Tool
Last week, I was flipping stations in my car and on 90.5 FM WBER I heard some totally kick-ass song playing. I thought “this sounds like Tool… yes it’s definitely Tool… this is a new Tool song I’ve never heard before!!” I had heard they were working on a new album but I didn’t know that it was about to come out and that they had released a single.
I’ve been disappointed with WBER in recent years. It used to be my favorite radio station but these days when flipping the dial (does anyone actually have a dial any more?) I usually end up not caring for what they’re playing and skipping right past them. Is it just me? Is there just less good music being produced? It’s pretty sad that I end up listening to 106.7 KISS FM more than WBER. Five years ago, I would sometimes look at the Billboard Top 10 and not recognize a single song. Now you’re more likely to see me singing along in my car to “I’m N Luv (Wit A Stripper)” than listening to WBER. Hey, the chorus is really catchy.
WBER is the station that used to play the hell out of Limp Bizkit’s “Counterfeit” back before anyone had heard of Limp Bizkit. They played Insane Clown Posse’s “Halls of Illusion”, Disturbed’s “The Game”, etc. Not that I only like those sort of hard-edged songs. I also appreciate artists like Ben Folds, of whom they’re big supporters. But just seems like if they still play heavy songs, I’m missing it when I flip the dial because all I’m hearing are some whiny singers. You gotta mix it up a little.
So I was pleasantly surprised to hear WBER playing the new Tool song. I remember when Ænima came out in 1996. They played “Stinkfist” throughout the day and you could call when you heard the song and try to win the CD before it hit stores. I tried a few times but wasn’t successful.
In 2001 (the year they released Lateralus), a friend and I bought tickets to see them in Madison Square Garden. They were playing MSG two nights in a row. The concert was scheduled for mid-October. Then the attacks on September 11th happened, and things were getting shut down everywhere so we weren’t sure what was going to happen, but the concert went ahead as scheduled.
The opening band was Fantomas. Mike Patton from Faith No More was the lead singer. Maybe if I had heard them beforehand I could have appreciated the music more, but it was very odd music and just wasn’t doing it for me. But I sat quietly and let them play, unlike lots of others in the audience. Right after 9/11 I was hearing all this stuff about how nice New Yorkers are, and I was thinking “really? That’s not the stereotype that I’ve heard.” Well I don’t know if I can blame the fact that it was New York City, or maybe it’s just that there are a lot of rude Tool fans, but that was the rudest audience I’ve ever been in.
People were booing and screaming “YOU SUCK!”, “GO HOME!”, “GET OFF THE STAGE!”. They’d sometimes take a break during the songs but as soon as a song would end they’d start up again. Then there were the few Fantomas fans that would start screaming back “NO, YOU RULE! DON’T LISTEN TO THEM!” I was wondering if I was going to see a fight break out. Near the end of their set, there was a moment of relative silence in between songs. Must be the critics had tired of screaming. Mike Patton taunted the crowd by asking “So… got any suggestions?” Immediately the place erupted with boos again. They just listened to it for a little while before starting another song. I thought that was pretty funny. I only knew it was Mike Patton because I had looked up the band before going there. I bet most of the people didn’t realize that. I wonder if they would have treated them the same.
The next day we decided to walk to Ground Zero. I had only been to NYC once before and had never been to the World Trade Center. I think my friend had, but wasn’t sure how far away it was. So we just set out walking in the direction of it. Well now I know that Times Square (near our hotel) is a long way from Ground Zero! Although it wasn’t our intention, I think that made the experience more memorable. Even though we weren’t sure where it was, we could tell we were getting closer because streets would be blocked off, more police and emergency vehicles, military, and then we’d see buildings that were blackened and damaged. That was surprising to me because of all the images I had seen on TV, I hadn’t seen any of the buildings surrounding it.
They would build a platform later, but at the time people would be huddling by the intersections where you could see between buildings. I’m sure it annoyed some New Yorkers to have all these tourists inundating the place. We had to ask a cop for help figuring out which subway line to take back to our hotel, and he didn’t seem too pleased. Can’t really blame him.
Sorry for that tangent. It was a bit of a downer. Back to Tool! About a year later, WBER was giving away tickets to see Tool in Buffalo and I won! They were excellent live both times.
Now they finally have come out with another album, 10,000 Days. I’ve listened to it a few times and it’s super duper Tool-rific! (I got it for $9.99 at Best Buy.)
WBER is having another fund drive (they’re a non-profit station). I donated last time they had one, but was thinking I might not this time. But just because they still play Tool, even though more mainstream stations like 94.1 The Zone do too and that usually means WBER won’t touch them, maybe I’ll give them a little something.