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Tool: Ænima

04/11/11 || Smalley

While Tool isn’t quite a favorite of mine due to how they like to drag their ass in giving us new shit (yes, all four members have one collective ass), they’ve still done some killer records that continue to hold up, even as I lose interest in some of the other bands that got me started on metal, and 1996’s “Ænima” comes as the first release from them that I can truly call great. It’s their crucial transition point away from the less nuanced, more “alt metal” style of “Opiate” & “Undertow”, toward the prog-y sound that has defined their career ever since, and besides its historical importance, it’s also just a great album, all brainy and experimental and pretentious in only the way that Tool can be, so let’s get the assholes of our souls clean through some “Ænima”-ing already!

We kick off some trippy, fuzzy, distorted percussion on “Stinkfist”, before transitioning into a steady, droning (in a good way) main riff, as Maynard sings lyrics that seem to be about fisting (yes, it was that first thing you thought of). But, this being Tool after all, the surface meaning is just to make a deeper point, about modern society’s instant-gratification attitude, and how more never seems to be enough when it comes to pacifying us. Overall, this isn’t Tool’s best or most complex song, or the very best off the the album, but the way it keeps steady ‘til the tension finally boils over to a climatic finish, complete with Maynard’s signaturely histrionic vocals, and the way it overall shows off Tool’s utilization of quiet/loud dichotomies, make “Stinkfist” a very effective kick-off for the album.

“Eulogy” is even better, with its lengthy, 2-minute intro driven by eerily quiet, almost-taunting percussion, with various other elements like a “quacking” horn and a sinister bass line gradually joining in, brilliantly creating an atmosphere of barely-contained contempt, before the riffing finally breaks through that quiet veneer, and Maynard starts with the virulent, acidicly sarcastic lyrical content. It seems to be about Jesus at first, Carey once said it was really about L. Ron Hubbard, but really, the lyrics work for any self-important, self-righteous, self-martyr out there (except for Jesus, that guy was cool; excuse me as I take time for my (an)nu(al) fist/cock-bump with IG).

“H.” is yet another step up, and one of my favorite Tool songs, with its beautifully fuzzy guitar work, quiet, intimate verses complete with bongo-like percussion (hey, it works!), excellent vocals by Maynard where we get to hear his quiet and powerful halves at their best, and the song’s powerful dénouement; Tool just knows how to build things up and then come through on the climaxing (in more ways than one, heehee). “Forty six & 2” isn’t quite as memorable as you’d want coming right after the greatness of “H.”, but I still dig its serene intro and extra helping of Maynard’s powerful side, so it still satisfies.

“Hooker with a penis” then calls back to the simpler, “fuck you” styles of old-school Tool cuts like “Jerk-off” or “Swamp song”, ironically, attacking some “old-school” (emphasis on the quotes), Coke-sipping, douche Tool “fan” who thinks the band sold out by making vids for MTV or whatever (old Metallica had that infestation too). It isn’t not one of the more thoughtful cuts on “Ænima”, but it isn’t meant to be, and it’s always fun to get some aggression out, and hear a song attacking silly fans/defending yourselves as a band; we could use some more of these songs.

“jimmy” calls back to the fuzzy guitar and soothing tone of “H.”, and while it doesn’t reach the heights of that classic, and its steady build-up/loud climax structure feels a bit predictable by this point, I do like it a lot. “Die Eier von Satan” (“The balls of Satan”) then recalls the recurring theme of things not being what they seem, with what sounds like an industrial metal-tinged recording of a Satan/Nazi rally, with this guy speaking in German as a crowd cheers. Know what the translated lyrics are about? They’re a recipe for Mexican cookies! Hahaha, joke’s on you Tipper Gore!!! Really, this is the best song Rammstein’s ever written, if I don’t say so myself.

“Pushit” then brings us into the album’s overall outro of tracks, with its long length and steady, winding guitar kind of luring us into a trance, a perfect lead-in to “Ænema”, as it shatters the calm with its tense bass work, violent, pounding riffing, and potty mouth-laden tirading against all things Los Angeles (“The only way to fix it is to flush it all away/Any fucking time/Any fucking day/Learn to swim, I’ll see you down in Arizona Bay”). That extended, quietly tense breakdown about halfway through, great ensuing solo, and demented finish are all fucken killer as well, and the album then finally closes out with “Third eye”, beginning with a sample of the then-recently-deceased comedian Bill Hicks (he also coined the “Arizona Bay” line), before the song goes on a tripped-out, 13-minute aural journey, replete with plenty ‘o guitar feedback, as if Tool’s trying to squeegee all our third eyes open through sheer force of the music. Positively brilliant atmosphere here, and it’s a nice song to cap this baby off with too.

And after all that, what’s really left to write about “Ænima”? No, it isn’t quite as intense as their masterpiece “Lateralus”, either in terms of performances or mood, and if you hate Tool, I know you’re sure to hate this one too, but if hopefully, you’re able to enjoy Tool’s prog-iness for what it is (awesome music), you’ll love it. It’s a passionate, brainy, acid trip-dosage of artsy prog metal, and I still can’t get enough of it even after listening to it ad nauseam these past 4 years. Oh, and if you’re wondering why this is a regular review despite the lofty terms I coached it in, I did it because I knew this would be more compelling than a theoretical Class6, and I still think of “Ænima” as a classic as much as anyone else out there; fuck you very much for caring. Fuck you also for bugging me about ignoring some of the interludes, too. Hugs and kisses, as always.

Information
Released: 1996
Label: Zoo
Website: www.toolband.com
Band
Maynard James Keenan: vocals
Justin Chancellor: bass
Danny Carey: drums, percussion, samples
Adam Jones: guitars

Tracklist
01. Stinkfist
02. Eulogy
03. H.
04. Useful Idiot
05. Forty Six & 2
06. Message To Harry Manback
07. Hooker With A Penis
08. Intermission
09. jimmy
10. Die Eier von Satan
11. Pushit
12. Cesaro Summability
13. Ænema
14. (-) Ions
15. Third Eye

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