Lateralus
by Tool

From Pegasus 07/06/2015 18:44 | #145240 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Pitchfork's review for this makes the least amount of sense. It confuses me. Lemme take some lines out of it saying positive things about it, and let yourself know that they gave it a 1.9. Part of me thinks that they meant to give it a 9.1, and it was a typo (a typo that i don't even know how happened) They say stuff like this:

"In conclusion, there is more emotion on that album than would be on 30 Weezer albums. At the very least, there's 2.5 times as much."

People can claim that it's 0 x 30 and 0 x 30 = 0 but there is emotion in Weezer albums.

"Even as amazing as Lateralus is, I feel like there's a monster coming in three years. Music comes in cycles, and works on math, and my life and Tool are proof of that for sure."

Lemme look at this one more time and see if I'm reading it wrong.

"Even as amazing as Lateralus is"

....

You don't say something is amazing then give it a putrid rating like 1.9. It makes no sense whatsoever.

This is certainly Tool's best work to this date. Even the weaker tracks are certainly listenable, the instrumentals are excellently composed. Dark, atmospheric. The Grudge might be the best opening track ever, it keeps you at the edge of your seat the moment it starts to get going, it has a mean punch. This is a top-tier progressive metal album and quite possibly the most excellent songwriting you'll ever hear. Certainly the opposite of generic. If you have the slightest curiosity on why this is so high on the ranks (honestly I think it should be higher) you have not given it a good, thought out listen.
This album takes you on a journey, this album is a drug, and it's easy to get addicted to. It takes you on a trip that you will never forget. They had high expectations and went higher. This album is an unpredictable masterpiece with a rollercoaster of emotion.

From TheHolyKiwi TOP 100 COMMENTER 05/28/2017 06:21 | #191576 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

I find it really funny how people are complaining about how 1 minute ambient tracks (what they are calling filler) detract and destroy the album. This isn't a best tracks playlist, this is an album, an experience. It's suppose to have a concept, there are meanings behind them.

It's difficult to choose between Aenema and this album to hold the banner of Tool's greatest album.

For me, it is the careful neatness of the structure that makes Lateralus the exhibit A of Tool's craftsmanship. The main songs are an example of stability between compositional elements: rhythm, lyrics, textures and melodic sounds -a lot has been said about the Fibonacci sequence in relation with the song that gives the album a name.

Also, the approach to vitalism in MJK's lyrics makes an echo to a period of growth, an escape from pure rage and irony towards a search for meaning and salvation in his own terms. The whole point of starting the album with The Grudge gives a clear lead on how to read all the lyrics that come after it. Even Ticks and Leaches let you now that anger is part of life.

It's actually funny how many people don't seem to see what the pitchfork guy was going for in his review.

He was caricaturing a young tool fan, who is overanalyzing their music and maybe finds a little bit more meaning in their songs than there actually is, and to be honest I also think that there are some people who are sometimes carrying this (the analyzing) too far.

I personally think this is a fantastic piece of music, but I can understand if somebody thinks it's pretentious. However giving this a 1.9 is really incredibly harsh and unjustified.

From Strangel TOP 100 COMMENTER 12/14/2017 02:20 | #203085 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

If you want depth in your alternative rock experience there is possibly no better album to soak yourself in than Lateralus. While I probably enjoy Aenima slightly more due to the associations I have with it, this album is probably the peak of their creative genius. They are just such a tight sounding group and the audiophiles amongst us who like to meditate on the nuances of their music will be well rewarded by a full attentive listening. I love albums that give you something new (and at times, profound) with every listen. Lateralus is one of those albums and I think it may offer something new indefinitely. It is an epic psychedelic journey into the core of our being, done in a profoundly complex way. The entire theme of transcendence permeates every sinew of the album. Each track transitions/segues effortlessly to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts... and the parts are pretty fucking awesome.

Rating: 99/100

ALBUM HIGHLIGHT: The complexity within the lyrics, composition, and music is exhaustive. The title track is structured using the Fibonacci sequence, incorporating golden means, and invoking the sacred geometric imagery of spiraling out through a psychedelic wormhole and reaching our spiritual potential.