toggle = T = toolchain

tool 1. n.

A program used primarily to create, manipulate, modify, or analyze other programs, such as a compiler or an editor or a cross-referencing program. Oppose app, operating system. 2. [Unix] An application program with a simple, `transparent' (typically text-stream) interface designed specifically to be used in programmed combination with other tools (see filter, plumbing). 3. [MIT: general to students there] vi. To work; to study (connotes tedium). The TMRC Dictionary defined this as "to set one's brain to the grindstone". See hack. 4. n. [MIT] A student who studies too much and hacks too little. (MIT's student humor magazine rejoices in the name "Tool and Die".)

--Jargon File, autonoded by rescdsk.

Tool Penis. General insult

Euphemism for 'penis'. Also a general purpose insult, roughly equal to calling someone a moron:

"So I got my tool out..."

"You TOOL!"


Part of the London Slang Project

Sometimes referred to as "the thinking man's metal," Tool is a hard rock/heavy metal band charactized by often complex song composure and cerebral lyrics. While the music is definitely of the hard rock/metal variety, it's typically a lot more talented and creative than most harder rock (let's face it, a lot of metal is rather simple and very fucking repetitive) and it's not uncommon to hear a Tool song that has branched out into other genres or is just plain weird. The lyrics differentiate Tool from many other bands, rock or not, by taking a more intellectual (but certainly not emotionless) stance on the topics sung about. For example, how many bands do you know that incorporate Jungian themes or theories about chromosomes and their relation to a collective consciousness that might evolve into their music?

Tool formed in California in 1990 when drummer Danny Carey was introduced to guitarist Adam Jones through high school friend and guitarist for the now-defunct Rage Against the Machine Tom Morello. Carey lived near singer Maynard James Keenan, which is how the two met. Keenan and Jones frequently practiced together and, when people the two were supposed to play with didn't show up (which was often enough for Carey to remark that he felt sorry of the two), Carey would often offer his services. Eventually, Carey became a part of the band as well. Bassist Paul D'Amour met the band through Carey: Both Carry and D'Amour worked in the film industry (D'Amour has done special effects, art, and make-up work on Predator 2, Edward Scissorhands, Batman Returns, Jurassic Park, and a few other films), which is where the two met.

Paul D'Amour left the band in September of 1995 over creative differences (and other such things) but is still on good terms with the rest of Tool (when I saw Tool live in November of 2001, just before playing "Opiate," Keenan said the song was for "Paul of Love"). D'Amour's replacement was Justin Chancellor, previously of the band Peach. Chancellor had met Tool on tour in 1994 when Peach was opening for them. Chancellor had actually already played with the band at least once by the point, having played bass with Tool for a performance of "Sober" at one concert. Initially, Chancellor turned down the offer to join Tool as he was trying to form a band with Ben Durling (long-time friend of Chancellor's and guitarist for Peach, which had broken up six months earlier). Not long after, however, Chancellor decided he couldn't turn down the opportunity and travelled to the United States to audition (Chancellor is British and was living in, surprise, the UK). Chancellor received the position, defeating Filter's Frank Cavanagh, Zaum's Marko Fox (his voice can be heard on Tool's "Die Eier von Satan"), and KYUSS' Scott Reeder.

Tool's first release, an EP titled Opiate, was released in 1992 on Zoo Records (now Volcano Entertainment). The EP contained some of Tool's harder, more typically metal songs of the time, giving the impression to some that the band was just another metal band. Opiate has a distinctly different feel than later Tool releases because of this and is probably the band's least innovative record. Aside from the title and secret tracks (the former playing on a "religion is the opiate of the masses" theme and the latter being a silly, musically tripped out song with the kind of humor Tool fans would later find familiar), most of the songs don't seem to fit in with Tool's other productions. The live tracks on Opiate were recorded at a New Years Eve concert with humorous friends of Tool Green Jelly (they were there and performed but not on this recording). Opiate was produced by Sylvia Massy, Steve Hansgen, and Tool.

In 1993, Tool toured on Lollapalooza, the summer music festival organized by Jane's Addiction/Porno for Pyros frontman Perry Farrell that use-to-be-cool-then-wasn't-so-cool-then-couldn't-find-anyone-to-headline-then-disappeared (perhaps you've heard of it). Originally slated to be on the second stage, Tool was eventually moved to the main stage where they wowed the crowds and gained a great many new fans.

That year also saw the release of Undertow, Tool's first full-length album. Undertow, named for the downward pull breaking waves and sinking ships create, reflects just that emotionally in its lyrics. Containing what is probably Tool's most popular song at the time-of-this-writing and some of the band's more easily understood lyrics (though in terms of sales, Undertow isn't the most popular album), Undertow still managed to send a more thoughtful and unique messages in its songs (or, at least, delivered such messages in more thoughtful and unique ways) with songs with titles like "Prison Sex" and the usage of anal sex as a metaphor giving listeners a downward-pulling introspective experience. Music videos were created for "Prison Sex" and "Sober" (a music video was created for "Hush" on Opiate but it's not all that special really) featuring dark, claymated depictions that would become a trademark of Tool videos. (Walter tells me Tool's video style is a rip-off of that of the Brothers Quay. I haven't seen any of the Brothers Quay's work yet but I shall investigate this when I can.) Undertow was produced by Sylvia Massy and Tool.

Around this time the members of Tool became infamous for something other than their music: Their behavoir in interviews. In 1993 and 1994, the band made enough references to lachrymology (which, literally, would be the study of tears), a supposed philosophy and religion whose followers sought to advance themselves through physically and emotional pain. The band built up the idea that lachrymology and Ronald P. Vincent's "obscure" 1949 book, The Joyful Guide to Lachrymology, had a great influence on their music. People began to realize the band was bullshitting them when information on lachrymology couldn't be found anywhere and the Library of Congress didn't even have The Joyful Guide to Lachrymology on record. Tool didn't stop here, having continued to feed the press and their fanbase vague stories and snippets of information that are ridiculous enough to garner additional attention and suspicion but not so ridiculous as to be obvious lies. Blair Blake, Tool's webmaster for their official website, releases a monthly newsletter that usually contains some information about the band and a ton of the possible-but-unlikely-(or-are-they?) type stories, conspiracy theories, and references to the likes of Aleister Crowley, the Freemasons, UFOs over Area 51, and other occult material.

The band likely looks at this behavoir as a way to not only have some fun but get people to think as well. Looking up information on the odd reference mentioned by a band member or conspiracy theory espoused in the newsletter can actually be quite entertaining and educational, even when one's sure it has no real connection to the band. At least, one can't help but laugh after reading a lengthy conspiracy theory regarding the World Trade Center terrorism only to find, at the end of the article, that it was all essentially untrue.

In 1996, Tool released Ænima (I pronounce it au-nee-ma, though you're welcome to call it pea-nut but-ter if you like). Ænima is Tool's most cerebral album to date (the later Lateralus combining the more emotional focus found of Undertow with the thought-provokation of Ænima), incorporating Carl Jung's ideas of the anima and shadow into song with ideas about collective conscious, changing oneself, society as a whole, and drugs (specifically, psychedelics). Music videos combined Tool's claymation style with actual people heavily coated in make-up were created for "Stinkfist" (which MTV referred to as "Track #1," deciding the activity implied by "Stinkfist" was too offensive to mention... yet the lyrics remained unchanged) and "Ænema." (Note the difference in spelling: This song should not be referred to as the title track.) Ænima was produced by Tool and David Bottrill.

Ænima's packaging features several trippy holograms whose images can be manipulated by using the jewel case for your enjoyment. Watch as the sickly eyes fly out from the smokebox. See a single sickly eye's pupil and iris whiz by. Narrowly seeing Maynard James Keenan's tool as he stands, naked, from a couch while a contortionist performs before the band. Witness the majority of California disappear into the Pacific Ocean, forming Arizona Bay. "Woo!" you say. Yes, you do. Even more fun, for non-US releases of the album, later runs of the release incuded a list of "Other Albums by Tool." Obviously fake, the list mentions the following "releases," complete with cover images: Gay Rodeo, Bethlehem Abortion Clinic, Bad Breath, The Other White Meat, Two Weiners For Daddy, Three Fat Brown Fingers, Mungey the Clown, I Smell Urine, The Christmas Album, Iced Pee, Spring Boner, Tetanus for Breakfast, Crapsteaks Smothered in Dictators, Nurse Ketimella's Kit'chen, Just Up That Dirt Road: Tool Live! at the Acropolis, and Brown Magic and Big Appetites: Music from the Movie Soundtrack Jelly Donut. Years later, as the release of Lateralus was approaching, Tool's website presented false album and song titles, spawning a slough of fake songs on file-sharing services with the fake names.

Tool toured in support of the album, as they are wont to do, but faced some major delays before getting started with new music for their next album. In 1997, Tool's record label (Volcano Entertainment) sued them, claiming the band was violating their contract by entertaining offers to sign with other record labels. In response, Tool sued Volcano Entertainment, claiming they could do as they please since Volcano had failed to renew their contract, which was an option they had in their previous contract. This mess occupied the band and its label for over a year and, during this time, relatively little music was created by Tool. Eventually, the two parties came to an agreement and Tool enetered into a three record contract with Volcano.

Another delay came when, in 1999, Keenan began working with Billy Howerdel on A Perfect Circle, a rock band with a somewhat gothic and lush feel to the sound. Keenan has described the lyrics and singing style he uses with A Perfect Circle as his more feminine side and Tool is the more masculine. In 2000, A Perfect Circle released Mer de Noms to much acclaim and toured with Nine Inch Nails. Meanwhile, the other members of Tool had been writing music for the next Tool album and getting somewhat annoyed by the hold-up Keenan's "new band" was causing. Keenan has stressed that A Perfect Circle is not a side project but a band that he is as much a part of as Tool. Also in 2000, Tool's ex-manager Ted Gardner decided to sue the band, claiming they owed him money after they fired him. I don't know what has become of this lawsuit.

Eventually, however, Tool's released not one but two works. Salival, a boxed set containing a DVD (or VHS) of all their music videos up until that point and a CD full of live and previously unreleased material, was released in December of 2000 (I waited a few weeks to purchase mine, having heard of the awful amount of typos found in included booklet's first printing. The next year, Lateralus was finally finished and released. The highly-anticipated album blended the emotion of Undertow and the thought of Ænima with an overall positive outlook (well, aside from "Ticks & Leeches") and some of the most energetic music Tool has ever created. The first single, "Schism," had a video created for it, featuring a couple in heavy make-up and other nifty special effects, claymation, and weirdness: The kind of thing people have come to expect from Tool. Two songs that go together (forming a total of near ten minutes), "Parabol" and "Parabola," also had a music video created for them. Surprisingly, the song lengths weren't edited and some stations have actually played the video in its entirety. The video contains the standard Tool music video componants, plus Tricky with some weird make-up/prosthetic effects applied to him (Tricky opened for Tool on their first US tour in support of Lateralus). Lateralus was produced by Tool and David Bottrill.

Discography

  1. Opiate (EP, 1992)
    1. Sweat (3:47)
    2. Hush (2:48)
    3. Part of Me (3:17)
    4. Cold and Ugly (live) (4:09)
    5. Jerk-off (live) (4:24)
    6. Opiate (5:22)
    7. The Gaping Lotus Experience [secret track] (2:18)
  2. Undertow (album, 1993)
    1. Intolerance (4:54)
    2. Prison Sex (4:56)
    3. Sober (5:06)
    4. Bottom (7:13)
    5. Crawl Away (5:29)
    6. Swamp Song (5:31)
    7. Undertow (5:21)
    8. (6:02)
    9. Flood (7:45)
    10. Disgustipated (15:47)
  3. Prison Sex (import single, 1993, out of print)
    Note: Track list varies slightly between the Australian, British, and German versions.
    1. Prison Sex (4:56)
    2. Intolerance (live) (5:12)
    3. Undertow (live) (5:31)
    4. Opiate (live) (6:04)
  4. Sober (import single, 1993, out of print)
    1. Sober (5:07)
    2. Bottom (original version live) (6:22)
    3. Intolerance (live) (4:33)
  5. Sober - Tales from the Darkside (import EP, 1994, out of print)
    1. Sober (5:06)
    2. Undertow (live) (5:35)
    3. Sober (live) (5:07)
    4. Opiate (live) (6:27)
    5. Flood (live) (3:40)
    6. Prison Sex (live) (4:50)
    7. Jerk-off (live) (4:16)
    8. Prison Sex (live) (5:02)
    9. Bottom (live) (6:20)
  6. Ænima (album, 1996)
    1. Stinkfist (5:09)
    2. Eulogy (8:25)
    3. H. (6:07)
    4. Useful Idiot (0:38)
    5. Forty Six & 2 (6:02)
    6. Message to Harry Manback (1:53)
    7. Hooker With a Penis (4:31)
    8. Intermission (0:56)
    9. jimmy (5:22)
    10. Die Eier von Satan (2:16)
    11. Pushit (9:55)
    12. Cesaro Summability (1:26)
    13. Ænima (6:37)
    14. (-) Ions (3:58)
    15. Third Eye (13:47)
  7. Salival (boxed set, 2000)
      Video:
    1. Prison Sex
    2. Sober
    3. Stinkfist
    4. Ænema
    5. Hush (DVD only)
      Audio:
    1. Third Eye (live) (14:05)
    2. Part of Me (live) (3:32)
    3. Pushit (live) (13:56)
    4. Message to Harry Manback II (1:14)
    5. You Lied (live) [Peach cover] (9:17)
    6. Merkaba (live) (9:48)
    7. No Quater [Led Zepplin cover] (11:12)
    8. LAMC / Maynard's Dick [secret track] (10:53)
  8. Lateralus (album, 2001)
    1. The Grudge (8:34)
    2. Eon Blue Apocalypse (1:05)
    3. The Patient (7:14)
    4. Mantra (1:12)
    5. Schism (6:43)
    6. Parabol (3:04)
    7. Parabola (6:02)
    8. Ticks & Leeches (8:07)
    9. Lateralus (9:22)
    10. Disposition (4:46)
    11. Reflection (11:08)
    12. Triad (6:37)
    13. Faaip de Oiad (2:39)


Re: sickman's write-up here on Tool live.
I'd just like to mention that I was sober when I saw Tool in concert and thoroughly enjoyed it. A matter of opinion, of course. To be honest, I didn't find the imagery displayed on the big screens shocking at all. Interesting, yes. Sometimes too repetitive too though. But neither shocking nor suppose-to-be-shocking-but-not. I, too, thought the concert could have done with more old material. Some overkill on promoting Lateralus. Also, that fifteen minute repetitive guitar thing was an intermission. I think it was more meant for the audience to get up and take a leak than sit there stoned out.


Sources:
http://www.toolband.com/
http://toolshed.down.net/
http://www.tooldiscography.com/
my record collection
and other sources with much the same information
http://www.imdb.com/

 

 

see you auntie

Tool: The Most Impressive and Interesting Band of the Modern Era

An essay...

It’s too often been said that modern day music lacks a lot of profound and interesting listening available. The likes of Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, and countless other “sell-outpop stars have, as some might see it, ruined the music industry and destroyed music as an art form. For the most part I would totally agree, of course there are exceptions to everything. Most commonly, in this era of art, a band with such amazing talent and undeniable integrity remains unfound or disregarded for the unpopular genre of music that they choose to play. One such band is Tool, who has – certainly more often than not – been the target of great injustice. The band is more than just some “hardcore heavy metal band”, a preconception that likely originated from their earlier albums. But as will be explained later, even their earlier releases were really quite innovative for their time. Nevertheless, this is still even a minor reference to their almost indescribable talent. Extraordinary music usually comes from extraordinary musicians, and this is still true with Tool; each member has their own amazing abilities as composers. They write music that can even sometimes be called “beautiful”, but also that which would impress even the most musically inclined. Although more than just the music itself, they put into their songs lyrical allusions and philosophies that can be so rewarding to those who are paying attention and can learn to appreciate them. And even beyond the music all together, the artwork of much-respected modern artists lines their album covers, promotional material, and even the stage on which they perform for sold out venues. They are one of the most all around remarkable bands of modern times, but simply aren’t given the credit that they deserve.

Tool have definitely had an impact on many people (musically and emotionally), and certainly not just on fans and average listeners. In an interview with Robert Fripp, guitarist for 70’s progressive rock band King Crimson (KC), he denied Tool’s much assumed influence from his band, but did say “Tool are more comfortable being Tool than King Crimson is comfortable being King Crimson.” This really says a lot coming from the man who has been working with such a worldly influential band such as King Crimson for more than three decades and has worked with such incredible artists such as Brian Eno and Andy Summers, not to mention the members KC members Trey Gunn and Adrian Belew who have fame in their own right. Tool hasn’t been along for quite thirty years, but they have seen relatively more experience in the music industry than most modern artists. With their first album (rather, an E.P.), ‘Opiate’ (which did take it’s name from the famous Karl Marx quote) released in April of 1992, they slowly began to release albums over the years: ‘Undertow’ in April of 1993, ‘Ænima’ in October of 1996, ‘Salival’ in December of 2000, and their latest release ‘Lateralus’ in May of 2001. By the time of their latest release they had been performing up to 88-city tours of sold out stadiums and venues, and are still in the process of recording yet another album as of summer of 2004.
More than just the band as a whole, each of the members has their own further musical background as well. Vocalist Maynard James Keenan, during his break with Tool, found himself doing equally large tours with the new and highly publicized band, A Perfect Circle, who’s first release came out in 2000, followed by yet another release only three years later. As well, in 2003, released was the soundtrack for the box-office hit movie Underworld in which Keenan contributed tracks with another band, under the name of Puscifer, and even did a track with the well-known David Bowie.
Before Paul D’Amour had left the band, current Tool bassist Justin Chancellor had played with a lesser-known band called Peach, who released an album in the early 90’s (and a re-release in February of 2000). Often unknown, guitarist Adam Jones also did various projects with the guitarist from the early 90’s rock band, The Melvins before doing special effects work for movies such as Jurassic Park, and Terminator 2. Danny Carey, drummer, is also fairly well known amongst close fans for his further work with such infamous bands as Green Jelly, and the side project Pigmy Love Circus, not to mention his personally dedicated work with his drum clinics.

With great musical background and experience also comes technically impressive music. However, it’s obvious that Tool does not just use their musical ability simply to write music to confuse or merely show off their skill. Though for those who aren’t so musically talented, there is a lot that can be missed from Tool’s talent to write amazing songs. As such, a number of their songs come along way from the simplistic songs we are so accustomed to hearing. For the majority musicians of the modern day (and certainly not just the aforementioned Britney Spears), most sings are simply written in 4/4 (‘standard’) or 3/4 time signatures. For those not so familiar with music theory, these are the straightforward songs where you can count the beats of a song with your foot in sets of three or four (in case of 3/4 time: 3 beats per measure and quarter note for each beat). In the case of Tool, this is always the case. They have chosen to sometimes challenge the everyday listener, the musician who follows along, and even themselves with incredibly intricate riffs and measures. But why bother doing this? It’s more than just something to strive to write complex music, but it really gives a whole different feeling to the song and opens up endless doors for further creation.
A lot of their use of unconventional time signatures mostly comes from the talent of the drummer, Danny Carey, who, arguably, is one of the best drummers you can find today. One such example of these is in the song ‘Forty-Six & 2’ (album: Ænima) where in the song Carey breaks into a solo where he repeatedly plays in 7/4 time followed by a bar of 8/4 every fourth measure. This, like the rest of the examples, is no easy task for any composer. Most musicians find it hard to write a song in anything other than 4/4, not to mention play elaborate solos switching from one odd time signature to another. Even in their early albums, where often their music wouldn’t be considered to be as exploratory, they still managed to write such overwhelmingly impressive songs. In one such case of the song ‘Intolerance’ (Undertow), a difficult transition from standard 4/4 time into 13/16 is made throughout the song. As they matured as a band, the beautiful rhythms they create with these songs become more evident and really add to the emotions they try to convey. Another fine example is from the song ‘Schism’ (Lateralus) in which Carey and Chancellor play synchronized in a compound time of 12/8 (5/8 + 7/8) during the verse and then transition into the pre-chorus of a compound 13/8 time (6/8 + 7/8). All these numbers could really mean nothing to the music amateur, but their elaborateness becomes even more obvious when you simply try and tap your foot along with the song. The most acknowledged of these changes in time is in the song ‘Lateralus’ (Lateralus) in which the intro begins the track with a simple 4/4 time, but the rest of the song changes constantly between 9/8, 8/8, and 7/8 times. This is undeniably impressive.

Not all of these changes of time are there simply “just because”, as some might see it. Especially in the abovementioned song ‘Lateralus’, the numbers 9, 8, and 7 have a special purpose and meaning. As part of Tool’s “philosophy”, they often introduce different themes and allusions into their music. This song is the perfect example of this.
In ‘Lateralus’ they’ve chosen to incorporate a fairly well known mathematical sequence, the Fibonacci sequence, into the song’s lyrics and music. This sequence works such that each number is the sum of the previous two numbers: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 11, 19, and so forth. Since the number 987 appears much later in this sequence, it was used to set up the time signatures throughout the song, as stated earlier. As well, Keenan also sings using this same sequence of numbers, going up and down throughout the series, by changing the number of syllables in each line of the verse. This example verse is a perfect case in point, showing the line separation and use of syllables in brackets:

(1) Black
(1) Then
(2) White are
(3) All I see
(5) In my infancy
(8) Red and yellow then came to be
(5) Reaching out to me
(3) Lets me see

But they certainly don’t limit themselves to the mysteries of math, by no means. In their song ‘Forty-Six & 2’ there are also allusions to the theories of psychologist Carl Jung and his concepts of the shadow and anima symbolic archetypes, singing “My shadow / change is coming / now is my time / listen to my muscle memory / contemplate what I’ve been clinging to / forty-six and two are just ahead of me.” But mainly the song takes mention to the teachings of Drunvalo Melchizadek whose theory works on the basis that humans’ perception of reality and state of consciousness depends on the number of chromosomes of each cell. Supposedly, when we go through evolution to 48 chromosomes (we currently have 46), we will enter into the ‘christ-consciousness’ level of existence. This probably reads to be a bit far-fetched, but it’s certainly interesting. To incorporate these seemingly obscure concepts into the music is pure genius.
Dozens of other allusions can be found, spread throughout other songs. ‘The Grudge’ (Lateralus) is about forgiveness and refers to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic, The Scarlet Letters and also to the outdated imaginary art/science of alchemy in which he sings, metaphorically, “give away the stone / let the waters kiss and transmutate these leaden grudges into gold.” In the forlornly titled song, ‘Disgustipated’ (Undertow), the band makes a humble commentary to L. Ron Hubbard’s religion/cult/pseudo-psychotherapy practice, Scientology, by referring to its members and contributors as followers, and more bluntly, “sheep”. To get away from their more arguable references, one of the more obvious ones is from the song ‘Third Eye’ (Ænima) in which the song is based on the concept of the real “third eye” (better known scientifically as the pineal gland) which located in the middle of the brain, almost perfectly inline between the eyes. It is often theorized, but not yet proven, that this gland is able to perceive different levels of light, and that it can have a noticeable affect on sleep patterns, and while under the influence of psychedelic drugs. It is believe the group was introduced to this theory by a close friend of theirs, comedian Bill Hicks, whom died soon before the release of the album. To show their respects, small clips of Hicks’ comedy routines are forever embedded in the introductions of the fifteen-minute masterpiece.

While referring to the certainly controversial works of a comedian who was a known drug user may not be the best way to prove their artistic integrity, Tool relies on visual art, not only auditory, to also influence the sentiment they are always trying to convey. Maynard, Adam, Justin, and especially Danny have always had an interest in sacred geometry. In one of their purchasable wall posters, one painting (‘Pneuma I’) of the incredibly talented Ramiro Rodriguez is lined underneath a faintly traced Flower of Life, which could be found on walls of Egyptian temples. As well, they often prominently display other sacred geometric patterns on stage (including on Danny Carey’s drum kits) of Toroids and Metatron’s Cube, which both have their significance in mathematics and in nature, as well as adding to the atmosphere of the music.
Where other bands also fail to promote visual aesthetics to add to their music, Tool uses the creations of several modern artists. The most outstanding contributor is Alex Grey, who supplied all of the paintings that were used for the cover artwork of the Lateralus album and even a fairly lengthy computer animation for the end of their ‘Parabola’ (Lateralus) music video. Music videos, like the one mentioned above, have always been Tool’s definite visual high point. Though they are often criticized for their outright unusual nature, they all fit perfectly with, as mentioned several times before, the emotion and atmosphere of the incredible music. In the second paragraph it was mentioned that guitarist Adam Jones did special effects work for big name Hollywood movies, so it would seem like a perfect transition that he would go on to direct all but one of their music videos: (in reverse chronological order) ‘Parabol/Parabola’, ‘Schism’, ‘Ænima’, ‘Stinkfist’, ‘Prisonsex’, and ‘Hush’. They are often created from the experiences and visuals that Adam receives through dreams, and as well, it’s been thought, during drug use.

Though admittedly Tool’s underrated – even “terrible” – reputation comes from their highly criticized earlier releases, somewhat tasteless song titles, and just general “weird” nature, there’s no reason why they should ever be forgotten. They offer more to modern music than can be seen in any other band or musician of today. They carry with them years of musical experience, they have an unbelievable talent for writing beautifully intricate songs, they offer lyrical and musical allusions to interest those who are paying attention, and they supplement their work with the exquisite artwork of other artists throughout their concerts and album covers. Tool is truly more than just an ordinary band. They are more than another group of people looking for pop-stardom in the modern age of – pardon the cliché – “sell outs”. This essay by no means reflects all of the ideas of the band in any form. They are so incredibly impressive, talented, and interested but are often not given a chance.

tool

The instrument of any person or faction, a cat's paw. See cat's paw.
tools

The private parts of a man.

The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.

Tool (?), n. [OE. tol,tool. AS. tOl; akin to Icel. tOl, Goth. taijan to do, to make, taui deed, work, and perhaps to E. taw to dress leather. √64.]

1.

An instrument such as a hammer, saw, plane, file, and the like, used in the manual arts, to facilitate mechanical operations; any instrument used by a craftsman or laborer at his work; an implement; as, the tools of a joiner, smith, shoe-maker, etc.; also, a cutter, chisel, or other part of an instrument or machine that dresses work.

2.

A machine for cutting or shaping materials; -- also called machine tool.

3.

Hence, any instrument of use or service.

That angry fool . . .
Whipping her horse, did with his smarting tool
Oft whip her dainty self.
Spenser.

4.

A weapon. [Obs.]

Him that is aghast of every tool.
Chaucer.

5.

A person used as an instrument by another person; -- a word of reproach; as, men of intrigue have their tools, by whose agency they accomplish their purposes.

I was not made for a minion or a tool.
Burks.

 

© Webster 1913


Tool (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. tooled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. tooling.]

1.

To shape, form, or finish with a tool. "Elaborately tooled." Ld. Lytton.

2.

To drive, as a coach. [Slang, Eng.]

 

© Webster 1913


Tool (tOOl), v. i. [Cf. Tool, v. t., 2.]

To travel in a vehicle; to ride or drive. [Colloq.]

Boys on their bicycles tooling along the well- kept roads.
Illust. American.

 

© Webster 1913

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