Any members of this board who are going, would love a recap after the weekend is done of who rocked, who sucked, and who surprised you.

Is it this weekend? I'm going to watch the dvd instead.

I was there. Both days.

Daft Punk put on the best live show I've ever seen. SPECTACULAR.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Platypus Quest,

yep... like i said.

www.pitchforkmedia.com/features/live/festivals/coachella06/

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I was there. Both days.

Daft Punk put on the best live show I've ever seen. SPECTACULAR.

Wow really? I used to like them a lot but i havent heard their new album yet. They still doing the mask thing?

How was Tool? Some guy in a different post said he left as they were getting on the stage. Seems like a huge waste to me

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How was Tool? Some guy in a different post said he left as they were getting on the stage. Seems like a huge waste to me

That was probably me. I had seen them live before and, despite some interesting visuals, it wasn't a concert that really stuck with me. So, I decided to leave as they came on... I was exhausted and I didn't care for AEnima or Lateralus AT ALL.

A friend of mine who was also there stayed for Tool though and said their set was pretty great. He's a huge fan of their music though...

So, to each his own, I guess.....

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I was exhausted and I didn't care for AEnima or Lateralus AT ALL.

what? are you saying you did care for opiate or undertow or do you just not like the band? Lateralus and AEnima were masterpieces IMO.

I think AEnima and Lateralus are far, far from masterpieces. I think the lyrics are hysterically awful ("learn to swim"?? puh-leez, "forty-six-and-two" - wtf?) and 8-10 minutes of directionless, thrashing instrumention does NOT make for an engaging listening experience. I think I'm a pretty open-minded listener (I like stuff from pretty much all genres), but I cannot sit through the majority of the songs from these albums. It's painful.

But back to their earlier albums (when they actually wrote SONGS): I thought Opiate was okay and I like a lot of Undertow. It's the one album of theirs that actually deserves the sort of attention their later albums get.

All right...AEnima was written as a tribute to Bill Hicks, the late great comedian/social critic/preacher, who wanted to see LA "flushed away like the turd city it is, leaving the cool serenity....of Arizona Bay." That is where the lyric "learn to swim" came from. And if you have the CD you would see a picture of Hicks on the inside, with the tribute "Another Dead Hero". And on the song "Third Eye" you can hear Hicks saying "If you don't think drugs have done some good thingd, then go home and take all your tapes and cd's and records and burn them. Because the artists who made all of that music that has enriched your lives....rrrrrrrrrreall f***in' high on drugs." Check out Bill Hicks "Arizona Bay" album as well as "Rant in E-Minor" for further listening.
Sorry to be so off topic, but I just wanted to defend the lyrics on AEnima, because they made me discover the brilliance that is Bill Hicks.

We're just going to have to agree to disagree.

I still think that, even with the Bill Hicks context, Maynard is still just spewing out esoteric nonsense.

Most of the time, yes he is. I just felt like giving Hicks some props.

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I think AEnima and Lateralus are far, far from masterpieces. I think the lyrics are hysterically awful ("learn to swim"?? puh-leez, "forty-six-and-two" - wtf?) and 8-10 minutes of directionless, thrashing instrumention does NOT make for an engaging listening experience. I think I'm a pretty open-minded listener (I like stuff from pretty much all genres), but I cannot sit through the majority of the songs from these albums. It's painful.

If you don't know the forty-six-and-two reference, it's this complicated theory about chromosomes. I read about it one time, but I don't remember it.

Some of their songs do drag on at times. a couple I didnt really like from those albums are Disposition (except as a lead in to Reflection) and Cesaro Summability, as well as most of the filler songs.

As entertainment, especially for all the radio-listeners these days who are used to three to four minute songs, I guess Tool would seem pretty boring. But from a musician's point of view (I play bass and guitar), they are arguably one of the most creative and talented bands out there.
Maynard manages to pull off singing quietly or normal on some songs and almost screaming on other songs and sound believable either way.
Adam and Justin are both extremely good at playing and have a wide range of tones and techniques.
And Danny sounds almost superhuman on some of their songs.
Aside from their playing ability, their writing never ceases to amaze the crap out of me. They play in these crazy time signatures that most musicians probably havent even heard of, let alone played in, and while their songs rarely get below five minutes long and can go up to thirteen or so, the music is literally an art
form, with every second adding something to the overall song. Instead of a more standard song form (intro, verse 1, chorus, verse 2, chorus...), they switch it up a lot, like changing time for a few bars or randomly going into a solo or interlude.
Compared to most bands they play on the radio, like Fall Out Boy for example, there is a huge contrast between the two. The difference, as I see it, is that anyone with a guitar and a microphone can make a catchy song and be a popular band, but to do what Tool does takes a hell of a lot more.

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But back to their earlier albums (when they actually wrote SONGS): I thought Opiate was okay and I like a lot of Undertow. It's the one album of theirs that actually deserves the sort of attention their later albums get.

I pretty much think the opposite of this. I think when they made Opiate and Undertow, which are both great albums, they were gradually reaching their peak, at AEnima and Lateralus.
I got Lateralus for like five bucks at a garage sale back when the only thing I'd heard from them was Schism. Lucky thing, cuz I used to hate Schism.
Keep in mind, though, that I havent heard 10,000 Days yet.

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Keep in mind, though, that I havent heard 10,000 Days yet.

My advice is to just keep things that way, as a big but not obsessive fan of Tool, 10,000 is a significant disappointment, and reversal of form, the interstitials on 10,000 Days are much better...more musical, less gimicky, but the center piece songs, especially on the album's front half, feel tired and recycled.

They need to stop taking so much time off between albums, it's stunting rather than enabling their growth.

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My advice is to just keep things that way, as a big but not obsessive fan of Tool, 10,000 is a significant disappointment, and reversal of form, the interstitials on 10,000 Days are much better...more musical, less gimicky, but the center piece songs, especially on the album's front half, feel tired and recycled.

Damn. Yeah, the reviews have been pretty mixed. One of these days I'm gonna give it a listen though (not if it costs like $18, maybe if it gets down to 14)

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They need to stop taking so much time off between albums, it's stunting rather than enabling their growth.

I agree. I'm an avid A Perfect Circle fan and that whole side band thing Maynard did was pretty cool, but why did APC have to end with that anti-war eMotive album? The band is supposedly done now and I think they could have done one more good album before calling it quits. Anyway, good riddance if it will help Tool be more productive.

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Compared to most bands they play on the radio, like Fall Out Boy for example, there is a huge contrast between the two. The difference, as I see it, is that anyone with a guitar and a microphone can make a catchy song and be a popular band, but to do what Tool does takes a hell of a lot more.

I would NEVER argue that the members of the band are not immensely talented musicians, and for the record I absolutely abhor Fall Out Boy -- HOWEVER -- I think that there is great talent in creating a "song." I have always felt APC did a notably better job of this than Tool -- they have demonstrated that they can marry strong lyricism with a melodic hook and not drag the track out for over eight minutes. It's kind of like the same problem I have with a lot of Mars Volta stuff and why I thought At the Drive-In was so superior. Remember how "Arcarsenal" crammed like 6 different (not to mention incredible) variations on the main theme in under 3 minutes?? Now THAT, my friends, is talent: crafting a terse, enticing track that keeps you coming back for more and, more importantly, knowing when to STOP.