Tool
Air Canada Centre
Toronto, ON
January 25

Tool has long been the definition of a cult band. The fact that they’ve been staging essentially the same tour for the past six years with no dip in (fairly pricey) ticket sales testifies to their status as such, ditto the evident devotion of their expansive fanbase. Unperturbed by a setlist that contained over half of the songs played on their last visit to Toronto (in 2009), with no new album released since, a sold out crowd of nearly twenty thousand showed the California quartet plenty of aggressive affection throughout an intense two hour set.

“Hooker With A Penis” opened the show emphatically, establishing the classic Ænima LP as the majority shareholder of the night’s selections. Maynard James Keenan’s lyrical dismantling of an entitled fan bit just as ferociously as it did upon the song’s release sixteen years ago, as the relentless might of the band’s music was immediately on display. Also striking at the forefront was the muscular presence of drummer Danny Carey, a pillar of precision rhythms and commanding fills. He, guitarist Adam Jones, and bassist Justin Chancellor laid the bedrock on top of which Keenan’s graceful delivery created the optimal juxtaposition that the band has always brandished.

The contrasts were ample at the NHL/NBA-housing Air Canada Centre, an already-strange setting for an act such as Tool, as straight-ahead metal dudes lamented the presence of chairs (and subsequent lack of mosh pit) on the floor while unsuspecting first-timers squeamishly digested the band’s disturbing video imagery. The night, however, predictably belonged to the diehards. Responding directly to the opening notes of each of the eleven songs played, the enshrined audience hung on Keenan’s every gesture. As ought to be the case with any savvy arena-sized band playing to their aficionados, Tool could do no wrong.

“Sober” – a genuine hit from 1993’s Undertow – came on the heels of Ænima single “Stinkfist,” offering an early one-two punch that had the cavernous room undulating in unison. “Pushit,” a prog-hater’s bread-and-butter, stretched past the ten-minute mark before a tidy intro jam ushered in the infectiously thick opening bass riff of “Schism.” The title track from 2001’s Lateralus – enlivened by a second drummer – was a high point with its Fibonacci Sequence-based libretto and human centipede-like video accompaniment. A clip featuring trip hop artist Tricky provided the backdrop for the rigorous “Parabola,” as the Jones-produced material projected on the growing number of backdrop screens proved to be an essential aspect of the concert experience.

Commonly hailed for the remarkable styles of Keenan and Carey, Tool made clear that all four players on stage exist as an unflinching unit. No member was lit up when musically featured, including Keenan who stalked and contorted amidst shadows in line with the drum kit. The namesake cut off Ænima triumphantly closed the evening with its assured vitriol and flogging irruption. While $85 is already a justifiable commitment for the converted, Tool – in habitual form – made the price of admission audibly worthwhile.