The CD that Changed my Life
This was the first cd by TOOL that i bought, even though i had been a fan since I first heard Sober. I bought this cd during my senior year in high school. I went to catholic elementary, middle, and high school and was fairly brainwashed when i bought the cd. I really wasn't thinking for myself and just accepted everything that my teachers taught me and thought that the church's view was the only way to view the world. Luckily I got this cd and was able to do a complete 180 degree turn with my life. This cd taught me to think for myself and to try to see things in as many different ways as possible. It taught me to embrace every aspect of life, the good, the bad, the light, the dark, etc. I was also a very angry person when i bought this cd, and it mellowed me out dramatically. I am such a different person 5 years later, for the better, and this cd is definitly a big part of that. This cd got me through one of the toughest times in my life. I would sit in the dark, with my headphones on and listen to this cd for hours. It is just so hypnotic and full of emotion that i would lose myself in the music. It was like being in a different world. 5 years later, I am a much more compassionate, understanding person because of this cd. I think for myself at all times, and I always try to see things in as many different ways as possible. Each day i try to grow as a person a little more, and it is all a by product of this cd. The emotion that Maynard is able to convey with his voice in mindboggling, and his lyrics are just brilliant. Each song touched me in a different way, and in the future I will go more in depth for each song. This is just a general overview of how this cd has changed my life. I hope to see some other stories up here of similar experiences.
Recognize this as a holy gift and celebrate this chance to be alive and breathing.
This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality.
Embrace this moment. Remember. We are eternal.
All this pain is an illusion.
i hear ya man
this cd turned me from a shallow, self absorbed teenager into... well.... i dont know, just a more aware and concious person i guess. Aaargh i dont really know what im talking about, just, i guess, that this album spoke to me like no music ever had before.
yeah
DXRocker Registered User
Posts: 2
(10/16/01 7:22 am) Reply
Re: The CD that Changed my Life
Unfortunately, I don't own any Tool albums and I didn't even get in to them until this year with: Lateralus.
However, there is something I find much deeper with Tool, I myself am a Catholic, I am very deep into my faith, I follow every aspect of it, and I believe in it's true meaning.
But, with Tool, they show something I've never quite seen before, something deep, which is what I look for. I've seen Catholic and Protestant Christians (mostly Protestant) point their fingers at Tool saying he's the evil and all of it, I don't feel this way, I believe, like you all, that we should listen, not chritizize.
I will always be a deep Catholic because that is my faith, but I will also believe there is something deeper than whjat meets the eye.
Tool, like all of you, has given me a slightly new perspective.
It's true the way I feel,
was promise by your face.
The sound of your voice,
painted on my memories.
Even if you're not with me,
I'm with you.
With you,
You, now I see, keeping everything inside.
With you,
You, now I see, even when I close my eyes.
No matter how far we've come,
I can't wait to see tomorrow,
with you.
Linkin Park,With You,Hybrid Theory,2000
I'm Joe,
The DXRocker.
Feel free to AIM me at anytime: celtjoe
Mature conversation only please.
Re: The CD that Changed my Life
I have never heard anything more true. I am only 13 years old. I am being educated in a catholic school and was baptised as a catholic. I went to my first tool concer on Oct. 4th in Albany NY. The first song I had ever heard by tool was Eulogy. It is my favorite song. Since the concert, I have dropped my religion almost completely. Seeing Maynard for the first time made me question what I am living for. Is it god? No. Is it love? Nope. What is it? It's Tool. It's Maynard's visions that keep me living. His philosophies perplex me. I am mind-boggled by his obsession with human vision. He is truly amazing and I'm begining to think that I am living for him and his music.
Zorak18 Registered User
Posts: 4
(1/14/02 2:47 am) Reply
Re: The CD that Changed my Life
Shade, you seem pretty intelligent for 13, probably the result of catholic schooling. I too went to a Catholic school, and i too dropped my religion after many experiences, which includes the philosophies of Tool. I learned from Tool that you have to spend your time questioning in order to get to the truth. you have to find truth to find meaning. Tool was a rude awakening, an epiphany, if you will. They were the catalyst in making me realize that i had to live for myself and for the memmories. Not to try and live for someone else's God. I feel organized religion is an ironic concept. So many wars have been fought, so many killed, all because of different views in religion. then, Tool, steps up and says, F@$# your insecure practices. Its ok for us to disagree. God is different to us all. We need not the comfort of knowing others agree with us. Organized religion in ironic because no one shares the same belief in God. They preach killing is wrong, unless in the name of God. God wants you to kill this Mideastern man, because he wont believe in him. He will not trade his Allah, or his Buddah. Not trying to "convert" here. I am just merely ranting. I appologize if i offended anyone. but that is how i feel about it all. This is what Tool means to me.
When you are older, and everyone you care about is gone. All you will have, are memmories.
Re: The CD that Changed my Life
shade, i share the same view and am going to see tool here on 22nd april. (im in australia), and i also heard eulogy as the first tool song.
god isnt a person, god is something the mind creates because it needs something to grip, like a hook in a rock, and tool for me got rid of that girp, and pulled me down the cliff, into an abyss of questions. why do we belive? what is emotion?
tool is everything.
- Why can't we not be sober? .|. Just want to start this over .|. Why can't we drink forever? .|. Just want to start things over .|. Why can't we not be sober? .|. just want to start this over .|. Why can't we drink forever? .|. Just want to start things over .|. Why can't we not be sober? .|. Just want to start this over .|. Why can't we drink forever? .|. I just want to start things over.-
Naokly
Have you ever heard "f@#$ you're God?" Although the band is genious, you should not be wroshipping them. There whole message is: "Think for yourself"
Find the beauty in the dissonance
hedlost Registered User
Posts: 1
(9/22/02 4:50 pm) Reply
Re: Naokly
I'm a Protestant Christian, and I consider myself a devout Christian. I've seen Tool in concert and i have 3 of their albums. To me they are the best and most original band I've heard. To say they changed my life is a slight overstatement. I don't believe that a band could make me change my faith. I respect the band for their art. I don't think that their philosophies are the absolute truth, but I don't believe anyone's philosophies are. Well thats all I have to say.
matster40 Registered User
Posts: 7
(10/4/02 11:54 pm) Reply
the meaning of life is?
Shade, you say you don't live for love or for god? (these are very strong statements) WTF! You live for Tool! C'mon man, there's more to life than Tool. You are totally missing the point of Tool. Tool is a band, they play songs and have something to say. They try to help enhance your life, not be the meaning of it. Don't get me wrong here, I love them to bits (am listening to them now) but you don't live your life because of a band. I'm NOT trying to be mean and nasty here, just pointing out something that I got from your post.
hedlost Registered User
Posts: 2
(10/6/02 2:55 pm) Reply
Re: the meaning of life is?
Matstar, thats exactly how I feel about Tool. They are an awesome band. I think these people that just worship every thing Tool says is just absurd. I've said before that I am a Christian, but I don't follow the Bible to the letter. Tool is just a band that creates art called music. Music is full of metaphors and other great ways to express feelings.
you silly sheep
tool's whole message is that we have to open our minds and accept anything as being possible instead of selling ourselves short by worshipping a certain deity or dogma of any type and closing our minds...
that's about as simple as i could put it...
why doesn't any of you understand this simple message?
Re: you silly sheep
i agree, maynard dosnt want you to worship him.. he is not g*d, although i must admit he is the closest i think anything or anybody will be for me. he says in parabola "...this body holding me reminds me of my own mortality.." and he says in pushit " recalling all of the times i have died, and will die, thats alright, i dont mind.."
i was a christian until i read the bible, andi have read it 3 times now, and the more i read it the less i believe in what it says.. it contradicts itself in so many places...
i have a poem... that i wrote before i started listening to tool, and its remarkable how much it resembles what i believe maynard is trying to say in his songs...
Sheep! Born to follow, fated to die with the others at the slaughter. i have eyes, i will not follow blindly, like the sad forgotten prophets.
It often takes me many weeks of silence to recover from the futility of words - Carl Jung
matster40 Registered User
Posts: 8
(5/20/03 6:28 pm) Reply
ego
of course your poem would resemble what "you think" Maynard is trying to say, because thats your PROJECTION. Everyone sees through their own eyes, and sometimes they see what they want to see, the subjective rather than the objective reality.
Third Phi Registered User
Posts: 3
(5/21/03 8:56 pm) Reply
...
How do you know what tool is trying to say through their music if i may ask?
Re: ...
This may hurt a little but it's something you'll get used to.
Relax. Slip away.
It's rather ironic to see people deifying a few guys who happen to be rather good at organising noise. It may help to remember that there's every chance you could wipe the floor wth Maynard James Keenan at chess, or that Danny Carey probably looks at himself in the mirror and thinks "damn, I wish I wasn't so fat".
Standing above the crowd,
He had a voice so strong and loud and I
Swallowed his facade, cause I'm so
Eager to identify with
Someone above the ground...
Mr Keenan is a writer of lyrical poetry. He sings what sounds good, and what are presumably his personal thoughts. He is not omniscient.
He's just this guy, you know?
-- I'm okay with it. --
matster40 Registered User
Posts: 9
(6/5/03 5:06 pm) Reply
what they say
You need to do a bit of research and explore themes that are prominent in Tool's music. You might want to start with some of Carl Jung's ideas, learn a little Kabbalah, Buddhism, Christianity, existentialism, humanistic psychology... the list can go on. Then the important part - once you understand these ideas and you can see how they all fit into Tool, you mix that in with your personal experience and ideas. This is so it means something deep on one level, but then you must personalise it to truely feel it.
"just zis guy, you know?"
hey, spent so much time reading the message board I
don't have much time to write about real stuff, but I
would like to acknowledge your reference to "The Guide"
I'm new to the Pantheon and I am impressed by the
subject matter. Intelligent and meaningful dialogue con-
cerning the works of Tool is increasingly hard to find in
this electronic medium, too many "dumb-fucks" have
absolutely no clue as to how deep the strata are and
plunge in head first not knowing how to swim. At the
risk of sounding cliche', I hope these people learn more
about what it is they are being sold and "learn to swim"
before they jump into life's deep end. Feel free to con-
tact me, one and all at edomandweep@hotmail.com
peace, shalom, salaam alaika, hakuna matata
and whatever else may be appropriate.
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