name	Tool
landscape	yes
background	group_or_band
origin	Los Angeles, California
genre	Alternative metal, art rock, progressive metal, progressive rock
years active	1990–present
label	Tool Dissectional, Volcano, Zoo
associated acts	A Perfect Circle, Green Jellÿ, Peach, Puscifer, Zaum
website	www.toolband.com
current members	Danny CareyJustin ChancellorAdam JonesMaynard James Keenan
past members	Paul D'Amour }}

Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1990, the group's line-up has included drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, and vocalist Maynard James Keenan. Since 1995, Justin Chancellor has been the band's bassist, replacing their original bassist Paul D'Amour. Tool has won three Grammy Awards, performed worldwide tours, and produced albums topping the charts in several countries.

Tool emerged with a heavy metal sound on their first studio album ''Undertow'' in 1993, and later became a dominant act in the alternative metal movement with the release of their second effort, ''Ænima'', in 1996. Their efforts to unify musical experimentation, visual arts, and a message of personal evolution continued with ''Lateralus'' (2001) and the most recent album ''10,000 Days'' (2006), gaining the band critical acclaim and success around the world.

Due to Tool's incorporation of visual arts and relatively long and complex releases, the band is generally described as a style-transcending act and part of progressive rock and art rock. The relationship between the band and today's music industry is ambivalent, at times marked by censorship and the band members' insistence on privacy.

History

Early years (1988–1992)

During the 1980s, each of the future members of Tool moved to Los Angeles. Both Paul D'Amour and Adam Jones wanted to enter the film industry, while Maynard James Keenan found employment remodeling pet stores after having studied visual arts in Michigan. Danny Carey performed as a drummer for Wild Blue Yonder, Green Jellÿ, and Carole King, and played in the Los Angeles area with Pigmy Love Circus.

Keenan and Jones met through a mutual friend in 1989. After Keenan played a tape recording for Jones of his previous band project, Jones was so impressed by his voice that he eventually talked his friend into forming their own band. They started jamming together and were on the lookout for a drummer and a bass player. Danny Carey happened to live above Keenan and was introduced to Jones by Tom Morello, an old high school friend of Jones and former bandmate of Electric Sheep. Carey began playing in their sessions because he "felt kinda sorry for them", as other invited musicians were not showing up. Tool's lineup was completed when a friend of Jones introduced them to bassist D'Amour. Early on, the band fabricated the story that they formed because of the pseudophilosophy "lachrymology". Although "lachrymology" was also explained to be an inspiration for the band's name, Keenan later explained their intentions differently: "Tool is exactly what it sounds like: It's a big dick. It's a wrench.... we are... your tool; use us as a catalyst in your process of finding out whatever it is you need to find out, or whatever it is you're trying to achieve."

After only a few performances, the band was approached by record companies, and only three months into their career they signed a record deal with Zoo Entertainment. In March 1992, Zoo published the band's first effort, ''Opiate''. Described by the band as "slam and bang" heavy metal and the "hardest sounding" six songs they had written to that point, the EP included the singles "Hush" and "Opiate". The band's first music video, "Hush", promoted their dissenting views about the then-prominent Parents Music Resource Center and its advocacy of the censorship of music. The video featured the band members naked with their genitalia covered by parental advisory stickers and their mouths covered by duct tape. The band began touring with Rollins Band, Fishbone, and Rage Against the Machine to positive responses which Janiss Garza of ''RIP Magazine'' summarized in September 1992 as a "buzz" and "a strong start".

''Undertow'' (1993–1995)

thumb|140px|right|An early band logo created by longtime collaborator Cam de Leon, this wrench is an example of "[[Phallus|phallic hardware" in Tool's imagery.]]

The following year, at a time when alternative rock and grunge was at its height, Tool released their first full-length album, ''Undertow'' (1993). It expressed more diverse dynamics than ''Opiate'' and included songs the band had chosen not to publish on their previous release, when they had opted for a heavier sound. The band began touring again as planned, with an exception in May 1993. Tool was scheduled to play at the Garden Pavilion in Hollywood but learned at the last minute that the Garden Pavilion belonged to L. Ron Hubbard's Church of Scientology, which was perceived as a clash with "the band's ethics about how a person should not follow a belief system that constricts their development as a human being". Keenan "spent most of the show baa-ing like a sheep at the audience".

Tool later played several concerts during the Lollapalooza festival tour, and were moved from the second stage to the main stage by their manager and the festival co-founder Ted Gardner. At the last concert of Lollapalooza in Tool's hometown Los Angeles, comedian Bill Hicks introduced the band. Hicks had become a friend of the band members and an influence on them after being mentioned in ''Undertow'''s liner notes. He jokingly asked the audience of 60,000 people to stand still and help him look for a lost contact lens. The boost in popularity gained from these concerts helped lead ''Undertow'' to be certified gold by the RIAA in September 1993 and to achieve platinum status in 1995, despite being sold with a censored album cover by distributors such as Wal-Mart. The single "Sober" became a hit single by March 1994 and won the band Billboard's "Best Video By A New Artist" award for the accompanying stop motion music video.

With the release of Tool's follow-up single "Prison Sex", the band again became the target of censorship. The song's lyrics and video dealt with child abuse, which sparked controversial reactions; Keenan's lyrics begin with: "It took so long to remember just what happened. I was so young and vestal then, you know it hurt me, but I'm breathing so I guess I'm still alive... I've got my hands bound and my head down and my eyes closed and my throat wide open." The video was created primarily by guitarist Adam Jones, who saw it as his "surrealistic interpretation" of the subject matter. And while some contemporary journalists again praised the video and described the lyrics as "metaphoric", the American branch of MuchMusic asked Keenan to represent the band in a hearing. It deemed the respective music video too graphic and obscene, and MTV stopped airing it after a few viewings.

In September 1995, the band started writing and recording their second studio album. At that time Tool experienced its only lineup change to date, with bassist D'Amour leaving the band amicably to pursue other projects. Justin Chancellor, a member of former tourmates Peach, eventually replaced D'Amour, having been chosen over competitors such as Kyuss' Scott Reeder, Filter's Frank Cavanaugh, Pigmy Love Circus's E. Shepherd Stevenson and ZAUM's Marco Fox.

''Ænima'' (1996–2000)

On October 1, 1996, Tool released their second full-length album, ''Ænima'' (). It was certified triple platinum by the RIAA on March 4, 2003. After Paul D'Amour left Tool, Justin Chancellor came on board, and the recording of the already-begun ''Ænima'' continued. The band enlisted the help of producer David Bottrill, who had produced some of King Crimson's albums while Jones collaborated with Cam de Leon to create ''Ænima'''s Grammy-nominated artwork.

The album was dedicated to satirist Bill Hicks, who had died two and a half years earlier. The band intended to raise awareness about Hicks's material and ideas, because they felt that Tool and Hicks "were resonating similar concepts". In particular, ''Ænima'''s final track "Third Eye" is preceded by a clip of Hicks' performances, and both the lenticular casing of the ''Ænima'' album packaging as well as the chorus of the title track "Ænema" make reference to a sketch from Hicks's ''Arizona Bay'', in which he contemplates the idea of Los Angeles falling into the Pacific Ocean.

The first single, "Stinkfist", garnered limited and imperfect airplay: It was shortened by radio programmers, MTV (U.S.) renamed the music video of "Stinkfist" to "Track #1" due to offensive connotations, and the lyrics of the song were altered. Responding to fan complaints about censorship, Matt Pinfield of MTV's ''120 Minutes'' expressed regret on air by waving his fist in front of his face while introducing the video and explaining the name change.

A tour began in October 1996, only two weeks after ''Ænima'''s release. Following numerous appearances in the United States and Europe, Tool headed for Australia and New Zealand in late March 1997. April 1 of that year saw the first of several April Fools' pranks related to the band. Kabir Akhtar, webmaster of the band's semi-official fanpage, The Tool Page, wrote that "at least three of the band are listed in critical condition" after a tour bus accident on a highway. This hoax gained wide attention and was eventually exposed on radio and MTV. Akhtar later posted an apology, claiming that The Tool Page "will not indulge itself in such outlandish pranks in the future"—a claim that would be belied by later April Fools' pranks. The tour continued the next day as originally announced.

Eventually returning to the United States, Tool appeared at Lollapalooza '97 in July, this time as a headliner, where they gained critical praise from ''The New York Times'':

Notwithstanding a decline in popularity of alternative rock music during the mid-90s in the United States, ''Ænima'' eventually matched Tool's successful debut in sales. The progressive-influenced ''Ænima'' landed the band at the head of the alternative metal genre: It featured the Grammy Award-winning "Ænema" and appeared on several "Best Albums of 1996" lists, with notable examples being those of ''Kerrang!'' and ''Terrorizer''.

A legal battle that began the same year interfered with the band's working on another release. Volcano Entertainment—the successor of Tool's by-then defunct label Zoo Entertainment—alleged contract violations by Tool and filed suit. According to Volcano, Tool had violated their contract when the band looked at offers from other record labels. After Tool filed a countersuit stating that Volcano had failed to use a renewal option in their contract, the parties settled out of court. In December 1998 Tool agreed to a new contract, a three-record joint venture deal. In 2000, the band dismissed their long-time manager Ted Gardner, who then sued the band over his commission on this lucrative agreement.

During this time, Keenan joined the band A Perfect Circle which was founded by long-time Tool guitar tech Billy Howerdel, while Jones joined The Melvins' Buzz Osborne and Carey drummed with Dead Kennedys' Jello Biafra on other side projects. Although there were rumors that Tool were breaking up, Chancellor, Jones, and Carey were working on new material while waiting for Keenan to return. In 2000, the ''Salival'' box set (CD/VHS or CD/DVD) was released, effectively putting an end to the rumors. The CD contained one new original track, a cover of Led Zeppelin's "No Quarter", a live version of Peach's "You Lied", and revised versions of old songs. The VHS and the DVD each contained four music videos, plus a bonus music video for "Hush" on the DVD. Although ''Salival'' did not yield any singles, the hidden track "Maynard's Dick" (which dates back to the ''Opiate'' era) briefly found its way to FM radio when several DJs chose to play it on air under the title "Maynard's Dead".

''Lateralus'' (2001–2005)

In January 2001, Tool announced a new album, ''Systema Encéphale'', along with a 12-song tracklist containing titles such as "Riverchrist", "Numbereft", "Encephatalis", "Musick", and "Coeliacus". File-sharing networks such as Napster were flooded with bogus files bearing the titles' names. At the time, Tool members were outspokenly critical of file-sharing networks in general due to the supposedly negative impact on artists that are dependent on success in record sales to continue their career. Keenan had this to say during an interview with ''NY Rock'' in 2000, "I think there are a lot of other industries out there that might deserve being destroyed. The ones who get hurt by MP3s are not so much companies or the business, but the artists, people who are trying to write songs."

A month later, the band revealed that the new album was actually titled ''Lateralus'' and that the name ''Systema Encéphale'' and the tracklist had been a ruse. ''Lateralus'' and the corresponding tours would take Tool a step further toward art rock and progressive rock territory. ''Rolling Stone'' wrote in an attempt to summarize the album that "Drums, bass and guitars move in jarring cycles of hyperhowl and near-silent death march... The prolonged running times of most of ''Lateralus''' thirteen tracks are misleading; the entire album rolls and stomps with suitelike purpose." Joshua Klein of ''The A.V. Club'' in turn expressed his opinion that ''Lateralus'', with its 79 minutes and relatively complex and long songs—topped by the ten-and-a-half minute music video for "Parabola"—posed a challenge to fans and music programming alike.

The album became a worldwide success, reaching No.1 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart in its debut week. Tool received their second Grammy Award for the best metal performance of 2001 for the song "Schism". During the band's acceptance speech, drummer Carey stated that he would like to thank his parents (for putting up with him) and Satan, and bassist Chancellor concluded: "I want to thank my dad for doing my mom."

Extensive touring throughout 2001 and 2002 supported ''Lateralus'' and included a personal highlight for the band: a 10-show joint mini-tour with King Crimson in August 2001. Comparisons between the two were made, MTV describing the bands as "the once and future kings of progressive rock". Keenan stated of the minitour: "For me, being on stage with King Crimson is like Lenny Kravitz playing with Led Zeppelin, or Britney Spears onstage with Debbie Gibson."

Although the end of the tour in November 2002 seemed to signal the start of another dormancy for the band, they did not become completely inactive. While Keenan recorded and toured with A Perfect Circle, the other band members released an interview and a recording of new material, both exclusive to the fan club. On April 1, 2005, the official Tool website announced that "Maynard has found Jesus" and would be abandoning the recording of the new Tool album temporarily and possibly permanently. Kurt Loder of MTV contacted Keenan via email to ask for a confirmation and received a nonchalant confirmation. When Loder asked again, Keenan's response was simply "heh heh." However, on April 7 the official site explained, "Good news, April fools fans. The writing and recording is back under way."

The writing and recording proceeded for the follow-up to ''Lateralus''; meanwhile, a ''Lateralus'' vinyl edition and two DVD singles were released, and the band's official website received a new splash intro by artist Joshua Davis. The "double vinyl four-picture disc" edition of ''Lateralus'' was first released as a limited autographed edition exclusively available to fan club members and publicly released on August 23, 2005. On December 20, 2005, the two DVDs were released, one containing the single "Schism" and the other "Parabola", a remix by Lustmord, and the music video with a dual-commentary by David Yow and Jello Biafra, respectively.

''10,000 Days'' (2006–2007)

Fifteen years into the band's career, Tool had acquired what Dan Epstein of ''Revolver'' described as a devoted "cult" following, and as details about the band's next album emerged, such as the influence of ''Lateralus'' tourmates Fantômas and Meshuggah, controversy surrounding the new Tool surfaced with speculation over song titles and pre-release rumors of leaked songs. Speculation over possible album titles was dismissed with a news item on the official Tool website, announcing that the new album's name was ''10,000 Days''. Nevertheless, speculation continued with allegations that ''10,000 Days'' was merely a "decoy" album to fool audiences until the day of its actual release, which eventually proved false when a leaked copy of the album was distributed via filesharing networks a week prior to its official release.

The album opener, "Vicarious", premiered on U.S. radio stations on April 17. The record followed on May 2, 2006 in the U.S. and debuted at the top spots of various international charts. ''10,000 Days'' sold 564,000 copies in its opening week in the U.S. and was number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 charts, doubling the sales of Pearl Jam's self-titled album, its closest competitor. However, ''10,000 Days'' was received less favorably by critics than its predecessor ''Lateralus'' had been.

After the release of ''10,000 Days'', a tour kicked off at Coachella on April 30, 2006. The touring schedule was similar to the ''Lateralus'' tour of 2001; supporting acts were Isis and Mastodon. During a short break early the next year, after touring Australia and New Zealand, drummer Danny Carey suffered a biceps tear during a skirmish with his girlfriend's dog, casting uncertainty on the band's upcoming concerts in North America. Carey underwent surgery on February 21, and several performances had to be postponed. Back on tour by April, Tool appeared on June 15 as a headliner at the Bonnaroo Music Festival with a guest appearance from Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello on "Lateralus". Meanwhile, "Vicarious" was a nominee for Best Hard Rock Performance and ''10,000 Days'' won Best Recording Package at the 49th Grammy Awards. The music video for "Vicarious" was released on DVD on December 18.

Hiatus and fifth studio album (2008–present)

In an interview conducted in May 2007, Justin Chancellor stated that the band would probably continue their tour until early 2008 and then "take some time off". He qualified this statement by adding that the band has already written new material and would surely release another album at some point down the road. A possible project until a next album is to make a "band movie", a possibility the band has reportedly considered for a long time. The ideas range from "a narrative story in a surreal fashion with as much money and special effects as possible" to "pockets of all of that or something that's live or the band playing". Although Carey stated that the necessary know-how was at hand due to the many relations to artists working in the movie business, Jones dismissed the idea saying, "It's just talk right now." According to ''Rolling Stone'', after the 50th Grammy Awards, while attending a Sony BMG after party at the Beverly Hills Hotel, Keenan also promised another Tool album. Asked in an early 2009 interview with ''Guitar World'' about the new album, Jones replied, "It's been coming along... great! [laughs] No, we've been on hiatus. I'm writing and Justin's been writing, but Maynard has been working on his wine. We've all just been taking some time away from each other, which has been nice. I've also been working on producing some comics."

On hiatus since early 2008, Tool was expected to begin writing a new album sometime in 2009, according to Keenan, but gave no details on a possible release date. On March 24, 2009, the band's official website confirmed a Tool summer tour. The tour debuted on July 18 in Commerce City, Colorado, at the Mile High Music Festival. The last dates were August 7–9 for Lollapalooza 2009 and a concluding show on August 22 for the Epicenter Festival in Pomona, California. Tool headlined both.

According to the band's webmaster, by March 3, 2010, Tool had begun the writing process "in earnest" for their next album. In late April and May 2010, Tool announced a series of tour dates across the U.S. and Canada for June and July. In late September 2010, it was revealed that Tool would be headlining New Zealand and Australia's Big Day Out Festival in early 2011. Meanwhile, Tool members have actively participated in their own personal musical projects. Notably, Keenan has toured extensively with Puscifer, which he describes as a series of musical ideas he did not have an opportunity to explore with Tool or A Perfect Circle.

Musical style and influences

Tool was described by Patrick Donovan of ''The Age'' as "the thinking person's metal band. Cerebral and visceral, soft and heavy, melodic and abrasive, tender and brutal, familiar and strange, western and eastern, beautiful and ugly, taut yet sprawling and epic, they are a tangle of contradictions." Tool has gained critical praise from the ''International Herald Tribune'''s C.B. Liddell for their complex and ever-evolving sound. Describing their general sound, Allmusic refers to them as "grinding, post-Jane's Addiction heavy metal", and ''The New York Times'' sees similarities to "Led Zeppelin's heaving, battering guitar riffs and Middle Eastern modes". Their 2001 work ''Lateralus'' was compared by Allmusic to Pink Floyd's ''Meddle'' (1971), but thirty years later and altered by "Tool's impulse to cram every inch of infinity with hard guitar meat and absolute dread". Tool had been labelled as post-metal in 1993 and 1996, as well as in 2006, after the term came into popularity.

Musical style

A component of Tool's song repertoire relies on the use of odd time signatures. For instance, bassist Justin Chancellor describes the time signature employed on ''Lateralus'' first single, "Schism", as 13/16 and that it later "goes into all kinds of other times". Further examples include the album's title track, which also displays shifting rhythms, as does ''10,000 Days'' "Wings for Marie (Pt 1)" and "10,000 Days (Wings Pt 2)".

Beyond this aspect of the band's sound, each band member experiments within his musical scope. ''Bass Player'' magazine described Chancellor's bass playing as a "thick midrange tone, guitar-style techniques, and elastic versatility". As an example of this, the magazine mentioned the use of a wah effect by hammering "the notes with the left hand and using the bass's tone controls to get a tone sweep", such as on the song "The Patient", from ''Lateralus''.

Completing the band's rhythm section, drummer Danny Carey uses polyrhythms, tabla-style techniques, and the incorporation of custom electronic drum pads to trigger samples, such as prerecorded tabla and octoban sounds.

Maynard James Keenan's ability as a vocalist has been characterized more subjectively by the ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'': After his performance during an Alice in Chains reunion concert in 2005, freelancer Travis Hay saw him as "a natural fit at replacing Layne Staley". Regarding his role in A Perfect Circle and Tool, ''The New York Times'' wrote that "both groups rely on Mr. Keenan's ability to dignify emotions like lust, anger and disgust, the honey in his voice adding a touch of profundity".

According to ''Guitar Player'' magazine, Adam Jones does not rely on any one particular guitar-playing technique but rather combines many techniques. For example, Allmusic wrote that he "alternately utiliz[es] power chords, scratchy noise, chiming arpeggios, and a quiet minimalism" in "Sober". Additionally, the band uses forms of instrumental experimentation, like the use of a "pipe bomb microphone" (a guitar pickup mounted inside a brass cylinder) and a talk box guitar solo on "Jambi".

The band puts an emphasis on the sound of their songs and attempts to reduce the effect lyrics can have on the perception of songs by not releasing song lyrics with any album. Lyrical arrangements are often given special attention, such as in "Lateralus". The number of syllables per line in the lyrics to "Lateralus" correspond to an arrangement of the Fibonacci numbers and the song "Jambi" uses and makes a reference to the common metrical foot iamb. The lyrics on ''Ænima'' and ''Lateralus'' focused on philosophy and spirituality—specific subjects range from organized religion in "Opiate", to evolution and Jungian psychology in "Forty-Six & 2" and transcendence in "Lateralus". On ''10,000 Days'', Keenan wanted to explore issues more personal to him: the album name and title track refer to the twenty-seven years during which his mother suffered from complications of a stroke until her death in 2003.

Influences

The band has named Melvins amongst others that have influenced their development, but the most-publicized influence are progressive rock pioneers King Crimson. Longtime King Crimson member Robert Fripp has downplayed any influence his band had on Tool. In an interview with Tool, he touched briefly on how the two bands relate to each other, stating "Do you hear the influence? There's just one figure where I hear an influence, just one. It was a piece we were developing that we dropped. And it's almost exactly the same figure: three note arpeggio with a particular accent from the guitar. So I do not think you could have heard it. That's the only thing." He also revealed, "I happen to be a Tool fan. The members of Tool have been generous enough to suggest that Crimson has been an influence on them. Adam Jones asked me if I could detect it in their music, and I said I couldn’t. I can detect more Tool influence in King Crimson, than I can hear King Crimson in Tool."

In turn, Maloof and Newquists attribute to Tool an influence on modern metal in its own right in their book ''The New Metal Masters''. Sean Richardson of ''The Boston Phoenix'' sees System of a Down, Deftones, and Korn as examples of Tool's "towering influence" on the genre. Moreover, Keenan's unique style of singing has been repeatedly seen as influencing artists such as Pete Loeffler of Chevelle and Will Martin of Earshot.

Visual arts

Part of Tool's work as a band is to incorporate influences of other works of art in their music videos, live shows, and album packaging. In particular, Adam Jones doubles as the band's art director and director of their music videos. Another expression of this is an official website "dedicated to the arts and influences" on the band.

Music videos

The band has released nine music videos but made personal appearances in only the first two, which the band states is to prevent people from "latching onto the personalities involved rather than listening to the music." With the exception of "Hush" and "Vicarious", all of Tool's music videos feature stop motion animation to some extent. The videos are created primarily by Adam Jones, often in collaboration with artists such as Chet Zar, Alex Grey, and Osseus Labyrint.

The "Sober" music video in particular attracted much attention. Jones explained that it doesn't contain a storyline, but that his intentions were to summon personal emotions with its imagery. ''Rolling Stone'' described this imagery by stating that, in the video, "evil little men dwell in a dark dungeon with meat coursing through pipes in the wall" and called it a "groundbreaking", "epic" clip. ''Billboard'' voted it "Best Video By A New Artist".

The video for "Vicarious" was released on DVD on December 18, 2007. The video is also notable because it is the first Tool video to be produced entirely through the use of CGI.

Album artwork

Adam Jones is responsible for most of the band's artwork concepts. Their first album, ''Undertow'', featured a ribcage sculpture by Jones on its cover and photos contributed by the band members. Later albums included artwork by collaborating artists: ''Ænima'' and ''Salival'' featured works by Cam de Leon; ''Lateralus'' and ''10,000 Days'' were created with the help of Alex Grey. The releases garnered positive critical reception, with a music journalist of the Associated Press attributing to the band a reputation for innovative album packaging.

Both ''Ænima'' and ''10,000 Days'' were nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Recording Package, but while the former failed to win in 1997, the latter did win in 2007. As art director, Adam Jones created packaging for ''10,000 Days'' that features a pair of stereoscopic lenses for viewing 3-D artwork and photos. Jones has been a lifelong fan of stereoscopic photography and expressed a desire for the packaging to be unique and to reflect the '70s artwork he appreciates.

Live shows

Following their first tours in the early nineties, Tool has performed as a headline act in world tours and major festivals such as Lollapalooza (1997 and 2009), Coachella (1999 and 2006), Download Festival (2006), Roskilde (2001 and 2006), Big Day Out (2007 and 2011), Bonnaroo (2007), All Points West Music & Arts Festival (2009), and Epicenter (2009). They have been joined on stage by numerous artists such as Buzz Osborne and Scott Reeder on several occasions; Tom Morello and Zack de la Rocha during their 1991 tour; Tricky, Robert Fripp, Mike Patton, Dave Lombardo, Brann Dailor of Mastodon, and experimental arts duo Osseus Labyrint during their 2001–02 ''Lateralus'' tour; and Kirk Hammett, Phil Campbell, Serj Tankian, and Tom Morello during their 2006–07 tour. They have covered songs by Led Zeppelin, Ted Nugent, Peach, Kyuss, and the Ramones.

Live shows on Tool's headline tour incorporate an unorthodox stage setting and video display. Singer Maynard James Keenan lines up in the back with himself and drummer Danny Carey on elevated platforms, while guitarist Adam Jones and bassist Justin Chancellor stand in the front toward the side edges of the stage. Keenan, despite being the vocalist, often faces the backdrop or the sides of the stage rather than the audience. No followspots or live cameras are used; instead, the band employs extensive backlighting to direct the focus away from the band members and toward large screens in the back and the crowd. Breckinridge Haggerty, the band's live video director, says that the resulting dark spaces on stage "are mostly for Maynard". He explains, "[a] lot of the songs are a personal journey for him and he has a hard time with the glare of the lights when he’s trying to reproduce these emotions for the audience. He needs a bit of personal space, and he feels more comfortable in the shadows." The big screens are used to play back "looped clips that aren’t tracked to a song like a music video. The band has never used any sort of timecode. They’ve always made sure the video can change on-the-fly, in a way that can be improvised. ... The show is never the same twice." As of 2010, Andres Abrego is their new live video director. During the ''10,000 Days'' tour, the video material consisted of over six hours of material, created by Adam Jones, his wife Camella Grace, Chet Zar, Meats Meier and Breckinridge Haggerty. Some of the material created by Chet Zar has been released on his DVD ''Disturb the Normal''.

Band members

;Current members

Danny Carey – drums, percussion (1990–present)

Justin Chancellor – bass (1995–present)

Adam Jones – guitar (1990–present)

Maynard James Keenan – lead vocals (1990–present)

;Former members

Paul D'Amour – bass (1990–1995)

Discography

;Studio albums

''Undertow'' (1993)

''Ænima'' (1996)

''Lateralus'' (2001)

''10,000 Days'' (2006)

Grammy awards and nominations

|- |rowspan="3"| || "Ænema" || Best Metal Performance || |- | ''Ænima'' || Best Recording Package || |- | "Stinkfist" || Best Music Video, Short Form || |- | || "Schism" || Best Metal Performance || |- |rowspan="2"| || ''10,000 Days'' || Best Recording Package || |- | "Vicarious" ||rowspan="2"| Best Hard Rock Performance || |- | || "The Pot" ||

References

Literature

| title=Tool | publisher=AllMusic.com |publisher=Allmusic | accessdate=April 28, 2006 | authorlink = Stephen Thomas Erlewine | last= Erlewine | first= Stephen Thomas | coauthors = Greg Prato}}

External links

Art website

* Category:Heavy metal musical groups from California Category:Musical groups from Los Angeles, California Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Musical groups established in 1990 Category:American progressive metal musical groups Category:American progressive rock music groups Category:Musical quartets Category:American alternative metal musical groups Category:Art rock musical groups Category:American hard rock musical groups Category:Zoo Entertainment artists Category:Volcano Entertainment artists

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name	Billy Mays
birth name	William Darrell Mays, Jr.
other names	Billy Mays, King of the Pitch
birth date	July 20, 1958
birth place	McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, United States
death date	June 28, 2009
death place	Tampa, Florida, United States
home town	McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania
years active	1993–2009
parents	Billy Mays, Sr.Joyce Palm
children	Billy Mays IIIElizabeth Mays
spouse	Dolores "Dee Dee" MaysDeborah Mays
occupation	Television direct-response advertisement salesman }}

William Darrell "Billy" Mays, Jr. (July 20, 1958 – June 28, 2009) was an American television direct-response advertisement salesperson most notable for promoting OxiClean, Orange Glo, and other cleaning, home-based, and maintenance products on the Home Shopping Network, and through his company, Mays Promotions, Inc. He and his business partner, Anthony Sullivan, were also featured on ''PitchMen'', a TV series that documented their work. His distinctive beard and impassioned sales pitches made him a recognized television presence in the United States and Canada.

Early life

Mays was born in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, attended Sto-Rox High School, and was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He later attended West Virginia University, where he was a walk-on linebacker on its football team during his two years there. After dropping out, he worked for his father's hazardous waste company before moving to Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1983.

Career

On the Atlantic City boardwalk Mays sold the Washmatik portable washing device to passersby, along with other "As Seen on TV" products. In Atlantic City, he was taught how to sell by the older salesmen, saying "I was taught to pitch by a lot of old pitchmen. That's the kind of style I have." Mays then traveled to home shows, auto shows, and state fairs across the United States for a period of twelve years, selling various maintenance products and tools, including cleaning products and food choppers.

At a Pittsburgh home show in 1993, Mays struck up a friendship with rival salesman Max Appel, founder of Orange Glo International, a Denver-based manufacturer of cleaning products. He was then hired by the company to promote their line of cleaners, OxiClean, Orange Clean, Orange Glo, and Kaboom, on the Home Shopping Network in St. Petersburg, Florida. Customer response to Mays's sales pitches was enthusiastic, with a sharp increase in sales after his first day on the network, although some reviews were poor. He was very well known for shouting in an abrasive manner during infomercials. For example, ''Washington Post'' staff writer Frank Ahrens called him and other similar television salesmen "a full-volume pitchman, amped up like a candidate for a tranquilizer-gun takedown".

Mays was the CEO and founder of Mays Promotions, Inc., based at his home in Odessa, Florida. His services as a pitchman became highly sought-after, and he appeared in commercials for many diverse "as seen on TV" products such as Mighty Putty. Mays claimed to be an avid user of the products he promoted. In December 2008, Mays began appearing in ads for ESPN's online service, ESPN360. These ads were a slight departure for Mays as they were designed to be parodies of his and other infomercial cliches with Mays appearing to be doing a parody of himself. He also made a live appearance during the 2008 Champs Sports Bowl promoting ESPN's and ABC's January 1, 2009, bowl games.

On April 15, 2009, the Discovery Channel began airing ''PitchMen'', a documentary series that featured Mays and Anthony Sullivan in their jobs in direct-response marketing. After Mays's death, Discovery Channel aired a special Billy Mays tribute episode of ''PitchMen'' called "Pitchman: A Tribute to Billy Mays".

On March 27, 2009, Mays appeared on ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno''. He and Sullivan also appeared on ''The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien'' on June 23, 2009.

Prior to his death, Mays had signed a deal with Taco Bell to film infomercial-style commercials for the chain. Shooting was scheduled to begin in August 2009.

Personal life

Mays's first marriage to Dolores "Dee Dee" Mays ended in divorce. He had a son with Dolores named Billy Mays III, who was 22 years old at the time of Mays's death and who worked as a production assistant alongside his father on the ''PitchMen'' television show. Mays had a daughter, Elizabeth, with his second wife, Deborah Mays. His daughter was three years old at the time of his death. Mays's mother is Joyce Palm, and his father is Billy Mays, Sr.; they both outlived him.

In an interview during the 2008 Presidential Campaign, Mays revealed himself to be a Republican.

Death

Mays was found unresponsive by his wife in his Tampa, Florida, home on the morning of June 28, 2009. He was pronounced dead at 7:45 am, appearing to have died sometime overnight. The Associated Press reported that there were no indications that the house had been broken into, and that police did not suspect foul play. Initially, there was wrong speculation that he had a head injury after he was struck on the head by luggage after an airline landing mishap where tires blew out.

After an initial autopsy on Mays's body on June 29, Dr. Vernard Adams, the Hillsborough County, Florida medical examiner, stated that Mays suffered from hypertensive heart disease and that heart disease was the likely cause of his death. According to a toxicology report released August 7, 2009, heart disease was the "primary cause of death" and cocaine was listed as a "contributory cause of death." In response to the release of the toxicology report, the Mays family issued a press release stating, "We are extremely disappointed by the press release released by the Hillsborough County medical examiner's office. We believe it contains speculative conclusions that are frankly unnecessary and tend to obscure the conclusion that Billy suffered from chronic, untreated hypertension..." and said in the release that they were considering "an independent evaluation of the autopsy results".

The medical examiner "concluded that cocaine use caused or contributed to the development of his heart disease, and thereby contributed to his death," the office said in a press release. The office said Mays last used cocaine in the few days before his death but was not under the influence of the drug when he died. Hillsborough County spokeswoman Lori Hudson said nothing in the toxicology report indicated the frequency of Mays's cocaine use. Cocaine can raise the arterial blood pressure, directly cause thickening of the left wall of the ventricle and accelerate the formation of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries, the release said. However, in October 2009, the results of a second medical examination, commissioned by Mays' family, concluded that "cocaine was not a significant contributing factor" to his death.

Longtime friend and colleague A.J. Khubani, founder and CEO of the "As Seen on TV" product company Telebrands, said Mays never exhibited any signs of drug use and was always prepared for his many commercial shoots. "I'm just shocked," Khubani said. "He was the model of a responsible citizen."

According to subsequent news reports the toxicology tests also showed levels of painkillers hydrocodone, oxycodone and tramadol, as well as anti-anxiety drugs alprazolam and diazepam. Mays had suffered hip problems and was scheduled for hip replacement surgery the day after he was found dead.

Mays's funeral was held on July 3, 2009 in his hometown of McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. The pallbearers for the funeral wore blue shirts and khaki pants at the funeral, much like Mays wore when he advertised his products. According to KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, he was buried wearing a shirt with the OxiClean logo on it.

Fictional representation

In the ''South Park'' episode "Dead Celebrities", Mays's ghost appears repeatedly to Ike Broflovski, trying to sell him products from the afterlife with his catchphrase "Hi, Billy Mays here with the...". Mays's son, Billy Mays III, a self-proclaimed South Park fan, said he loved "Dead Celebrities", and found its portrayal of his father tasteful and respectful.

Notable products pitched

!Product	!Description
Awesome Auger	A gardening tool.
Big City Slider Station	A mini-burger cooker.
The Ding King	A dent repairing device.
DualSaw	A circular saw with two blades.
ESPN360	A broadband service.
EZ Crunch Bowl	"A new way to eat breakfast cereal".
Flies Away	A fly trap.
Gopher	A tool for grabbing out-of-reach objects.
Grater Plater	A ceramic plate with grater teeth.
Green Now!	Lawn fertilizer in a can.
Grip Wrench	A tool to help gripping.
Handy Switch	A wireless electric switch.
Hercules Hook	A hook for hanging objects on a wall.
	Health insurance.
iTie	A necktie with a hidden pocket.
Jupiter Jack	Cell-phone speaker system for the car
Kaboom!	Tile and shower cleaner.
Mighty Mendit	A bonding agent for mending cloth.
	An epoxy putty adhesive.
Mighty Putty Steel	A metal alloy adhesive putty.
Mighty Putty Wood	A non-shrinking epoxy putty for wood.
Mighty Tape	A self-fusing silicone rubber waterproof tape.
Orange Glo	A wood cleaner.
OxiClean	A general purpose cleaner.
Quick Chop	A chopping device.
Samurai Shark	A knife sharpener.
Simoniz Fix-It	A scratch remover.
Tool Band-it	A magnetic armband for holding hand tools.
Turbo Tiger	A vacuum cleaner.
Ultimate Chopper	A kitchen tool.
Vidalia Slice Wizard	A kitchen tool.
WashMatik	A hose that could pump water from a bucketwithout being hooked up to a faucet.
What Odor?	An odor-removing fluid.
Zorbeez	A chamois cloth.

References

External links

Official Twitter page

Category:American television personalities Category:Cardiovascular disease deaths in Florida Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:Internet memes Category:Pennsylvania Republicans Category:People from Atlantic City, New Jersey Category:People from McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania Category:People from Tampa, Florida Category:Salespeople Category:Infomercials Category:West Virginia Mountaineers football players Category:Florida Republicans Category:1958 births Category:2009 deaths

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