TOOL - FEAR INOCULUM

Back in the mid 2000 there was a small band called Deadsoul Tribe. Disregarding the fact that the majority of people came to know them from the singer's appearance in Ayreon's The Human Equation, they were both criticized and loved for sounding like the cheap European Tool cover band. Mind you, they gain popularity between the releases of Lateralus and 10.000 Days so people were in dire need of feeding their Tool cravings.
In the end, 10.000 Days finally releases. The fanbase is divided: some people appreciate the different and more diluted approach to music, others feel it isn't as appealing as the previous works but are still eager to hear more from one of the most interesting bands in the alternative/prog metal scene. Time between AEnima and Lateralus release: 6 years. Timespan from Lateralus to 10.000 Days: 6 years. Phone calendar: check. Dick-in-hand everybody is ready for the release of the new Tool record in 2011.
But it never came. The fanbase is in shambles. How is this possible? Tool, the band that worships numbers, the Fibonacci boys have interrupted the holy chain. Maybe it will be next year, 7 truly is an important number anyway.
The time passes, and we're greeted by a compilation of mediocrity coming from Keenan's two side projects, Puscifer and A Perfect Circle. It's been over 10 years at this point, All Hope Is Gone.
That would've been the best case scenario, in hindsight. It's 2019, and Maynard's small orchestra decides that the time is right: Fear Inoculum gets released as the first single and we finally realize it's real.

This is the part where in a review I'm supposed to write about the music of the album, going through the various tracks and give you my thoughts and prayers about them. That is the main issue about this record: there isn't much to talk about. What is in front of me is a 88 minutes magnum opus of a Tool cover band jamming and dreaming of, someday, becoming as interesting and as inventive as them. It truly sounds like the sound a 17 years old too busy jacking off to Dream Theater while listening to 10.000 Days in reverse from 5 different sources at the same time (and by the way, I'm not projecting, not at all).
For the sake of the record I'll pretend I only listened to the physical release of it as the intelude tracks go from forgettable to the worst thing Tool ever produced (why is chocolate chip trip a thing, why) and were fortunately excluded from it because of the runtime. There is no soul in any of them. All this tantric repetition has more to share with a young Berkley student trying to impress his crush only to be cucked by a chad groove metal guitar player than with what made Tool such an eclectic and beloved band. It’s even harder for me to go into details of the tracks themselves as apart from a couple of riffs here and there there is absolutely nothing that stands out, with the exception of 7empest, the only highlight of the record. The odd time signatures are still there and so are the more mantra-like parts, but Keenan’s vocals are more aggressive, more compelling, the main riff of the track is reminiscent of peak 10.000 Days. The song seems to have some kind of direction, unlike the other ones of the album.
If any other band released a record like this even only 7 years ago at this point it would have received a way better welcome. But this isn’t a collage Tool cover band. This isn’t Deadsoul Tribe. This is Tool, after a 13 years hiatus. This is a band with high expectations which were definitely not met up. At the end of the day it isn’t a bad record, it far from unlistenable. Was it a huge letdown? Absolutely. If wine becomes better with age, Fear Inoculum is more like a beer left open for days. The taste might still there but it’s barely drinkable.

4,5