A Review of the Fall 1996 Tour

Date: December 7


From: Dan Cravotta (danc@voyageronline.net) Subject: December 7th show in Atlanta I can die peacefully now. I have seen tool in concert, and I can now rest in peace. They were indescribably amazing, and they put on the best concert I have ever seen hands down. A group of five of us spent four hours in the car coming from Nashville, TN, and it was worth all of the driving, money, and more. Tool met and exceeded every expectation that I had set for them, and those were some pretty high standards. The show was at the International Ballroom, a concert hall located right near Atlanta's own Chinatown. Ticketmaster was very helpful in giving directions to the place, but it was a pretty easy find. Psychotica opened for tool and they were pretty awful. They seemed like a combination of metal, freakiness, and Poison from the 1980's. The lead singer came on stage decked out in a full, TIGHT, and white body suit. Look, if I wanted to see the guy's manhood, I would've asked. His outfit was a little too revealing for my taste. This female vocalist they had was dosed up on something, and her handlebar shaped hair was a little odd. The guitarist jumped around like a fairy, the cello player couldn't be heard, and the drummer is a classic no-talent beat-the-hell-out-of-these-things type of drummer. Needless to say, nobody was very impressed with their playing, but they had a cool light show. We waited around for about thirty minutes (those other reviews are right on target), while tool's stuff was set up. Then the lights dimmed, two movie screens propped up behind the drum set, and tool walked on. They were all without shirts, and Maynard was painted half blue, with only his boxers on. Adam Jones' upper body was painted entirely in blue. The band started to play, and Maynard just stood and STARED out into the crowd. No movements, no singing, just staring into the crowd, as if transfixed by the masses of people. When he began singing, the song was recognized as Third Eye, and everybody went nuts. The whole place seemed to sway, as in the people flowed like an ocean across the floor. It was quite a rush. After Third Eye, Stinkfist was played, and the crowd went crazy. Here's when the mosh pits opened up, and they were the most intense I've ever seen. I'm not a mosher, but they were some of the largest pits I've seen, too. It was during this song that everything hit me... I was in Atlanta, watching my boys, tool, live on stage, and I was maybe 10 feet away from "The Man." It was the biggest rush I have ever experienced, and the concert in general was probably the single best experience that I've ever had. They were that incredible. Here's the set list, as best I can recall it. The songs are right, the order maybe. Any comments Maynard made are listed directly after the song. Third Eye (good song, Maynard's very into it. His scream is amazing!) Stinkfist (Jumped right into this from Third Eye. Very cool) 46 & 2 (Maynard's body seemed to flow with all of the music. Especially here) Swamp Song -- "Here's an older song..." The crowd was very into this song. Eulogy (Maynard held two microphones during the first couple of songs. One had red tape on it. A friend of mine up closer noted that Maynard seemed to be singing into some kind of black object with red tape on it. I have no idea how they make that noise, but I know that this microphone must run through an effects system of some kind.) Prison Sex -- "Here's one of our [crew], Billy. He is 27 years old and has just discovered that he only has one testicle. So, those of you out there with three... please help him out. Thank you." I never saw this song coming. I was telling my friends about this site and the reviews section and how tool didn't seem to be playing Pushit or Prison Sex at their shows. They started Prison Sex, and I was in heaven. Utopian bliss... H. (An amazing song especially the end) Hooker With A Penis -- "This song is about...all of us being liable. All of us being connected. All of us.. being responsible for what;s wrong in this world" I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this song. This may have been the best song they did. Very intense, especially the end. Sober (Danny Carey soloed for abut five minutes, while Justin, Maynard, and Adam were crouched down, almost out of sight. Someone said they saw Maynard shoot up, but I don't know. Adam was playing with his pick on the strings, and then Justin got up, and started playing with his feedback. It was pretty cool. Then I got dizzy and real dehydrated. Oh, well. Price you pay...) Pushit -- "This song's about loving someone so much that they want to kill you. So you kill them." I did not expect them to play Pushit at the show. It is also my favorite tool song. When Adam started it off on his guitar, I just about cried. I couldn't believe it. The song was amazing, and Maynard was very intense. The end of the song holds the most powerful lyrics/poetry that I have ever heard or read in my life. They were even more intense in concert. It was perfect. Opiate -- "This song, is often thought to be anti-religious. It has nothing to do with religion, but our business world... someone finds a way to market [good, pure things in our world], and sells them. This song is, in fact, about a businessman." This was the most crowd pleasing song of the night. Everybody was moving and yelling and going nuts. Very intense. After Opiate, Danny Carey threw his drum sticks into the crowd, and Maynard his water bottle. Maynard even gave a little wave to the crowd saying goodbye. I even saw people leaving, shaking hands and talking about the show. The band gathered in front of Danny's drums and seemed to talk, as if discussing whether or not to keep playing. Then... Aenima -- "We're going to play one more song, even though you don't deserve it." The whole crowd went completely crazy, especially the mosh pits. This was a very intense song, and my favorite of the evening. Nothing beats tool in concert, and I can't wait until they tour in the spring. The only thing keeping me from seeing them again in Memphis on December 14th is that I have to work almost all day. Otherwise I'd be there. To everyone who thinks tool is a cool band. Go see the show!! No matter what. And for those hard core "chickenweasel" fans, try ordering tickets at 9:00 Eastern time (as soon as they were released), planning the trip for two months, and then driving a total of eight hours to see the band you love. They are, in a sense, "Musical Perfection." I almost got into a wreck after the show, but I believe that Maynard was with me... You can e-mail me at "AlJBMyHR@aol" Nashville tool fan, Dave Cravotta