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Tool and Yankee Rose vs. Shy Boy...Let’s discuss.

2K views 17 replies 6 participants last post by  Formerly Given To Fly 
#1 ·
Tool is coming out with a new album on August 30th. The single, Fear Inoculum, is out and it sounds like Tool in the same way their other albums sound like Tool. People have judiciously registered their complaints with each other on the Internet.

I like Tool and am really glad they are releasing a new album because they are a talented band, they play well together, and they write great songs. The music industry does not have a surplus this type of band, so whether you like them or not, I think their contribution will have a positive impact on the current health of the music industry in a way few other artists can. I also preordered the limited edition album which is unique as far as album covers go. I do not entirely understand what I will be receiving or how it will work. :)

This past month I listened to the only vinyl record I own for the first time. The record is the DLR single for Yankee Rose with Shy Boy as the B side. The single was actually made for the Japanese market so I figured why not? These songs were completely new to me by the way. My impression is as follows:
- Shy Boy is actually a good song with a great guitar part that manages to be active and engaging the whole time.
- I can’t remember anything specific about Yankee Rose except for Vai’s talking guitar tricks at the beginning. Was it a famous song? This is a serious question by the way. I was not around for 3/5th’s of the 80’s.

Please share your thoughts and discuss. :D
 
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#2 ·
Tool... Honestly I haven't listened to a lot of Tool, but a few years ago I tried a couple of albums. I like a few songs, like "The Pot" because it rocks, but just couldn't quite connect very well with the band musically. Not sure exactly why? They seem like a band that I would latch on to, as I'm a huge fan of Rush, Floyd, If These Trees Could Talk, Distant Dream, and other progressive bands with long droney songs. Maybe they seem more percussion oriented as opposed to guitar?


David Lee Roth - Eat 'Em and Smile was a great album. That and Skyscraper are some of Vai's best work. He had to share the songs with DLR who takes up a lot of bandwidth... lol. Those albums are hard to put in a genre, I guess "hard rock" but somehow the word doesn't quite have enough oomph to describe DLR/Sheehan/Vai on their game. If you haven't listened to those albums, give them a try. At the time I was still sore over Van Halen breaking up, so I didn't want to hear either DLR or Van Hagar, but over the years I let that go... Sure beat listening to 90's grunge or 2000's whiner rock. Yankee Rose is a bit over the top, but I like the patriotic flare of it and dig Vai's tone/style. Shy Boy is just different and doesn't really fit the album, but I found out years later that it was written by Billy Sheehan so that explained it. Cool of DLR to put one of Sheehan's songs on the album.
 
#3 ·
Tool is coming out with a new album on August 30th. The single, Fear Inoculum, is out and it sounds like Tool in the same way their other albums sound like Tool. People have judiciously registered their complaints with each other on the Internet.

I like Tool and am really glad they are releasing a new album because they are a talented band, they play well together, and they write great songs. The music industry does not have a surplus this type of band, so whether you like them or not, I think their contribution will have a positive impact on the current health of the music industry in a way few other artists can. I also preordered the limited edition album which is unique as far as album covers go. I do not entirely understand what I will be receiving or how it will work. :)

This past month I listened to the only vinyl record I own for the first time. The record is the DLR single for Yankee Rose with Shy Boy as the B side. The single was actually made for the Japanese market so I figured why not? These songs were completely new to me by the way. My impression is as follows:
- Shy Boy is actually a good song with a great guitar part that manages to be active and engaging the whole time.
- I can't remember anything specific about Yankee Rose except for Vai's talking guitar tricks at the beginning. Was it a famous song? This is a serious question by the way. I was not around for 3/5th's of the 80's.

Please share your thoughts and discuss. :D
Eat Em and Smile is a classic. Yankee rose was a big hit (highly encourage you to watch the music video - long one with bodega scene in beginning). My personal favorites from the album are Big Trouble (best on album, great DLR performance and absolutely killer Vai solo... one my fav) and Ladies Night in Buffalo.

I like tool and like that they bring ingenuity to music industry and do it in their own way. They take great care in their recordings and production (including hifi). That said, i'm not as passionate about their music as I am for other progressive/metal acts. I'll most certainly by the album and likely in hifi or surround sound versions. They recorded and mixed everything on tape - totally analogue. Anyone that takes that kind of care deserves an ear. Hopefully this will be first tool album I love. So far, i just "like" them.
 
#6 ·
My personal favorites from the album are Big Trouble (best on album, great DLR performance and absolutely killer Vai solo... one my fav) and Ladies Night in Buffalo.
I listened to Big Trouble and thought it was refreshingly bizarre which made it surprisingly good. :) Vai's solo is really good too. Here are some general observations:
- Vai plays "all the guitar sounds" in a very short period of time, continuously.
- Vai's playing sounds lighter which makes everything sound "effortless."
- Vai plays 1 cohesive and coherent "guitar part."

I understand the appeal of Vai's guitar playing from this particular period. I do not think DLR or nostalgia for the 1980's are the primary reasons either. I was expecting hair metal, like Poison, with a few Vai solos thrown in. That was an error on my part.
 
#4 ·
Early angry Tool (Opiate, Undertow) I loved as a teenager. Still has some great tracks. Eg 4° but i don't go back and listen often.

Mid period: Aenima, Lateralus
Some of my absolute favourite records.
Blend of rage, technique, groove etc is great. I think I wore out my CD of each I played them so much. Bought a bass just to learn the Grudge.

Late period:
More like arty jam sessions. Amazingly done and I'll still listen to them. Not quite got the same excitement i had. Mind you that's probably more about my tastes changing than it is about the quality of their records.
 
#7 ·
"Eat Em and Smile is a classic."

ABSOLUTELY. That and MR BIG's "LEAN INTO IT" are awesome, criminally-over-looked classic rock albums. They're fun and daring and badass. They groove and rock.

Vai lucked out to end up in DLR's band AND WHITESNAKE. Both gave him massive exposure and money to afford to make P&W. Which, for my money, is the most amazing guitar instrumental album ever.
 
#8 ·
To slightly alter the course of conversation, there was a time when the standard jewel case for discs was necessary. Today, if you are going to release a CD, you will also need something to put it in which is an opportunity to put it in something more creative than a jewel case...if the label will allow it. "10,000 Days" which was Tool's last album won a Grammy for the packaging of that album:
"The compact disc packaging for 10,000 Days consists of a thick cardboard-bound booklet partly covered by a flap holding a pair of stereoscopic eyeglasses, which can be used to view a series of images inside. Viewed with the glasses, the artwork produces an illusion of depth and three-dimensionality."

A limited edition version of their new album could be preordered and this is what will be received:
"Fear Inoculum is the long awaited new album from TOOL, and the band's first new album in 13 years. The album will be available digitally, and in a special Limited Edition physical package that includes a CD in a tri-fold Soft Pack Video Brochure featuring a 4" HD rechargeable screen with exclusive video footage, a USB charging cable, a 2 watt speaker and a 36 page insert book and MP3 download card."

This is not something they were required to do, but they did it anyways, and that is what makes it interesting, at least to me. (And we have not even gotten to the music yet.)
 
#9 ·
It's nice to get the extras if the price doesn't go up too much... or if there is still a cheaper option, as in a regular cd or digital download available. Like Satriani's recent album that had the optional "Chrome Dome". A chrome head with glasses - "This unique USB device features Joe Satriani's head and two USB sticks hidden in his glasses that are packed with 15 studio recordings from Joe’s 1st album all the way through “Unstoppable Momentum”! All audio is crystal clear 24-bit/96kHz “High-Resolution Audio” remastered by John Cuniberti." While super cool, it was very pricey.

Most of those promotional releases are out of my price range, but for the avid fan it is a cool option. I think bands that have a devout following, like Tool, can be very successful with the optional exclusive offerings. Nowadays I tend to buy the cheaper digital download, like MP3's @ 320kb/s, which still sound good when converted to wave (even though I don't bother burning cd's as much as I used to, now that I have a stereo in my car with a usb port... lol). Seems like the last 20 or so albums I've bought have been smaller artists that I found on youtube or heard about online and bought their album on bandcamp, or entire collections in some cases. Some even offer "pay what you want", in which case I still pay a fair price.

So how do you like the new Tool album?
 
#10 ·
It's nice to get the extras if the price doesn't go up too much... or if there is still a cheaper option, as in a regular cd or digital download available. Like Satriani's recent album that had the optional "Chrome Dome". A chrome head with glasses - "This unique USB device features Joe Satriani's head and two USB sticks hidden in his glasses that are packed with 15 studio recordings from Joe's 1st album all the way through "Unstoppable Momentum"! All audio is crystal clear 24-bit/96kHz "High-Resolution Audio" remastered by John Cuniberti." While super cool, it was very pricey.

Most of those promotional releases are out of my price range, but for the avid fan it is a cool option. I think bands that have a devout following, like Tool, can be very successful with the optional exclusive offerings. Nowadays I tend to buy the cheaper digital download, like MP3's @ 320kb/s, which still sound good when converted to wave (even though I don't bother burning cd's as much as I used to, now that I have a stereo in my car with a usb port... lol). Seems like the last 20 or so albums I've bought have been smaller artists that I found on youtube or heard about online and bought their album on bandcamp, or entire collections in some cases. Some even offer "pay what you want", in which case I still pay a fair price.

So how do you like the new Tool album?
Wow! "Chrome Dome" is a great example! It highlights some questions that need to be dealt with on the recording side of the music world. Perhaps another day....

The new Tool album does not come out until Aug. 30th.

I preordered the limited edition version because I don't know when the next time something like this will come along. The alternative versions are digital downloads and streaming. There is not a "normal" CD available. That may change but I really have no idea.
 
#17 ·
https://www.billboard.com/articles/...uts-at-no-1-on-billboard-200-chart-rock-album

Billboard needs to clean up their website. :plain:

Key point:
- Taylor Swift's album that debuted last week is bumped down to #2. Tool's album debuts at #1.

This does not really mean anything of great importance, but when a band who's last album came out before many Swift fans were born, it is rather impressive. Tool brought variety back, at least for 1 week. :)
 
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