Review: Tool - '10,000 Days'
Posted: 26 April 2006
Contributed By: Dusty

Overview: After another long layoff the highly anticipated '10,000 Days' will finally see the light of day on May 2nd. As per usual, the highly secretive album has been clouded with rumors, fake track names, phony album titles and the most disturbing report of all... that Tool wasn't even going to record this year. Well, to the delight of millions around the world, Tool has come out from hiding with a shiny new product ready to wage war on the typical topics of politics and various other mumblings of bizarre doings. 

The Good: Starting with the radio single "Vicarious"... nothing too original here as it rings true to a lot of the other Tool tracks that have preceded it, but still outstanding to say the least.  As "Vicarious" dies off and the opening riff for "Jambi" kicks in with a little more of a quickened pace, it really starts to feel as if Tool never took time off between albums. The bass guitar is heavily prevalent during verses and sounds great against Maynard's voice. "The Pot" starts off with Maynard singing without the aid of any backing music. Although it only last for a few seconds, the opening to that song will leave a lasting impression on you. A perfect beginning to one of the strongest tracks on the album. "Right in Two" is a little quirky, but that's what makes this track so special. It's easy to drift off in the lyrics and before you know it, nearly nine minutes of musical bliss has past you by. The track "Lost Keys (Blame Hofmann)", which is one long, very odd sound effect, contains a conversation between a woman and a doctor. This track conveys a somewhat eerie yet interesting message that you will have to hear for yourself to understand. So much good on this album that it can't get a fair review with any words that could be typed here. The album must be experienced from beginning to end with out interruption.

The Bad: The tracks comprised of nothing but ambient sounds and pointless effects are back again. To many fans this isn't really a big deal because this is something that Tool has used religiously over the years as interludes between tracks. Personally though, after such a long hiatus you expect more from the master mind that Maynard is than several minutes of little more than silence at any given time. "Wings for Marie (Pt 1)" takes a long time to get started as it slowly builds to what you think is going to be something grand, but only teases you with a short burst of heavy guitar riffing. The only major let down is "Viginti Tres". Five Minutes of hollow vacuum sounds topped of with some static. What a horrible way to end such an epic album.

Bottomline: This album is a must have, not only for Tool fans, but for music fans in general.  There isn't one specific un-Tool like moment on the whole album. The same melodies, solos, drumming, lyrics and range from Maynard that Tool has built an empire on are back and in some ways better than ever. This album requires a lot of patience and focus from the listener in the way that hearing an Opeth cd (for the laymen, sonically complex seven minute tracks) for the first time does. There is a lot going on in these tracks so it is best to listen to it all the way through, which by the way, is a treat in its self. A very strong contender for album of the year!

Rating: 9 out of 10