Tool tour

Not trying to burst your bubble here-and this is coming from a HUGE tool fan, but the last show I saw of theirs (this past July) was TERRIBLE.
Maynard has become such a pompous A-Hole that its hard to watch him perform.
Thats if you consider what he does on stage "performing".
He literally stood on the side of the drum kit, in the shadows singing and not moving for the ENTIRE show. Then, to add insult to injury, when the show was over and the rest of the band mates were bowing in front of the adoring fans, this J-off walks right off the stage.
At that point in time-I was done with him.
His arrogance and the overall lackluster performance pissed me off so much that I have yet to listen to one Tool track since the show.

As if the above is not bad enough, EVERY show of theirs is the same. Same setlist, same efects, same crap. How could they not play a single track off of Undertow???
Ive seen them 5 times now and the shows have been steadily going downhill.

Maybe if I lower your expectations enough, you'll actually have a great time once you see them.

Too bad, looks like only General admission in SFO, and even thats 60 bucks without the ticket master fees. Thats crazy, will be close to 100 bucks with all the fees. Thats way too over priced for general admission IMHO.

And no songs from Undertow???? Then I am definitely not going!

He did the same thing when I saw them this year and to be honest I don't really see your point. It's about the music. He simply doesn't have anything else to contribute besides it and because of that he doesn't. What do you want him to do? Act like Robbie Williams? Kiss you goodbye before you go home? Say "thank you" in between every song?

And aside from all of that if you don't like any of the albums except for Undertow I don't see the point in going to Tool. That album was made 14 years ago. I don't really expect them to play that still.

(although Metallica did play Master of Puppets last tour which was quite nice as well)

Either way. If you like the newer albums Tool made and don't mind just going for the music I think you'll have a great time. I know I really liked it.

I'm seeing them in LA on December 10. It's my first Tool concert and I hope they're not as bad as you say, kwitel.

Guys-please dont misunderstand me, everything I have said is all relative. If you are like me and ADORE TOOL then you expect them to blow you away.
They have done that in the past, but the last two shows they have not.

As for ENOYINS ridiculously dramatic points above, I think you know exactly what I mean.
To clarify, when I see a singer perform, YES- I want to see the emotions in his face and body language. I want to watch him pour his heart out openly and for all to see, in front of the fans that put him in the very comfortable place he is in today. Standing in the shadows robs me of what I consider to be a very personal and intimate experience between the singer and his/her fans. I paid to watch you PERFORM and as far as I understand, a performance inherently implies that the viewer can actually see the performer.

On to your second ENOYIN comment (haha, get it? lol)-how you arrived at me not liking any other album other than Undertow b/c I was disappointed they didnt play any songs of that album is beyond me. AENIMA, LATERALUS and 10K Days were staples in my music collection for as long as theyve been available. However, my true love in the ALT-Metal world will always be Undertow.
Is it there best?
Who knows-thats a subjective question.
What I do know for sure is that it remains the most influential metal album for me of all time (just inching past Master of Puppets). To not hear them play one song off that album-the album that made them, over the past 3 shows I have been to, was very disappointing.

So, is it a good show in relation to majority of the crap that is currently more mainstream? Sure.
Did I expect a heck of alot more from one of my favorite all time bands?
Absolutely.

I have seen Tool on three different tours. They have never disappointed.

kwitel, regardless of your experience, your comments are ignorant.

I`ve seen them couple of months ago during their first visit to south-eastern Europe and the gig was excellent. Yes, Maynard was rather static in the background of the stage and he never came out of the shadows until the end of the show when he said "thanks for your love and support" and that he thought the show was "niiiiccccccce".

Actually it totally rocked the arena upside down if you ask me. They sounded sooo powerful yet sweet, modest in their behavior, but delivering the music 100%. Most of us saw them live for the first time and it was well worth the wait.

So enjoy the show.

...... and don't forget to wear your Ety ER-20s or similar hearing protection or a Tool show might be truly unforgettable (tinnitus for the rest of your lifetime ......)

I saw them a few months ago for the first time(can't believe I don't remember the exact date) and was blown away. First concert I've gone to where I was darn near exausted after the show was over. I'm not a headbanger, but that show did it for me.

While Maynard wasn't up do his usual antics that I've seen on past concert videos, there were times where he would start doing his wierd little dances. While it was sad that they didn't play any songs from Undertow (damn Prison Sex teaser ), their performances of Lateralus and Pu**** more than made up for it IMO. The playlist was a bit short, but we were still there for over two hours. If you're a Tool fan, then it's money well spent.

I wouldn't call his comments ignorant I'd call them an opinion. What's wrong with expecting to see the lead singer infront of the stage performing, it is about the music but it is also about the performance, why else would you go to a concert if it was just about the music. Might as well jam to the CD. The only ignorant comment he made was calling him an a** hole, maybe he had something important to do, even though it takes a second to bow.

I agree with kwitel. I saw them in June. Not only did he stand behind the drums , and hump his microphone, but throughout the show MJK continued to insult the audience saying how disapointing we were, and how DC had nothing on Pittsburgh or something like that. At first I thought it was good-natured teasing, but the comments continued almost every other song for the continuity of the concert. It was redundant, bizzare, and obnoxious.

I also wish they had played more old stuff, although Lateralus and Aenima were well represented, I have to say that I wish there had been less 10k days. It was easily the most over-rated album of its year. Musically its heavily recycled from Aenima and Lateralus, but is not nearly as innovative as the previous 3 albums. For such a long wait, I expected so much more.

AKATHRIEL-that reminds me, he did the same thing at my show as well. After the 2nd or 3rd stab it began to get on the crowd's nerves.
As for the previous poster wondering why I called him an A-hole, I probably should have elaborated a bit more.
I think its been a combination of events that have pissed me off over the past couple of years that have made me so annoyed with his antics.
It all started with this interview that i had seen, where this terrified young kid was asking him questions and he was just being overly obnoxious. I dont mind an artist breaking an interviewer's $alls for stupid questions, but this was just outright unnecessary. The kid was obviously a HUGE tool fan.
Compound that with a couple of other interviews were he just acted like an arrogant, holier than thou ass, and it starts becoming more and more difficult to NOT form an opinion.

I like to see great artists grow more humble and mature with experience and success, not the opposite.

It's a bit odd because isn't their music about not having a big ego? If Maynard is behaving the way you say he is, it all seems a bit contradictory if you ask me. Has he always behaved like this at shows?

I guess it could be the case that he has some genunine problems with his personal life which are affecting his personality on stage or that he is taking everyone for a ride. It also maybe the case that he just doesn't like die hard fans who worship the band too much since he has said on occasion that he wants people to appreciate the music for what it is and not worship the band itself.

In any case, as for myself, I try to avoid getting too knowledgeable about the people behind the music these days and tend to judge the music on it's own merit for the simple fact that a lot of great music is made by some not so great people, lol.

I got into Tool through a housemate who is obsessed with them, and I would love to see them live! As far as people who are criticizing Maynard's stage presence (something I'd heard about in discussion of the band before), my housemate tells me that the story goes as follows: he's apparently really freaked out by going and exposing in front of a jillion people, so he likes to stand behind the drums and just rock out without having to do all kinds of antic stuff. But knowing Tool, it could also be an elaborate joke, concocted for the amusement of the band and to the grudging annoyance of the "worshiper" fans as Titanium said... part of the cool factor of the band IMHO.