Publication: The Inside Connection
Date: August, 2001
Transcribed by
K[elly] (spiral.out@deadohiosky.net)
K[elly] (spiral.out@deadohiosky.net)
page: 30 title: Demystifying Tool – The Big Enigma author: Gabriella Most people, especially journalists, consider Tool difficult. They started out as an alternative band and soon became one of the leading new heavy metal acts of the 1990s, influencing countless other bands with their innovative sound and densely rhythmic style. Their eagerly anticipated new album, Lateralus, was one of the best-kept secrets in the music business because the band was afraid it would somehow end up on Napster. Hardly surprising, since there were a lot of doubts that Lateralus would ever happen – after all, the band took a five-year recording break and fought a battle with their record company where the stakes were a few million dollars high. When Tool was founded in L.A. in 1990 by Adam Jones (guitar), Maynard James Keenan (vocals), Paul D’Amour (bass) and Danny Carey (drums), nobody knew that they’d become a landmark in the heavy alternative scene. If the way they were accepted by other musicians was a fair indication, Tool was not just another alternative band. Rage Against the Machine invited [Tool] to open for them on a European tour and featured Keenan on a song on their debut album. After their EP, Opiate, almost every musician took notice. When they released their first full-length album, Undertow, Tool tour relentlessly and it was no surprise when the disc reached platinum status. Their angry intensity, penchant for difficult lyrical subjects and Keenan’s often strange and grotesque stage getup won the audience over; the 1993 Lollapalooza tour did the rest. Their second album, Ænima, featuring new bass player Justin Chancellor, narrowly missed topping the Billboard charts, firmly establishing Tool as a force in the music business. Their third album’s delay was partly caused by legal problems with their record company, Volcano Entertainment, which were solved by founding another label just for Tool, Volcano Entertainment II. Adam Jones sees it as “maybe not the best way, but it certainly is a way,” and explains his view. “I think there will always be friction between the label and the band, there will always be a certain confrontation. That will never change, but it seems that things are running a lot smoother now because the band has more of a say in it.” Maynard James Keenan, born April 17, 1964, in Ohio, has lived all over the United States. After Ohio, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas, he ended up in L.A., a town he confesses he doesn’t like, but he keeps living there. “It’s simple: You get things done here. If you need something to be done quick, it’s the ideal place for it, but I wouldn’t advise anybody to stay here longer than absolutely necessary.” Drummer Danny Carey explains why Tool prefers more privacy and why, for them, it’s not important to be on magazine covers. “There are enough people in the music business who will do anything for headlines. They are media whores to a certain extent. We never wanted it. I think you can do it without selling yourself to the media. Look at Pink Floyd – they’re a really fascinating band and they never bothered to do the interview circuits. “In a way, the more people push and shove to get on covers, the more they expose themselves. They become interchangeable or even laughing stock, plus it only attracts the kind of fans that are into every hype. For us it’s far more important that people are into what we’re doing, not because it’s a fashion trend but because they are really interested. “That is one of the reasons why we like being in touch with our fans on the Net. There isn’t a filter between the fans and the band. The media will print stuff they think the readers are interested in, but maybe the readers are interested in something else. Through a direct communication over our web page, we can address certain issues and address them the way we want.” Keenan has a rather spiritual explanation for music and why it’s bad for a band to get too much attention. According to him, it would hinder his creativity. “Somebody who likes our music shouldn’t see us as some sort of heroes. He should remember that the music is out there and sometimes music is looking for a medium. So if they concentrate on us, it’s absolutely wrong. They’re feeding our egos and that makes it more difficult for us to feel the music in its purest form. We’d start to take ourselves too seriously. It might sound very esoteric and hard to follow, but that’s how it is. Once you take yourself too seriously, the art will suffer.” Keenan doesn’t only dislike interviews, he also doesn’t want to talk about music – a bit strange for a musician, but then again Tool – and especially Keenan – are anything but average. “I don’t think there is much of a point in talking about music; I think the music should speak for itself. Why interpret something or explain it? If people listen to it, they’ll understand or they won’t. I think music should do all the talking; a song can be a book. Somebody could write a book about a song, the impressions they get from it, the feelings, all the different elements.” He admits that Tool don’t accept any rules where their music is concerned. “I think the Beatles tried to do everything that is possible with pop songs. If I listen to their White Album, it seems to me that it’s an acid trip, nothing else. So if you follow the tradition of the Beatles or the Smashing Pumpkins, then there are no rules, there are no barriers, nothing. So we push it further. We go on and we open up new dimensions, we tear down old barriers for other musicians, for musicians that will follow. Rock music has changed. It used to be dangerous; at least it always had that stigmata or glory of being dangerous, but it isn’t anymore. There is nothing left to discover.”
Posted to t.d.n: 04/03/02 23:45:30