If former Pink Floyd brainchild Roger Waters and Black Sabbath guitarist Tommy Iommi were to contribute to a joint musical project, the result would sound a lot like Tool. Alternatingly heavy and haunting, Tool has mastered the art of being a metal band without falling into the usual traps associated with the genre. While their music chugs along like many of their metal contemporaries, it often bucks convention by employing complex rhythms, odd structures, stark dynamic shifts, and soothing vocal melodies. Moreover, the band has remained mysterious and above the usual musical fray, releasing only five studio albums in 15 years, only rarely granting interviews, and featuring lyrics, artwork, and videos so cyptic that philosophical debates exist as to their meaning and purpose. more ›

During the dark years before neo-garage and 1980s post-punk revivalism saved modern rock radio from itself, the airwaves were ruled by a gaggle of stultifyingly awful rap-rock outfits united in their middle class yowl and bent on demonstrating that the suburbs were, indeed, killing them. During that period, however, a critical need emerged for the fans of the popular mook rock: namely, some vaguely sensitive sounding shit that could help them convince that girl... more ›