is fantastic.  Expensive 
T-Shirts though...








Review written by: Rytal (Rytal@charter.net)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 15:17:27 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

   Ok, we all love Tool, but anyone who has seen them before
  and is not blind should admit, that they did not start strong
  Friday night. We got there and where all excited and I 










Review written by: Rytal (Rytal@charter.net)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 15:25:54 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

   Ok, we all love Tool, but anyone who has seen them before
  and is not blind should admit, that they did not start strong
  Friday night. We got there and where all excited and I 
  Brought some 1rst time Tooler's, we spend alot of money
  tickets because of how increadble they have been in the 
  past. They are the best live act around, but when they 
  came out this time, the started to play Grude and when
  everybody stated singing along, the band really seemeed 
   like they wanted to be some where else. Stinkfist they 
   added and extra verse, which was cool, but I swear it was 
  to keep mess people who where sining up, and Maynard
  didn't sing it they way he wrote it. He sang the 2nd verse 
  twice, and I'm  not counting the extra verse. When they 
  Played Prision Sex, I almost walked out, I swear. I couldn't
  Belive it. They played that song as slow as humanly 
  Possible!!! I was pissed, a had brought new Tool fans with
  me and they wanted to leave so did some Hardcore fans
  that where sitting with me. I have NEVER seen them do 
  That before. I'm not sure what they played next, but after 
   they left the stage and came back, people where not 
  sining along, it was a whole diffrent animal. It turned into
  the best show that I have ever seen. I really felt like I 
  shared there point of view on the art and music, it was
  insane I loved it, and the new fans loved them for life.
  I think maybey they just don't like people singing along
  they don't want people to treat there music like it is like
  Posions or something, anyway it was great!!!!









Review written by: Ken (mdmfk@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 17:02:04 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  wow...that was a good show...
I was 11 rows back at the tweeter center, and you could see everything 
pretty damn good...I just felt bad for the people out on the lawn when 
it started to pour..
Fantomas was great...pretty darn original, and I would have to say a 
perfect opening band for tool.  The build-up was great and only made 
things even better. The only thing I didnt really like is that I 
thought the sound was kinda shitty....the setlist was cool, and they 
didnt play some songs that I was expecting but that was alright cause 
I was going to go to the hartford show the next day anyway...so it 
wasnt a big deal.
There were some dumb kids that decided to blow up a balloon and then 
send it on stage...and there were also some dumb people that started 
the U.S.A. chant...save that stuff, save that shit for godsmack 
shows...
Besides that good show









Review written by: Rich Frauham (richardfrauham@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 17:58:42 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  It has been 3 years and 2 months since I have had the 
opportunity to see Tool.  This was actually my first "Tool 
Concert."  Sure I saw them at Lollapalooza 97 and Ozzfest 
98 but never for their own show with their elaborate stage 
set ups and full length sets.  The ironic part of this show was 
that I was able to hear the original version of Pushit as 
opposed to the slow one which I heard at Ozzfest 98.  Well 
my life is always backwards anyways.  Sure everyone is 
saying that the sound sucked as it usually does at that 
venue no matter who you see.  Gotta deal with it, rise 
above, and quit being critics when you only get to see bands 
like this sometimes once in your lifetime.  Be happy Tool 
even exists.  Dont cry about some sound guys screw up.  It 
really isnt that bad.  You just gotta tune your ear better.  

I was so surprised to hear Prison Sex and Opiate.  As 
everyone else, I was hoping they would play a lot of older 
stuff but you all have to understand that Tool usually plays 
much of their current album they are touring for.  Thats just 
the way it is.  

I was really excited to hear the new versions of Prison Sex 
and Stinkfist for example.  The extra lyrics and 
instrumentation threw me for a loop which is always 
welcome.  Change is good.  We dont necessarily need to 
hear the same everything note for note.  As usual Tool 
keeping us on our toes.

Well,  the next night should and will be just as good.  I 
mean it is Connecticut and being from Connecticut I will be 
the first to tell you that just cause a show doesnt sell out 
doesnt mean anything.  The reason Tweeter sold out is 
because all the Connecticut people bought those tickets 
cause there was no Hartford show scheduled yet.  We still 
rock the hardest and for the sake of argument are the most 
excited rock fans in this part of the country.  Screw the radio-
-give it all to us.

Out

RICHIERICHRICHES








Review written by: Rich Frauham (richardfrauham@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 18:00:41 ET


This was this reviewer's 3rd Tool show

  oops had to double post.  Its really my 3rd show not 2nd

  It has been 3 years and 2 months since I have had the 
opportunity to see Tool.  This was actually my first "Tool 
Concert."  Sure I saw them at Lollapalooza 97 and Ozzfest 
98 but never for their own show with their elaborate stage 
set ups and full length sets.  The ironic part of this show was 
that I was able to hear the original version of Pushit as 
opposed to the slow one which I heard at Ozzfest 98.  Well 
my life is always backwards anyways.  Sure everyone is 
saying that the sound sucked as it usually does at that 
venue no matter who you see.  Gotta deal with it, rise 
above, and quit being critics when you only get to see bands 
like this sometimes once in your lifetime.  Be happy Tool 
even exists.  Dont cry about some sound guys screw up.  It 
really isnt that bad.  You just gotta tune your ear better.  

I was so surprised to hear Prison Sex and Opiate.  As 
everyone else, I was hoping they would play a lot of older 
stuff but you all have to understand that Tool usually plays 
much of their current album they are touring for.  Thats just 
the way it is.  

I was really excited to hear the new versions of Prison Sex 
and Stinkfist for example.  The extra lyrics and 
instrumentation threw me for a loop which is always 
welcome.  Change is good.  We dont necessarily need to 
hear the same everything note for note.  As usual Tool 
keeping us on our toes.

Well,  the next night should and will be just as good.  I 
mean it is Connecticut and being from Connecticut I will be 
the first to tell you that just cause a show doesnt sell out 
doesnt mean anything.  The reason Tweeter sold out is 
because all the Connecticut people bought those tickets 
cause there was no Hartford show scheduled yet.  We still 
rock the hardest and for the sake of argument are the most 
excited rock fans in this part of the country.  Screw the radio-
-give it all to us.

Out

RICHIERICHRICHES









Review written by: bearskins:part deux (angie@obscurecompany.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 23:21:02 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd! Tool show

  hello again. what to say, this is late but it needs to be documented
none the less.  2nd day of 3 of the best days imaginable. I opted for
herbal accompaniment at this show, and I have no regrets. rain sucks, but
i was hoping it would pour for aenema, which wasnt even played, but who's
complaining?  I had possibly the worst seat in the house, a member of the
"cool" team on the bleachers approx. 17.6 miles away from the actual
stage. this was not nearly the proper way for anyone to witness the enigma
that is Tool.  however, being a little stoned and very high on tool,
nothing else seemed to irk me. all i knew was that i was alive--very
alive-- and not only witnessing, but a part of something phenomenal,
(fantomas included) that I will never be able to erase from my emotional
memory. and i would never want to. expecting to be left sans undertow and
opiate, when prison sex came on I thought i was hearing 46&2 wrong. it
actually took me a few to register what was happening. the best part of
that song was being able to hear possibly everyone in that dirty, wet,
money stealing, bastard-asshole stadium singing along, and stop dead in
their tracks on "I Ha.." when maynard did the "thought I could..."
breakdown in the middle instead. sweet sweetness. I did notice however
that this setlist and tonights visuals made for a darker feeling show,
something about it I can't quite put my finger on...just different.
altogether, it was an intense show that anyone who has gone, whether a
huge fan or not,had to be left undeniably moved, as they should be. after
all, this ain't just any old concert.  this ain't just any old band. this
is THE BEST band in the history of ever. This is TOOL.  word to your
maternal figure.
    BigBear












Review written by: Venomous Voice (drtygrrl@angelfire.com)
Review posted on: 09/23/01 23:52:17 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  Maybe something along the lines of........

The Grudge
Stinkfist
(-)Ions
Prison Sex
Pushit (album version)
Schism (with the head bobbers... yet again.. YAY!)
Disposition
Reflection
**Intermission with Performance Art by the head bobbers**
Parabol
Parabola
Ænima
Eon Blue Apocalypse
The Patient
Opiate
Lateralus

So... Second night in a row... second wonderful show!! Fantomas still
kicked ass... and Mike Patton can say "Chowdah" better than anyone from
Mass I think...... and it was prolly the gayest thing I heard all night,
but It made me laugh a little....... just a little.

I was all stressed the day before the show cause I had finally been able
to get "better seats" than the ones I had already... I was busy trying to
sell the lawn tickets that I had, but I managed... and Eleven of us went
to the show. One in Section one, four of us were in Section two, two of us
in Section eight and the other four in the lawn... (sorry guys!!! I wish
it hadn't rained!)

I had one of the section two tickets so I was mad excited about the whole
deal. Really excited that they didn't play the same set list as they did
in Maine. I was so pumped when I heard them start playing Prison Sex, I
nearly lost it. I almost fell off my seat a few times actually.. hehe.. I
was standing on my seat for most of the show, cause yet again... the
vertically challenged. We managed to sneak a stupid disposable camera in
with us (thanks to Emily and her crotch ;) love you babe!)... but the
pictures came out extra shitty... actually... if any came out at all.
Pisses me off.. cause I know the potential I have for great pictures (I'm
a Photography Major at school....) Son of a Bitch Venues should let you
bring your god damned cameras in... I would have had MINT fucking
pictures..... Anyway.... off that rant onto another.. So.. yeah... I guess
I should have prepared myself for the ASSHOLES I'd have to put up with all
night long, especially at a Venue like the "Tweeter Center" (ahem.. its
still fucking Greatwoods to me... ok?) I'm convinced that they need to
stop selling beer at these concerts.... I was not a fan of the overweight
white caps (jocks) with all the beer and all the weed smoking going on...
Not cool at all... But I guess its what you have to expect when the show
has been pounded into the meager little brains of these people by FNX, or
BCN or AAF. Thank you. AND A SPECAIL FUCK YOU GOES OUT TO THE FNX LOSERS
WHO LET THE STUPID BALLOONS GO... THANX A MILLION. Goes to show you how
cool of a radio station you are when you disrespect the fucking artists on
stage, where they have to get side tracked by your big black balls of
hate...... and pops them right there in front of you on stage... now...
I'm sorry.. but Maynard should never have had to have done that at all!!!  
BASTARDS. And you know what.. We are all fucking lucky that Adam didn't
get hit by the second big black balloon.. cause you know what... I have
had a strong feeling that he prolly would have stopped his solo right
there, and walked off stage.... OH.. and another thing about his solo....
a big FUCK YOU to those of you who kept interrupting my enjoyment with
comments like "BREAK INTO SABBATH.... YEAHH!!!!!"  -or- "FUCK IT UP!!  
YEAHHHH!!!" uhm.. thanks for comming to the show, but their not fucking
Sabbath... Looser! Or the people that just couldn't grasp the fact that
there was something more meaningful going on with the preformance art
piece done by the head bobbers.... all of you who kept yelling "PLAY SOME
FUCKING MUSIC!!"  needed something like that... you need to be more god
damned cultured or something.... if you were at a fucking ballet, would
you be yelling at them to show you their "tits"?  I think not...  so next
time.. SHUT THE FUCK UP!  You people have no idea how fucking lucky you
are to have seen something like that.... at that magnitude.....  but then
again.. maybe your little pea brains cant fucking handle it.... and in
that case.. I apologize for expecting more from the human race. And I hate
to have that "I'm better than you" attitude, but I have to... I respected
the artists and their time in front of us.. they didn't have to be
there... and neither did you.


Anyway... Now that I've got that out of the way... I really enjoyed the
subject matter that was played on the screens... The one that stands out
in my mind the most is the one... I cant even remember which song was..
but I'm thinking Ænima. It took you down a wall with very old wall paper,
with like floral patterns, and there are a few pictures on the wall... the
one they stop at and zoom in on is what looks like some sort of female, in
a round frame, and what looks like a slug, slides down the picture about
half way, and falls off... it continues to pan across into an old
bathroom, with a body of a man in a suit, with no arm and no head.... and
it looks like hes waving or beaconing you in. I noticed an arm lying on
the floor that could possibly been his which looks more like a beaconing
you in.. than a wave.... Human torsos lie all over the floor... I believe
there were about four or five, and it continues to pan across to another
man figure, with a top hat on, with his back to you... he's standing in
front of some old unclean toilets, and he slowly turns towards you at the
hips, and it looks as though he has no face, and just eyes that glow. Of
course they loop it, and reverse it, and change up the speeds to go along
with the music.. but that one video suck out in my mind the most. Theres
something eerily wrong about it...  and I cant figure it out.. but It's
been staying with me.... I also really liked the footage of what also
looked like more performance art, with the two naked woman, dancing around
in a circle holding on to the arms of the bust in the middle.  And I was a
really big fan of the nudes swimming... uh... soo good!!!! I was kinda
upset with Maynards lack of speaking... but then again.. I can
understand... not so much upset with the lack there of.. but.. of what he
said... He said the same stuff both nights... almost as if it were part of
the show... I guess I figgured it to be more orignal than that... but he
what he did say did mean lots to alot of people... he said the same thing
both nights...

"I have an assignment for you.. {pause} I want you to take this feeling...
{pause} This feeling that your having right now.. {pause} And remember
it... {pause} And in the comming weeks... {pause} Create something
positive with it."

Its a great thing to say... dont get me wrong. There is no way that I can
compare either of the shows to eachother. Like I said, wonderful that they
switched it up.. I got to hear both versions of Pushit!! :) Again
Parabol/Prabola was so moving... I was totally in my own head space for
most of the show... just taking it all in... trying not to go into sensory
overload. I was in total disbelief when I heard them start playing
Opiate...  Fucking wondeful. I'm seriously at a loss for words when It
comes to their actual preformance....

Utterly orgasmic.
So sad to see it all end.








Review written by: Asiu (ixi0n47@home.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 01:47:25 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  I don't understand this whole late feeling everyone has been 
getting, saying things like "After the show I felt that my 
unconscious had been torn open, twisted, lacerated, 
dissected, and then, perhaps, healed and set free." Maybe 
it's all the weed people smoke. Tool was great. The show 
was great. The visuals were great too. But too many people 
are making a big deal out of it. When Ænema came out, 
Tool didn't have as big an audience as it does now. They 
were great back then and still are now. After radio stations 
started playing Tool all the time recently, a lot more people 
got into Tool. Tool tickets are so hard to get these days. I 
seem to be missing lots of shows, because stupid drunks 
that like to mosh and swear at the band buy out the show. I 
guess I'll just have to keep paying hundreds of dollars to 
scalpers. I guess you just can't do anything about it. It does 
kind of piss me off, the crowd that listens to Tool now, 
though. A few years ago, there were no bands like Slipknot, 
Papa Roach, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park... Those bands I treat 
as just a fun show, where I go moshing in, nothing more. I 
wouldn't ever go pay a scalper 100 bucks for one of them. 
Anyways, since these bands have been the "rock groups" for 
the past few months/years, they have shaped the definition 
of current rock. They changed it to what they play, which is 
crappy smashing, heavy screaming, and loud banging. It's 
not exactly Guns N' Roses, or Metallica, or Tool. Since this 
has lately become the definition of heavy rock music, the 
crowd has also changed. While many people view a Tool 
show as just something where you go mosh in, and swear at 
the band, and even chant "U.S.A." every once in a while, I 
view it as a frieking concert where you listen to music, and 
enjoy yourself. I personally would just like to have been to a 
few Tool shows back in the early 90's. Now, I just don't have 
a chance to go to any concerts before they sell out. Why 
can't Tool play at another Lollapalooza or another all-day 
festival that costs 35 bucks? Why do I have to pay 175 
dollars to get a crappy seat far from the stage? Why do I 
spend countless hours reading reviews of their show and 
listen to people talk about how they were high, and they 
loved the show, because the show put them in a trance, and 
they were seeing things beyond their control? I guess I'm a 
teenager obsessed with a kickass band, and all I can do is 
whine and complain about how I didn't get to see them all 
the time. Well, screw you. I think that I will complain, so 
long as people treat Tool the way that you treat Slipknot, or 
Limp Bizkit, or any other "rock band" that's pretty much out 
there right now. For those people, why don't you take your 
spikes and chains and weed, and do whatever you want, in 
any other place you want. But don't disturb me, when I'm in 
my "trance" watching and listening to Tool.








Review written by: mc503216 (mc503216@msn.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 09:26:55 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Hey you!  Read reviews already posted for your show to see 
if somebody already posted the setlist. 

If nobody has, you ought to.  The less duplicated info, the 
easier it is for everyone to read these.   Especially your mom.

I have seen a lot of shows in my day and Tool ranks right 
up there in the top 3 shows  I have ever seen.Just wish they 
had played longer.Been a Tool fan since I first heard Sober  
on the radio .Reflection was awsome my fav off the new CD. 
Hope they come round this way soon and don't take 4 years 
to put out a new CD.








Review written by: Shann (nirvanafreak89@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 10:05:49 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  First, Fantomas was great. Very unpredictable. I liked their 
style. TOOL WAS AWESOME!!! I just wish I could have seen 
Maynard's face at least once. Oh well. It was GREAT!!!









Review written by: john mota (downinahole121700@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 10:05:54 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  well well well... what more did anyne expect me to say other 
than that tool was the most amazing experience ive ever 
had in my life... notice how i didnt say concert.. because 
what went on was not a concert.. hell i dont even know what 
it was but the word amazing does not do it justice.. i think 
the highlight of the night was probably when they played 
opiate.. right when i heard those first two bass harmonics at 
the beginning of the song  just froze... too bad there was a 
couple of drunk fraternity dickheads standing on the lawn in 
front of me.. one of the turned around to me and asked if i 
had any coke and i made a  weird face at him and said no 
and then he looked at me like i was the drunk idiot... 
anyway im not gonna say what i wanted to do to him cause it 
might incriminate me with the recent tragedies weve had ... 
anyway all these reviews are the same and im not surprised 
cause tools amazing so im gonna leave this short and 
simple.. TOOL IS THE BEST BAND LIVE IN THE WORLD AND 
NEXT TIME I SEE THEM IT WILL BE FRONT ROW  WHERE 
DRUNK IDIOTS(and you know who you are you dumbasses!) 
CANT DISTRACT ME FROM THE GREATNESS THAT TOOL IS!


                                           see ya
                                           
downinahole121700@yahoo.com











Review written by: Joey Bananas (Joe_Mara98@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 13:41:13 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  WAY TOO MELLOW MAN!

was DYING to watch danny play drums but had lawn tix AND 
THE FUCKIN BAND IS DARKED OUT!   

so watch the video screens, right?

ALL THEY SHOW IS VIDEO CLIPS.

very weak.  they have a TON of rockin tunes but stuck very 
close to the mellow shit.  big mistake.   i know there are a 
LOT of Toll fans much more familiar with their full range of 
material, but a band that can ROCK OUT like tool should 
play the hard shit and LET US WATCH THEM PLAY.

all in all, a very self indulgent mellow show that was a major 
disappointment.

Tool thinks they are Floyd.    Tool should drop the mellow 
shit and fuckin PLAY SOMETHN HARD for ONCE.   

my review?  * out of *****








Review written by: Chris (sljmp2@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 15:04:40 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

  Hey you!  Read reviews already posted for your show to see 
if somebody already posted the setlist. 

If nobody has, you ought to.  The less duplicated info, the 
easier it is for everyone to read these.   Especially your mom.


Tool is the one band you can see sober and still have an 
amazing out of the body experience.  Tool is my favorite 
drug.  They take things to a whole new level, a level beyond 
any other band or form of life.  

The show was incredible.  My seats sucked, but the sound 
made up for it.  They opened with the Grudge - so much 
energy, the crowd was just anticipating the first song.  
Perfect song to open with.   (-) ions into Stinkfist - good, 
could have been better, but definately a difficult song to 
perform live.  Nice little extended section included.  Prison 
Sex (I dont really recall the exact order, but i will try to come 
close) - one of my favorite songs, so happy to hear it.  
Adam nailed the guitar solos.  Pushit - WOW, to me this was 
the best performance of the night.  Completely errorless.  
Sounded like the CD.  This song moved me the most.  
Reflection/Disposition - definately cool to see maynard on 
guitar.  The song, along with Dannys drums, put me in a 
trance.  The impatient fans around me were somewhat of a 
distraction, but I remained in the zone.  Opiate - another 
one of their best performances.  Maynard hit some great 
notes that just left the crowd in awe.  Dannys drums were 
perfect as usual. and Justin and Adam were as well.  Schism -
 very good, even though I hear that song every time I turn 
on my radio.  The Patient - awesome!  One of my favorite 
songs off the new album.  Lateralus - good song to close 
with.  The four of them pulled everything together and 
delivered a great performance.

The visuals on the screen added to the whole psychadelic 
experience.  Maynarnd was difficult to see, especially with his 
back facing the crowd for the majority of the concert.  But 
that is just they way they portray themselves.  They are all 
about music.  If I were to classify TOOL, I would say they 
are a psychadelic hard-rock jam band.  

Thank you Maynard, Adam, Justin and Danny for this 
incredible experience.  See You Auntie








Review written by: MOH (mohyden@yahoo.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 15:38:19 ET


This was this reviewer's 4th Tool show

  This was the most dissapointing of all the Tool shows I have 
seen.  I hate to say it, but I was bored. The intros (way too 
long), contortionists, videos, etc.  just seemed like a waste 
of time.  I would rather just watch them play, no frills.  Once 
they did get into the songs, they sounded great (Maynard's 
voice gives me goosebumps).   Unfortunately, I felt like 
these moments came few and far between.  Quite a let-
down.








Review written by: dp (g2w75r@hotmail.com)
Review posted on: 09/24/01 16:27:49 ET


This was this reviewer's 2nd Tool show

  Thanks to the traffic on 495 compounded by the 4 car 
accident at the tweeter center exit, I totally missed 
Fantomas.  That sucked.  I see I wasn't the only one to fall 
into this situation.

This is the first concert I've been to where everyone around 
me was bullshitting with each other during every song.  What 
the fuck?  Those that weren't talking (and of course the 
music's loud so they have to yell at each other) were 
smoking so much weed I didn't even have to bring any of 
my own.  I don't have anything against that, except for the 
guy in front of me who was so shit-faced he was passed out 
in the mud several minutes before the music started.  At 
least that was entertaining.  I was planning on draping my 
balls across his face and taking a picture for his parents, but 
the music started.  Definitely one of the most distracted 
crowds I have ever seen.  Quite a shame.

The tweeter center sound quality on the "lawn" was terrible, 
as expected.  Mostly it was frustrating to see Danny nail a 
drum or cymbal, then hear the sound half a beat later.

I thought the effect of just seeing Maynard's silhouette 
against the small screen was great.  Probably because I was 
so fucking far away that's all I would have seen anyway.  All 
I could see of Justin was his head.  

The performers from the schism video gave me one of the 
most memorable visuals ever, when they started writhing 
around at the beginning of parabola.

Despite all the crap, I walked away from this show really 
happy.  Through most of pushit and lateralus I realized I 
had tears in my eyes, especially when Maynard belted 
out "reaching out to embrace whatever may come".  How do 
they get such emotion to come out of their music?  
Apparently many others felt this.

What an honor to be at a performance by this group.  
Thanks guys.










Review written by: H (ntylilanjl@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/25/01 00:36:21 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st Tool show

  This was amazing. I got there wicked late and ended up 
hearing the first distinctly Tool note as we were running in. 
Got in a great place considering we had lawn. This show was 
the trippiest thing I've ever seen. The graphics were mind 
blowing and the music was insane. I've never felt so one 
with my fellow concert goers. Noone fought, barely anyone 
pushed. It was beautiful. We were all just bathing in the 
splendor of Danny's powerful beats and Justin's low bass 
tones shaking the ground beneath us. Adam's amazing 
abilities of sound, vision, and overall art and lastly the cool, 
crisp ribbon of Maynard's voice sliding over us all tying us 
together in a neat little family. He said to make something 
positive of that night and I think we can't have helped but 
laugh knowing that we already had; he already had for us. 
This is my first Tool experience but not my last. Never my 
last...










Review written by: SoKa (Fifi2085@aol.com)
Review posted on: 09/25/01 01:43:30 ET


This was this reviewer's 1st? Tool show

   What can I say it was incredible!!!You have the set list so 
no point in repeating. Best Song played was a toss up 
between Schism and Stinkfest. Both played beautifully. I 
must say I was a little dissappointed not to hear 46 and 
2......and sober....I really wanted to see those but i have it 
on cd so thats cool.........Definitely worth the 75 bucks to see.
Also there are two big events but you will see when you go.