TOOL new album

 Yes, it's 2016 and we still don't have an album… In gestation since 6months, with 20 new song ideas, and the 12 minutes being the shortest the upcoming album should be epic. 

Have a look below for the latest news I gathered about Tool, the Masters of Metal.

 1- Its slowly moving forward…   

In May, frontman Maynard James Keenan said : "we've found common ground, we just can't move forward,"   

Earlier this summer, the moderator of Tool's website posted an update, saying he visited the band's rehearsal loft and they are approaching the end of recording the music aspect: 

"At this stage of the writing/arranging process… there are only a couple of 'shorter' songs left to complete (?), along with a segue or two or three Of course, we need to keep in mind any changes that might be needed to accommodate the vocals, etc., once all of the arrangements are finished."   

The way the band works is that everybody but Maynard jam and come up with material and then Maynard comes in and adds his vocals. Maynard has been adamant in saying he can't start his section of work until the rest of the band are done.   

In November, guitarist Adam Jones described the band’s writing sessions as “wonderful,” adding “Things are really flowing and going really well, and I’m just blown away at the stuff that’s coming together. I’m excited and can’t wait for it to be done.”  At the time, frontman Maynard James Keenan had yet to join the rest of the band in the studio, but was instead waiting for the music to be finished before penning the album’s lyrics. That was still the case as of March 2016.

2- TOOL Has "20 Potential Song Ideas,"

Tool guitarist Adam Jones states that the band has about "20 potential song ideas now" and that the band is working together on new material.

But what about Maynard? Has he even written any vocals yet? Has Maynard heard the music?  

Yeah. We have an FTP and a Dropbox and we’re in communication. He’s got other stuff he does, so we keep him in the loop, and he has written lyrics, but he’s still working on that and he’ll commit. The best thing for all of us is when the song is done. I don’t write leads until the song is done. You want to get a vibe. And Maynard can work on lyrics, but until the song’s done and he knows how the end is, he’s still figuring out the flow. The thing with Tool is you have four critical thinkers who like different stuff, so our process is not an easy one but it’s a very rewarding one. So yes, he is exposed to new music. It’s always been this way and it probably will always be this way and it’s just how people work.     

3 -the shortest song they’ve been working on is twelve minutes long

Melvins' frontman Buzz Osborne is one of the lucky few to have heard some of the band’s new music. Recently, he reported back in an interview with TeamRock.com.   

Bands like Tool obviously spend about six months on their albums, and they’ve spent about ten years putting together the new one. And they haven’t even started recording yet, but Adam [Jones, Tool guitarist] told me the shortest song they’ve been working on is twelve minutes long. ]     

Some bad news is obviously that after all this time, they still haven't begun recording. If they're being this meticulous with the songwriting, it may also take a lot of time for the production of the album. Sound engineers will have a huge amount of work ahead.     

4- TOOL Definitely Played A New Song, "Descending,"

In November 2015, Tool played their only show scheduled this year in Tempe, AZ. They covered Led Zeppelin and at the time, it was speculated if Tool actually played a new song or not during the set. 

The song, an instrumental, is allegedly called "Descending" and here is the best quality video of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LvAPabwDGg

Tool guitarist Adam Jones confirms that what you heard was definitely a new song and that the working title for it is indeed "Descending" in an interview with Rolling Stone: 

Yeah, it's a working title. We have a song that's probably about 13 or 14 minutes long, so what we've done with it is … I don't want to call it a "best of," but it's a shortened, different approach to it. It is a new song. It's like a vague movie trailer to the real movie [laughs]. Sometimes we do jamming between songs or some kind of segues, and it's usually involved in some kind of new material. But that one's just a little taste of things to come … It's one of those things, too, where we're playing this "movie trailer" version of it and we just want to go into the main part of it. The main part's the best part, I think, but we just don't want to give that away yet. We're just doing a little taste test all the way through and put it together.     

In June 2016 was reported another finding on the Internet, it sounds like an old song (Forty six & 2) but some riffs may prefigure some songs in the upcoming album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJKJWVRQu8Y   I will let you judge.

GIFT: If you want to listen to the band's entire set with some decent audio, which you can stream below. The new track comes in at about 1:02:40 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRrmIz9AtR4   

5- A New tour is coming ?

In a recent Tool newsletter on the band’s official website, we read hints at Tool revealing secrets they’ve kept for years, including new album news, and also hints at a larger tour with the name ‘Rance Q. Spartley’; which Blair the writer,  usually uses when a Tool tour is coming.   

“Everyone knows that the band is still working on their new record, and that there’s really no other major news other than that.” “No, you’re wrong. There are certain things that people need to know about. Things that finally need to be revealed – concerning the new record and other band related matters. Things that I’ve been holding back… for years… because I felt that I had to, but now it’s time to make them public. Only, we’re stuck in this desert hellhole… up to our lug nuts in burning sand…”

“ So I made an important decision. No matter what the repercussions might be, I felt that I owed it to the loyal fans to divulge certain things that I have kept to myself for so many years. Maybe next month - or the month after that - these things can finally be revealed?  It's going to be crazy, I tell you. Rance Q. Spartley, are you reading this?..”

6- Maynard James Keenan's Upcoming Memoir: 'A Perfect Union of Contrary Things' due out in November

Last October, Tool singer Maynard James Keenan revealed that he was working on an authorized biography in collaboration with author Sarah Jensen. Eight months  later, Keenan has unveiled a trailer for the book, now titled A Perfect Union of Contrary Things.

A Perfect Union of Contrary Things will be out November 8, and the 320-page book serves as Keenan’s authorized biography. It was co-written by author Sarah Jensen.    

"The book traces Keenan's journey from his Midwest childhood to his years in the Army to his time in art school, from his stint at a Boston pet shop to his place in the international spotlight and his influence on contemporary music and regional winemaking”   

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l-4EKJhuCg   

Keenan says in the trailer: "When you come to a crossroads, you can either become crippled by doubt, or you can start down an inspirational new path,"

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That's it for today. I hope you enjoyed.

Cheers,