Lateralus

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Lateralus
Studio album by Tool
Released	May 15, 2001
Recorded	October 2000 - January 2001 at Cello Studios, Hollywood, California, The Hook, North Hollywood, California, Big Empty Space, North Hollywood, California, The Lodge, North Hollywood, California
Genre	Alternative Metal, Progressive Rock
Length	78:58
Label	Zoo Entertainment
Producer(s)	David Bottrill, Tool
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Alternative Press , July 2001 (p. 57) CMJ (Favorable) , July 2001 (p. 57) Entertainment Weekly (B-) May 25, 2001 (pp. 76-77) NME (B-) May 25, 2001 (pp. 76-77) Pitchfork Media (1.9/10) link PopMatters (Favorable) link Q December 2001 Rolling Stone link Spin Magazine (Favorable) 7 January 2002 (p. 77)
Tool chronology
Ænima (1996)	Lateralus (2001)	10,000 Days (2006)

Lateralus (pronounced LA-ter-AH-lis, or ˈlædərælɪs in ,IPA^{[citation needed]}) is the third full-length album by Tool. It was released on May 15, 2001.

Contents 1 Overview 2 Track listing 3 Track information, trivia & Rumoured interpretations 3.1 Alchemic connections 4 Personnel 5 Chart positions 5.1 Album 5.2 Singles 6 References

[edit] Overview

Lateralus emerged after a five-year legal tussle with Tool's former label. In spite of its unusual and complex content, the album still became a commercial success in the United States quite apart from the mid- to late-1990s explosion of nu-metal. The album is 78 minutes and 58 seconds long. According to an interview with Danny Carey, the label promised them only 79 minutes, so they "gave them two seconds of breathing room".^{[citation needed]} It is worth noting that 80 minutes is usually the maximum possible duration for a commercial compact disc.

Two music videos were released: "Schism" (the video had the short ambient segue, "Mantra", at the beginning) and "Parabol/Parabola." These were subsequently released as two separate DVD singles on December 20, 2005, featuring remixes of the tracks by Lustmord. As of August 5, 2003, Lateralus has been certified double platinum by the RIAA. On August 23, 2005, Lateralus was released as a limited edition two picture disc vinyl in a holographic gatefold package.

In January 2001, the band 'jokingly' announced that the new album title would be Systema Encéphale and provided an obscure tracklist. One month later, they revealed the real title and a completely different tracklist, much to the chagrin of several members of the media who had accepted and promoted the original title.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by Tool.

1. "The Grudge" – 8:36
2. "Eon Blue Apocalypse" – 1:04
3. "The Patient" – 7:13
4. "Mantra" – 1:12
5. "Schism" – 6:47
6. "Parabol" – 3:04
7. "Parabola" – 6:03
8. "Ticks & Leeches" – 8:10
9. "Lateralus" – 9:24
10. "Disposition" – 4:46
11. "Reflection" – 11:07
12. "Triad" – 8:46
13. "Faaip de Oiad" – 2:39

[edit] Track information, trivia & Rumoured interpretations

• Some time after Lateralus was released, a minor flurry of interpretive activity arose around the album. In particular, Carey told an interviewer about Keenan's remark that the time signatures of the main riff in "Lateralus" (9-8-7) also represented a step in the Fibonacci sequence (the sixteenth step, as it turns out).^{[citation needed]} This led some Tool fans to suggest that the tracks on Lateralus can be listened to in spiral-like orders: 1,2,3,5,8,13,4,6,7,9,10,11,12 ("The Fibonacci Sequence"), 6,7,5,8,4,9,3,10,2,11,1,12,13 ("The Lateralus Prophecy"), or 6,7,5,8,4,9,13,1,12,2,11,3,10 ("The Holy Gift").[1] These arrangements are rumoured by fans to produce different storylines for the album, although the band has said nothing official on the subject.

• The cover is translucent and flips open to reveal the different layers of the human body, including a spiritual layer representing vrajna, the transcendental wisdom of enlightenment or union with the divine. Partially obscured in the brain matter on the final layer is the word "God." The artwork was done by artist Alex Grey.

• Just as Salival was initially released with several errors on the track listing, early pressings of Lateralus had the ninth track spelled as "Lateralis." The error was fixed in subsequent pressings.^{[citation needed]}

• This CD was mastered using HDCD technology.

• The song "The Grudge" is written in 10/8 time and is another example of the wide variety of diverse time signatures employed by the band. The lyrics contain several references to astrology (specifically, the "Return of Saturn"), and to alchemy, "transmutate these leaden grudges into gold". It also references the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne with the lyric "Unable to forgive your scarlet lettermen".^[1]

• "Eon Blue Apocalypse" is about Adam Jones' Great Dane named Eon Blue, who died from cancer, according to an interview with Danny Carey. [2]

• Drummer Danny Carey sampled himself breathing through a tube to simulate the chanting of Buddhist monks for the song "Parabol" [3].

• The eighth track, "Ticks and Leeches", is rarely performed live due to the immense strain the song puts on Keenan's voice. They have performed it occasionally, however, with Keenan utilizing several distortion devices to minimize the difficulty of the song.{fact}

• On the ninth track of the album, "Lateralus", Keenan's vocals during the first few minutes form a Fibonacci sequence. The number of syllables progress to the sixth step, then back down to the first step; up to the seventh step, and then back to the fourth step:

[1] black

[1] then

[2] white are

[3] all I see

[5] in my infancy

[8] red and yellow then came to be

[5] reaching out to me

[3] lets me see

[2] there is

[1] so

[1] much

[2] more and

[3] beckons me

[5] to look through to these

[8] infinite possibilities

[13] as below so above and beyond I imagine

[8] drawn outside the lines of reason

[5] push the envelope

[3] watch it bend

• The original title of "Reflection" was "Resolution" before being changed at the last minute. The original song was supposed to consist of "Disposition," "Reflection," and "Triad" all together. There is also the sound of pianos being smashed with hammers sampled on this track.[4] (the citation is a transcription, and possibly incorrect. The sound of pianos being smashed, as well as being shot with a shotgun, is used in the song "Disgustipated" (which is spelled similarly to "Disposition")(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbqWPrqLaCo), however, "Disgustipated" is track 69(23x3) and "Disposition"/"Reflection"/"Triad" is 23 minutes long, so there may be a connection, however it is more likely that the source is wrong as to which song includes the piano sample as it cannot be easily heard. The source also say that a Jacob's Ladder sample is used on "Lateralus," while it is actually used in Ænima on "(-)Ions").

• "Disposition", "Reflection", and "Triad" are a trilogy of songs originally planned as a single 23 minute track. They are performed together live. The back of the CD's outer sleeve is designed to resemble a circuit diagram; these three songs are "linked" by printed lines and small circles as if they are part of a parallel circuit. The number 23 has an occult meaning.

• "Reflection" is a reference to the mythological story of Narcissus, who pined away while looking into his reflection.{fact}

• The vocal on "Faaip de Oiad" is a recording of a call from a 1997 conversation on Art Bell's radio program Coast to Coast AM. The caller, in a frantic tone, claimed to have been previously employed at Area 51 and stated that the true nature of aliens were that of "extra-dimensional beings" that have infiltrated the military establishment and plan to destroy the world's large population centers to more easily control the remaining humans. The broadcast was cut short however, when their transmitter failed but Art Bell returned on the air with the use of a back up link system. Supposedly, the same caller called back some weeks later and claimed it was a hoax. "Faaip de Oiad" is Enochian for "the voice of God." Described as Danny Carey's personal percussion piece for the album (as was "(–) Ions" on Ænima), he can be heard drumming intensely in the background along with sounds of static and various electronic debris.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Alchemic connections

Some song lyrics on this album can be interpreted as references to alchemy, especially because the Philosopher's stone often serves as a spiritual metaphor to evolve from a lower state of imperfection and vice (symbolized by the base metals) to a higher state of enlightenment and perfection. References to this spiritual transmutation are:

"Give away the stone. Let the oceans take and transmutate this cold and fated anchor.
Give away the stone. Let the waters kiss and transmutate these leaden grudges into gold." ("The Grudge")

"Black then white are all I see in my infancy, red and yellow then came to be, reaching out to me....Lets me see". ("Lateralus")

If seen in this perspective, the part from "Lateralus" can either refer to the four colors of the Philosopher's stone during different phases of creation, or to the colors of the ingredients themselves (i.e. black = mercury, white = salt, yellow = sulphur, red = stone).

It is also believed that the same line refers to the order in which infants start to see colors.^{[citation needed]}

The infant theory is strongly referenced in the book "The Giver", about a secluded utopian-esque society with many secrets. It is suggested that all within the society are fully color blind. Slowly the main character begins seeing colors, the red of an apple, then the yellow of the sunlight, like an infant awakening to reality.

Another theory is the order of colors seen on an LSD trip. Alex Grey stated when he closed his eyes on an LSD trip he saw a black and white spiral, and when he tried it a few more times it became a red and yellow spiral.

Some people also believe to have found a relation between Lateralus and the Hermetic Kabbalah [5] where black, white, red and yellow refer to the colors associated with various Sephiroth of the Tree of Life.

In an interview with Keenan in 2001 he did not acknowledge any alchemic relations in regard to the lyric mentioning black, white, red and yellow. Keenan stated:

“

I use the archetype stories of North American aboriginals and the themes or colours which appear over and over again in the oral stories handed down through generations. Black, white, red, and yellow play very heavily in aboriginal stories of creation.[2]

”

[edit] Personnel

• Danny Carey - Drums
• Justin Chancellor - Bass
• Adam Jones - Guitar, art direction
• Maynard James Keenan - Vocals
• David Bottrill - Producer, engineering, mixing
• Vince DeFranco - Engineer
• Alex Grey - Illustrations
• Statik (Collide) - Machines on "Triad"

[edit] Chart positions

[edit] Album

Lateralus sold 555,000 copies in its first week, debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200. It has been ranked #123 in the "Definitive 200" of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.^[3]

Year	Chart	Position
2001	The Billboard 200	#1
2001	Top Internet Albums	#1
2001	Canadian Albums Chart	#1
2001	UK Albums Chart	#16

[edit] Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Peak Position
2001	"Schism"	Billboard Hot 100	#67
2001	"Schism"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	#2
2001	"Schism"	Modern Rock Tracks	#2
2001	"Parabola"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	#10
2001	"Parabola"	Modern Rock Tracks	#31
2002	"Lateralus"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	#14
2002	"Lateralus"	Modern Rock Tracks	#18

[edit] References

1. ^ Kabir Akhtar (2001-07-16). The Tool FAQ. The Tool Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
2. ^ diCarlo, Christopher (2001). Interview with Maynard James Keenan (HTML). Retrieved on 2007-05-22.
3. ^ The Definitive 200. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2007). Retrieved on 2007-03-08.

Preceded by Survivor by Destiny's Child

Billboard 200 Number-one Album June 2, 2001 - June 8, 2001

Succeeded by Break the Cycle by Staind