TOOL's worst album but like, come on. It goes hard.

Many people describe this as a self-indulgent, bloated, chug-fest. To be fair, yeah, it's that. But it's also MORE than that. It's an evolution of sorts in a strange way, an album that refuses to be catchy and memorable like previous releases sometimes were, fully throwing itself headlong into more subtle, hypnotic sections that seem to go on for eons. And I love it for that. It's not Lateralus or Ænima or ... read more

Controversial opinion: this is better than Ænima!

I really really love this album. Not as good as Lateralus since that's my favorite album ever, but this thing still goes so hard. The riffs on stuff like Vicarious, Right In Two, and Rosetta Stoned are heavy, psychedelic, and almost trance-like. The lyrics are the best of their career if I'm being honest, even beating out the lyrics on Lateralus, and the subjects of the song are what really boost the album in this department. A ... read more

This is my favorite album ever.

It's catchy, heavy, progressive, introspective, at all the right moments. This album takes the songwriting of their previous release and smooths out all the edges, removes the filler, and leaves only perfection behind.

Song 1 on the album, The Grudge is an absolute tour de force, hitting with some immediate energy, but energy that comes and goes in waves as mixed in are very nice and introspective calmer sections, culminating in some of the band's ... read more

This album has my favorite song of all time.

Third Eye. It's just the best. And in a way, that closing track is a microcosm of the album as a whole. The grunge sensibilities of their previous two releases are almost completely shed in favor of progressive metal insanity. Long, complex, winding songs with enough time signature changes to warrant a math PhD. Strange, psychedelic passages and lyrics are coupled with heavy riffs, lots of atmosphere, and the most insane drumming you will ever ... read more

A solid improvement over their first EP

Undertow takes that alt metal sound from Opiate and kicks it up a notch. It's just as catchy, just as heavy, just as groovy, and has the same great songwriting, but has better production and a more fleshed out tracklist. Sober, their first big hit, is just amazing in every regard. I love the bass work, the vocals, the riffs, and of course the drumming. But the other songs on here don't disappoint either. Crawl Away feels almost thrash metal ... read more

Not the TOOL we know, but still the TOOL we love

This EP is obviously not Lateralus. Or Ænima. Or 10,000 days. It is scarcely recognizable as the same band. And yet, you can hear what they will become. What this EP does contain is great. As far as alternative 90s metal goes, this thing is more than just solid, it's fantastic. It's catchy, heavy, ethereal, at all the right moments. Part of Me, Sweat, and Hush certain cash in for metal and groove but maintain some great hooks ... read more

A new and interesting direction for their sound

Well, "new" may be an overstatement. They've always had some ambient electronic elements in their sound, and whole songs dedicated to that aspect. However, this is the first full album to really lean into that electronic side of them as the main flavoring. And I have to say that it really works for me. It's a lot calmer, a lot more subdued, and has a slightly different atmosphere than their other albums, which makes it ... read more

If Dark III was an elevated version of Dark I, then Dark III I is an elevated version of Dark II

The band returns to the 3 song structure of Dark II, and applies the lessons they have learned in making Dark III. As a result, this album to me feels like just a better version of Dark II. The samples are cool as always, the electronic portions are better than on any other album, and the black metal riffs are as heavy and atmospheric as ever. Where this album really excels though is in the more ... read more

Dark Space -1 is both familiar and different

Dark -1.-1 feels like a cut that could have been included on Dark Space I or Dark Space III without changing anything, it's got all the elements we know from the band. Dark -1.0 is where things get interesting. Synths and electronics have always been an important part of this band's sound, permeating every album the band has made, and being most brought to the forefront in the "interlude" track on Dark Space II. With the ... read more

Dark Space III, the band's finest moment.

This album is basically Darkspace applying the lessons they learned with Dark Space II in an album of the same vein as Dark Space I. The structure of I is back, as are the more guitar riff focused sections, but they have really used the lessons and practice in album and song structure from II to elevate this one beyond I. As someone who really struggles to focus for long periods of time (thank you ADHD haha) the hour and 19 minutes of this album ... read more

Dark Space II improves in many areas over the debut, but sadly loses my favorite element of their sound

The first thing this album demands I talk about is the structure. Just three songs, two 20 minute behemoths with a 10 minute "interlude" in between, if we can even call it that. The band was already good at their song structure in the previous album, but this sophomore album truly shows off that ability, and does it on an album wide scale. The two 20 minute songs, Dark 2.8 and Dark ... read more

Darkspace, this band and this album are my very first exposure to atmospheric black metal, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This album and this band come fully formed into what their vision is to be. They really hit that cold, cosmic feeling, using a combo of synths and samples and typical black metal tropes. However, the to be expected black metal production, tremolo picking, blast beats, and screams aren't just thrown in for the sake of being black metal, each element is used strategically, ... read more

Puppetmaster, Grace, and Father. have some groovy nü metal riffage and drums, and were definitely the standout tracks for me