(Music) Tool: "10,000 Days"

I wasn't the only one to scratch their head in amazement that Tool decided to name their new album "10,000 Days." Concordantly, I'm probably not the only one to take back my initial shock and replace it with praise after listening to the title track. "10,000 Days" is one hell of an album in and of itself and is more than impressive.

Epic. "10,000 Days" is epic.

When you begin to listen to the album, you get one of the most straightforward songs on the album with 'Vicarious." It's a bit disheartening at first when you hear that the guitars sound almost exactly the same as the guitars on "Schism," but you'll have to overlook that. "Vicarious" is a song about Maynard's (real or fictional) reality TV fixation and his need to see death on the screen. But don't fret faithful Tool fan, the band is by no means stretched for material, the remainder of the album is filled with amazing and powerful lyrical content that could change your life. Honestly.

This brings me to the 17-minute epic of "Wings for Marie/10,000 Days." These two songs were written for Maynard's mother, whom apparently passed away a few years back. This is, without question, the most powerful Tool song on the album, and possibly to date. The lyrical content of "10,000 Days" is something that must be soaked in, not simply read. The song speaks of his mother's faith, her genuine nature, and her ascension to heaven ("Wings for Marie"). Unlike many Tool songs that start soft and steadily builds to its rock-out climax, "10,000 Days" toys with this idea but never sees it come to complete fruition. Though it climaxes, it never actually makes you want to rock out. It is my assumption that this is out of respect, but it also conveys the sincerity in Maynard's emotion and artistic creation quite vividly. He sings, "Please forgive this bold suggestion/Should you see your maker's face tonight/look em in the eye/look em in the eye, and tell them i never lived a lie/ never took a life but surely saved one, hallelujah!" The song is passionate, real and honest. It deserves to be treated as such.

In my opinion, the album climaxes on track 4 with "10,000 Days." However, it's hard to bring yourself back up after such a draining song. That is not to discount the rest of the album, however. Fans of Tool will recognize this as their more typical sound. "The Pot," for example, is 6+ minutues of rock goddotry that examines substance abuse and hypocracy. Maynard exclaims, "So who are you to wave your finger? Who are you to wave your fatty fingers at me?" and it just makes you want to say "HELL YEAH!" while throwing your fist (or a finger) in the air. From there, Tool has unfortunately decided to add a lot of filler tracks like "Lipan Conjuring," "Lost Keys," and "Viginiti Tres," leaving only 3 of the final 6 songs on the album for the listener to enjoy. Though these filler tracks are interesting on first listen, they don't seem to set a mood or add to the album. "Rosetta Stoned" and "Intension" are both songs that are good in their own right, but are ultimately inconsequential in the shadow of the first half of the album. In fact, "Right In Two" is really the only song on the second half of the album worth mentioning. It starts of slowly but builds into a strong rock track that features unforgiving drumming, amazing guitars, and (what?) the bongos, which surprisingly add a lot to the song.

Make no mistake about it, "10,000 Days" is an incredible album. With this album, Tool builds on their signature sound with lush backgrounds and intimate vocals and lyrics. However, the structuring of the album is ultimately its demise as the band seems too eager to fill a CD up to its limits. With 3 undeniable filler tracks, one has to wonder what this album would be like with only 8 tracks. Without question, it would be a shorter CD, but it might also be a better one. And trust me, making an album like "10,000 Days," better is quite an accomplishment.

Recommended for fans of Tool and all things rock.

Key Tracks:
1. "Vicarious"
2. "10,000 Days"
3. "The Pot"
4. "Right in Two"

4 out of 5 Stars