You realize the album might be the band at its proggiest, while hoping that doesn’t come along with misguided indulgence. And Maynard James Keenan goes for a more contemplative and soothing vocal register that is perfectly aligned with the album’s meditative nature. Adam Jones has chosen not to be the main focus of the record with the 3-or-more-amplifier assault on 10,000 Days, choosing to blend-in ever further with his bandmates with the use of his ever-faithful Gibson Les Pauls and Diezel Amps. Justin Chancellor proves he has one of the best tones in Rock/Metal bass history, and knows how to use it. The drumming feeds into your theory that Danny Carey cannot possibly be human. You let the digital edition’s final 10-track album sink into your ears, and everything you’ve ever loved about Tool is right there, slowly blooming before you in calculated composition. So the 30th of August finally comes and the whole world fades away for 24 hours. After all, all you ever wanted was the music, the rest is a sleek-looking afterthought. The special edition looks exquisite, but you find it too pricy. Then, after basking in your perceived glory of being ahead of most people, you wait for days for the album to hit the streaming services. You know the title track already, but you just needed more, even though you know that’s not the album’s complete tracklist.

It feels like quenching your thirst after endless hours drifting through the Sahara desert.

You are dying to finally hear it, so as soon as you hear about a Las Vegas-based leak of the physical edition’s 7-track format you run like the wind towards your computer. Let us say that you have been waiting for Fear Inoculum for 13 years. The legendary band’s long-awaited new album and its deeper, hidden meaning discussed.

Tool 10000 days album playlist