Tool bring scintillating arena show to Europe – review

The prog metal masters put on a mesmerising display of musicianship and a visual extravaganza

Tool light up Copenhagen's Royal Arena
Author: Brendan AppletonPublished 26th Apr 2022
Last updated 3rd May 2022

Copenhagen is unseasonably warm for an April day, as Kerrang! Radio arrive in Denmark’s sunny capital to watch the opening date of Tool's Fear Innoculum European tour, which will see the band traverse Northern Europe across 18 dates, including those in London, Manchester, Birmingham and Dublin.

Although the headliners aren't due on stage until 9pm, die-hard Tool fans are queuing outside the sparklingly new Royal Arena Copenhagen from as early as 4pm, pressed against the merch stall crush barriers to get their hands on limited-edition gig posters along with an array of t-shirts and long-sleeved items. Judging by the punters’ attire inside the venue later that evening, the merch stand did a healthy trade.

Support: Brass Against

Supporting on all dates this European jaunt are 16-legged New York ensemble Brass Against, whose viral covers of Tool classics helped secured them the position. Perhaps also in play is the novel idea of the opening act performing covers of the main artist, something that we’d be willing to bet has tickled Tool’s sense of humour.

On that note, Maynard left this sign on stage, a wry reference to a somewhat controversial aspect of Brass Against's recent history...

They open with a thunderous version of Audioslave’s ‘Cochise’, the 5-strong brass section, drummer and guitarist dressed head to toe in white, whilst singer Sophia Urista stalks the full width of the stage in a black catsuit and black glasses, radiating supreme confidence in front of the rapidly filling arena.

The well-lubricated Saturday night audience roar with recognition when the eight-piece move into subsequent Rage Against The Machine tracks such as ‘Bulls On Parade’, but they save their biggest cheers for the covers of Tool tunes, which they play in their own inimitable style.

On songs like their cover of ‘Forty Six & 2’ Urista’s voice effortlessly alternates between whispered invective and angst-ridden screams, whilst the brass section provides atmospheric accents you wouldn’t expect at a metal concert, including a drums vs brass breakdown in ‘Guerilla Radio’.

Watch Brass Against's cover of 'Forty Six & 2':

When they round off their non-stop set with a powerhouse version of ‘Killing In The Name’, employing the time-honoured tactic of slowing the riff to increase the heavy, the all-seated audience (more on that later) is a sea of bobbing heads. As a mainly covers band they perhaps unfairly won’t receive the critical recognition of more traditional metal acts, but Brass Against would have absolutely any rock festival crowd bouncing from front to back. And if live music is all about enjoyment, then they have absolutely nailed the brief.

Tool

By the time the house lights dim just after 9pm, the excitement in the venue is palpable. The last time Tool played this neck of the woods was Copenhell 2019, on the same festival tour that saw them headline Download with a rapturously received set.

Remarkably for one of metal’s biggest acts, aside from festival dates like the above, most of us in Europe have had to wait nearly 15 years for a proper Tool arena tour, and the rarity of their appearances combined with the past two years of devastation to the live music industry lends the evening a special air.

Lasers! Lasers! Everywhere!

Another interesting quirk of tonight: signs throughout the venue state “No cameras or recording of the show. Any persons taking photos will be ejected from the venue.” Venue staff are quick to politely inform allcomers that this is indeed the case.

The deceptively simple-looking setup at one end of the arena sees a conventional looking stage surrounded by a mysterious opaque curtain that must be 50ft high, curved in an arc around the front and sides of the performance area.

As the strains of instrumental ‘Litanie contre la Peur’ start, the curtain’s purpose becomes clear: projections of album imagery start to rotate across and around it, making the whole stage appear as if encased in a three-dimensional vertical cylinder of Tool iconography.

The band walk on stage with no fanfare, but their appearance is met with a roar from the crowd. As will become apparent across the rest of the evening, the focus from the off is on the sound and visuals, acting in tandem to envelop the audience, with the band themselves almost secondary to proceedings.

Tool on stage in Copenhagen

They begin with ‘Fear Innoculum’ and vying for the breath-taking honours alongside the stunning screens (an enormous eye looks left and right, the pupil returning to centre on Carey’s drum podium) is the sound. It is SO loud, yet so clear. Even in our seats at the back of the venue looking down on the stage, it hits you like a hammer. With just three instruments and one vocalist, the power is astonishing.

Said instrumentalists and vocalist assume their traditional positions: drummer Danny Carey seated at his enormous glinting kit is the main point of light on the stage, whilst smaller spotlights illuminate bassist Justin Chancellor to the right who is all movement, and guitarist Adam Jones to the left who stands studiously focused on his pedals, occasionally strolling towards the centre to exchange a smile with Carey and Chancellor.

Enigmatic frontman Maynard James Keenan, as always, is right at the back of the stage in near darkness, confined to two small platforms above the amps of Jones and Chancellor. He paces in tight impatient circles on his platform of choice, singing, then crouching low and ape-like. Even unilluminated against the enormous LED backdrop, you find your eyes flitting to his brooding silhouette throughout.

Chancellor’s trademark bass sound punches through the wall of Jones’ guitar, sometimes pairing with it, other times siding with the groove of Carey’s drums. All three combine in thunderous synchronisation for the end of ‘Fear Innoculum’. As the first song finishes and the applause dies away Keenan states the word “Copenhagen” and is met with cheers. Obviously not meeting his energy requirements, he responds with “Copenhagen… work on it.” These are the last words he will address to the crowd for nearly two hours.

Tool utilising just a few of their lights

They move onto older material with a run of ‘Opiate’, ‘The Pot’ and ‘Pushit’, the sell-out 16,000 crowd singing the opening lines of ‘The Pot’ back to Keenan as one.

The feeling of carefully controlled power underpins the show. Even amidst the earth-shattering volume of the heaviest parts of ‘The Grudge’ and ‘Hooker With A Penis’ it feels like - if they wanted to - they could go nuclear and obliterate the venue.

Chancellor’s bass can surely only be rivalled by Rob Trujillo’s for stadium-shaking tone. It is hard to convey just how all-encompassing the sound is; the solid concrete floor of the arena vibrates beneath our feet as if we’re sat upstairs in a pub with wooden floors and a band is playing in the room underneath.

Much of this is the work of a veritable battery of desks the size of a tennis court in the centre of the arena, displaying a constellation of tiny and no doubt incredibly expensive LED’s.

The visual production is huge, to match the sound. Our back-of-a-napkin calculation reckons there must be something like 4,000sq ft of screens behind the band. Lighting rigs descend, unnoticed, angle, dance with each other, then ascend once more. Tool’s iconic seven-sided star is suspended over Carey’s drumkit, changing colour and throwing out beams from its points. As the show progresses, more effects are unveiled. Lasers strafe the crowd, lights appear unexpectedly from beneath the guitar and bass cabs, the side of stage, the roof, behind the screens.

And then there’s what’s on those screens. Tool have always embraced the uncanny, as their music videos attest, but witnessing the slimy nightmare creature from the video for ‘Opiate²’ chattering its lipless mouth on screens the size of a block of flats is quite something.

A standout moment is during ‘Right In Two’ where a 30ft tall grimacing mask appears against a background of shifting snake skin, displayed in such high definition that it looks for all the world to be emerging out of the screen above the band. Its eyes illuminate, and it splits to reveal the skull of… an animal? You feel like you’ve either become part of a music video, or they’ve added something extra-curricular to the beer.

Speaking of beer, after the band finish a raucous version of ‘Hooker With A Penis’ they walk off stage, leaving a helpful counter on screen showing that the encore will begin in 12 minutes, and the crowd dutifully disperse to visit the toilets and bars.

The show resumes with the slightly unusual choice of ‘Chocolate Chip Trip’, essentially an extended drum solo for Carey. In his uniform of basketball jersey and shorts, he is the focal point of all: the visuals, the lights, the music, all eventually recentre on him. During his solo the crowd sees an overhead camera angle of him, split into 9 kaleidoscopic slices, (the only time the screens show a musician rather than graphics) and there may as well have been 9 of him tonight. His drumming is relentless throughout the show, no mean feat for a guy in his 60s.

Watch Danny Carey's staggering drum skills during Pneuma:

Before the final number, Keenan addresses the all-seated crowd for the first time since the opening song. “I believe apologies are in order. I believed it was a Copenhagen thing, but maybe it’s a Tool thing: you guys don’t have to sit down. You can stand up.” The crowd cheer and begin to stand. “Thanks so much for coming to our first show here since the world caught fire. You may now take out your stupid cell phones and film this last song. But turn the light off.”

They end with 12 minute epic ‘Invincible’, their 6th from Fear Inoculum tonight, fully half the setlist. Fair enough, it’s the album tour and their songs regularly top 10 minutes, so setlist decisions must be tricky, but after a wait this long a few fans we speak to afterwards are disappointed not to have had more representation from the albums they’ve grown up with. Still, the joyous reaction from the arena when their set finishes and the band take their bow (Keenan walks off stage immediately) shows that age-old setlist arguments are the least of everyone’s problems. The fans are just happy that Tool are back.

Tool light up Copenhagen's Royal Arena

Of those fans, plenty have travelled from across Scandinavia to be here, with a healthy scattering of Tool t-shirts on show in the airport departures lounge the next day. A couple in the crowd explain to us that they've travelled from Bergen in Norway, a round trip of over 800 miles.

With the house lights up ‘Witness The Fitness’ by Roots Manuva begins to play on the sound system. The spell is broken, we are released from the mad, jaw-dropping world of Tool. We file out, not sure what we’ve just witnessed, but knowing it was incredible.

Tool UK & Ireland tour dates:

MAY 2022

Manchester AO Arena – Mon 2nd

Birmingham Resorts World Arena – Wed 4th

Dublin 3Arena – Fri 6th

London The O2 Arena – Mon 9th - SOLD OUT

London The O2 Arena - Tue 10th - added due to extra demand

Get tickets to Tool's Manchester, Birmingham and London shows from Kerrang! Radio Tickets

Tool Copenhagen setlist:

Fear Inoculum

Opiate

The Pot

Pushit

Pneuma

The Grudge

Right in Two

Descending

Hooker With a Penis

Encore:

Chocolate Chip Trip

Culling Voices

Invincible

Tool set times:

Brass Against - on stage 8pm

Tool - on stage 9:15pm, end 11:30pm

Tool's UK arena tour poster

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Maynard James Keenan through the years:

1990: Career beginnings

After playing in several bands during the 80s, Maynard James Keenan formed the band Tool with drummer Danny Carey, bass player Paul D'Amour and guitarist Adam Jones in Los Angeles back in 1990. The name of the band is said to stand for how they want their music to be a "tool" to aid in understanding lachrymology; a religion created by the band that focuses on the "science of crying". Signed by Zoo Entertainment in 1991, Tool released their first EP 'Opiate' a year later.

1993: Debut album 'Unleashed'

Tool unleashed their debut album, 'Undertow' in April 1993, It was certified Gold after just eight months and Platinum less than a year later. In the years since it was released, 'Undertow' has sold over 2.9 million copies in the US alone.

1996: Grammy Award win

Buoyed by the success of their first album, Maynard and Tool released their second album - the progressive metal opus 'Ænima' - in October 1996. The album debuted at Number 2 stateside and the band won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance later that year. After a prolonged legal battle with their label over contract violations in the late 90s, Tool went on a hiatus. During this time, Maynard went under the alias 'Gaylord C.' and collaborated with Primus' Tim Alexander and Faith No More's Mike Bordin on 'Choked', a song for the 1997 drumming compilation album, 'Flyin' Traps'.

1999: A Perfect Circle is formed

Whilst still on a break from Tool, Maynard James Keenan formed the band A Perfect Circle with his friend Billy Howerdel who had worked as a guitar tech for Tool. Joining forces with guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen, drummer Tim Alexander and bass player Paz Lenchantin, A Perfect Circle started to perform and released their sublime first album 'Mer de Noms' in 2000.

2001: The return of Tool

Five years after the release of 'Ænima', Tool ended their hiatus and released their astonishing third album 'Lateralus' in May 2001. Maynard was praised for his songwriting on the album and it became a worldwide success, reaching Number 1 in the US. Tool also received their second Grammy Award for the Best Metal Performance of 2001 for the song 'Schism'.

2003: Puscifer is born

In 2003, Maynard started working under the pseudonym Puscifer; a solo project that he's described as his "creative subconscious". Later that year, he recorded the song 'REV 22:20' for the Underworld movie soundtrack. Also in 2003, A Perfect Circle released their successful follow-up album 'Thirteenth Step', which is inspired by 12-step recovery programs. The album reached Number 2 in the US and stayed in the chart for a whopping 78 weeks. A year later, they released the album 'Emotive', which was certified Gold the month after its release. A Perfect Circle soon announced that they would be going on a hiatus. If that wasn't enough, Maynard also launched his own winery in 2004, which he names Caduceus Cellars.

2005: '10,000 Days' album and Underworld soundtrack

Sixteen years after the band's formation, Tool released the 2006 album '10,000 Days', which was inspired by grief after Maynard sadly lost his mother in 2003. The album went straight to No.1 in the US and sold over 564,000 copies in its opening week. During this time, Puscifer also featured on the Underworld: Evolution movie soundtrack with the song 'The Undertaker (Renholder Mix)', which provided more exposure for Maynard's solo project.

2007: Puscifer launch a clothing line

Maynard James Keenan financed and released Puscifer's debut studio album '"V" Is for Vagina' in October 2007. The album was predominantly recorded while he was on tour with Tool and was considered a radical departure for Maynard. The following year, Puscifer became a clothing brand and opened their first retail store in October 2008. As well as merchandise for the group, Maynard also sold local art and limited edition collectibles in the store.

2009: Lollapalooza headline slot

Maynard debuted Puscifer at a handful of shows in Las Vegas, with the help of a revolving line-up. Later that year, Tool embarked on a summer tour in 2009, which included headline sets at Chicago's Lollapalooza Festival and Colorado's Mile High Music Festival. To honour the memory of his late mother, Maynard unveils his Cabernet Sauvignon "Nagual del Judith" in April 2009, which was made entirely from fruit from his vineyard. Maynard James Keenan also made a cameo appearance in the 2009 movie Crank: High Voltage.

2010: Maynard features in a wine-making documentary

In early 2010, Maynard is featured in the documentary film, 'Blood into Wine: The Arizona Stronghold' about winemaking in the Arizona Desert. The documentary's soundtrack included remixes of Puscifer songs which were later released as part of the 2010 remix album, 'Sound into Blood into Wine'. Following a six-year hiatus, A Perfect Circle reformed in 2010 with the line-up of Maynard, Billy Howerdel, James Iha, Matt McJunkins and Josh Freese and embark on a US tour. When A Perfect Circle's tour ended, Maynard released Puscifer's second album, 'Conditions of My Parole' in October 2011, which reached Number 27 on the US chart.

2013: Tool play Ozzfest

In February 2013, Puscifer released their EP 'Donkey Punch the Night', which included covers of Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and Accept's 'Balls to the Wall'. Following on from the EP's released the band play their first ever shows outside of North America, including performances at Lollapalooza Brazil and Lollapalooza Chile. Tool also played at Ozzy Osbourne's Ozzfest Japan in May 2013, alongside titans such as Slipknot, Deftones, Black Sabbath and Stone Sour.

2015: Maynard releases his autobiography

Maynard James Keenan and his band Puscifer release their third studio album 'Money Shot' in October 2015. An avid-martial arts enthusiast, Maynard was also awarded his purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 2015 after years of training. Despite being renowned for his elusive personality, Maynard released his authorised biography, 'A Perfect Union of Contrary Things' in November 2016, which offered fans more insight into his career and personal life and was written by Maynard's friend of 30 years, Sarah Jensen.

2017: A Perfect Circle return

After a few years of inactivity, A Perfect Circle emerged again in 2017 and released their fourth studio album 'Eat the Elephant' the following year. This was the band's first album in 14 years and it debuted as Number 2 in the US.

2019: Tool's first album in 13 years

'Fear Inoculum', Tool's fifth studio album was released in August 2019, their first album in 13 years. The album topped the charts in the US, New Zealand, Canada and Australia upon its release and was the third best-selling digital album of 2019. In January 2020, Tool won yet another Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance for the album track, '7empest'. Puscifer, whose line-up now consisted of Maynard, Carina Round and Mat Mitchell, released 'Existential Reckoning' in October 2020 - the band's fourth studio album which is heavily inspired by Maynard's interest in extraterrestrial lifeforms.

2021: Puscifer's global streaming event

Tool were set to embark on a US tour to promote their new album 'Fear Inncoculum', but due to the pandemic were forced to cancel all of their 2020 tour dates. However, Puscifer took part in a global streaming event called 'Billy D and the Hall of Feathered Serpents featuring Money $hot by Puscifer' on 17th April 2021. Ahead of the event, Maynard promised it would be an "otherworldly event" with the band playing hits from their album 'Money Shot'.

2022: Tool return to live touring

After not performing live at all in 2021, Tool returned in triumphant form with the 'Fear Innoculum' arena tour that kicked off in the US in January 2022. In April, they brought it to our shores here in Europe, their first full European arena tour in 15 years. We were at the opening date in Copenhagen, and were blown away by the phenomenally loud sound and dazzling visuals. Read our full review here.

2023: Tool announce 2024 arena tour

In November 2023, Tool announced an arena tour for May and June 2024. Maynard James Keenan, Adam Jones, Danny Carey and Justin Chancellor revealed that they will play a total of 15 European shows in the early summer - including three arena dates in England. The UK dates take place at Birmingham Resorts World Arena on Thursday 30th May 2024, Manchester AO Arena on Saturday 1st June, and London The O2 on Monday 3rd June.

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