From: Brian Kotek (brian428@pipeline.com)

Here's my thoughts and opinions about seeing Tool live at the Ritz in 
Raleigh, NC. It is a perfect club to see good bands at, it holds about 
2000 people, but it's still small enough that even in the back of the 
club you are still very close to the band. 

In a nutshell, Tool was incredible. It was quite possibly the best live 
show I've ever seen. They sounded absolutely perfect, every vocal and 
instrument note could be heard with complete clarity, despite the fact 
that it was loud as hell (which was good, of course). They opened with a 
brilliant performance of "Stinkfist", and the Ritz was going insane. It 
was so crowded, and the mosh was so huge and so intense, that I couldn't 
walk to the other side of the room. In the silence after "Stinkfist", 
Maynard stalked around the stage for a bit, then said simply "this is a 
song about change" and the body-throbbing bass intro to "46&2" began. 
From here they played "Swamp Song", "h", "Sober", "Prison Sex", and 
"Eulogy". One of my favorite moments was realizing that they were 
starting "Intolerance", which is one of my favorite songs, but one that I 
didn't expect to hear them play, making it that much better. Wrapping up 
with "Opiate", Maynard said some things that really hit home before they 
played it. I don't remember precisely, but similar to: "Sometimes in 
human history, we are presented with people who have achieved astonishing 
moments of clairity. People who have expanded their horizons or 
transcended their limitations. Moments of clarity that other people have 
realized they can make a living off of...." The encore was "Aenima". I 
found myself wishing everyone I knew could be there because it was that 
great, that musically perfect, that moving. The crowd was a hassle 
sometimes, but a small price to pay for the experience. I know that when 
Tool returns, I will be there, ready for more.