Just up that dirt road...live at the Acropolis!
This was the third time I've seen TOOL, each time in a different venue. This time around it was the Coors Amphitheatre, the former Fiddler's Green. We lucked out and scored amazing 9th row tickets, about ten seats away from dead-center of the stage. Being so close was great because the sound wasn't dissipated and the neighboring neon office buildings didn't dominate our visual view.

The crowd was enormous and it was definitely a sellout. Apparently $6.50 beer is insanely popular with Denver-area TOOL fans, because each stand was packed with at least 200 thirsty drunkards all night long. The way the ushers filtered the crowd around made for an awfully tight atmosphere. It was like rush hour traffic in Manhattan. If you went to the men's room to shake hands with the colonel, about 12 of your closest, newest friends also got to meet him. As soon as we realized it was a good idea to stay in our seats, things were fine. Not being able to wander around stunted my social growth, as I had no significant Hippie Encounters. I'm sure I'll recover. There was one fat guy in front of us, wearing a t-shirt that said "Fat People Are Harder to Kidnap". That's funny... 43 cool points to that feller.

The opening band, Isis, wasn't too bad. Of the three opening acts I've seen with TOOL, they were probably the best (King Crimson hippies, cry "blasphemy" all you want). They're a five piece band that reminded me of a Double A minor league TOOL. Their songs were heavy with the music and light on the vocals. The vocalist would do the "growlies/Astro from the Jetsons voice" on occassion, but only when emphasis was needed. That's something that I believe alot of bands don't understand. They think it's ballsy and cool to do the growlies, but it can really rob a song of its structure. Isis's songs would build up slowly and then finish off well. I'm not looking to run out and buy their CD, but I wasn't offended. Now that I've mentioned them, I'm sure I'll get one of those annoying "Isis wants to be your friend" MySpace messages.

About 20 minutes later, TOOL came out on stage. Dummer Danny Carey walked out in an Elton Brand Los Angeles Clippers jersey and waved to the crowd. Adam Jones and Justin Chancellor took their positions on opposite ends of the stage...and there was some goofball in an ATF jacket and a straw cowboy hat. Oh shit... that had to be Maynard. He was decked out in jeans, cowboy boot shitkickers and a Big Ass Belt-Buckle that would've done Bum Phillips proud. Hilarious.

Stinkfist The Pot 46 & 2 Jambi Schism Rosetta Stoned Opiate Sober Lateralus Vicarious Ænema

The band started up with "Stinkfist". The sound was phenomenal and they added a little extension in the middle of the song. The part where Maynard yells "I'll! Keep! Digging!" was fleshed out with an extra intrumental piece. It went on for roughly an extra minute and culminated in Carey duplicating the song's opening/closing sound effects (the parts that sound like tapping on a soup can and a mumbly timpani drum). Nice touch.

They followed up with the new tune "The Pot" (or as I like to call it "Pot, the"). That tune got a good response and while it's the band's current single, it'll probably end up as another concert staple in the future. "46 & 2", "Jambi" and "Schism" were close behind. During "Jambi", Maynard waved his cowboy hat around and mimmicked a rodeo rider. "Schism" had an extended intro and it's refreshing how the band wasn't afraid to spice up their older tunes. Somewhere in here, between songs, Maynard made a sheep's baaaaah'ing sound. The audience, not in on the joke, responded as expected. Maynard quipped "it's an old joke. But a good one".

After the lengthened "Schism", Maynard picked up a megaphone for "Rosetta Stoned". I really dig that opening guitar riff-- it just tells you "oh shit..something COOL's going to happen, Beavis". Then the song kicks in with that pummeling beat and the distorted lyrics, it's phenomenal. Reminds me a little bit of Pink Floyd's "Waiting for the Worms". Well, the cool parts of that song. It's kinda' like that...but it's not.

Throughout the show the stage was encompassed by six foot high backdrop video screens, showing the band's famous imagery. Lights would dash over each member and the overhead lighting didn't do much until the middle of the show. During "Opiate", the lights descended and revolved a little bit. By the time they got to "Sober" and "Lateralus", small green laser lights began to shoot out above the crowd. Always a fun effect at any concert, as the lasers catch the blowing smoke and create an ethereal canopy.

"Sober" was another old favorite that got the extended upgrade treatment. It's been about 13 years now, and the band's evolved the way they perform the tune. It's still that same song, but it seems to have a new intensity and polish brought into it. Maybe it's just the way the sound was mixed, but when the song slowed down and Adam Jones let out that trademark guitar "Wer-wa-werrrrr" screech, it was incredible.

They completed the first part of the show with "Lateralus". As the song wound down, Maynard began to wave goodbye to the audience. When the song ended, he dead-panned "Thank you. Good night. Peace. Get the fuck out of here". Instead of walking backstage before the inevitable encore, the four guys sat on the podium in the middle of the stage, just shooting the shit, drinking water and motioning to the crowd-- a great shot that I filed in my mental scrapbook. After about two minutes they started the encore, then completed the show.

A very strong show overall. They didn't dabble in any of their self-indulging noisy intermissions and free-from "soundscape" bullshit. They played a tight set, with no weak points or dreaded Areas of Boredom. Being so close, it was interesting to see how each band member contributes to the sound. I knew pedals and shit were always involved, but I never knew that bassist Justin Chancellor made the freaky "whale sounds" for "Schism". He was also riffing on his bass at times. Maynard was involved a bit more this time-- as he played some keyboard intros, most notably on "Vicarious".

Visually, it was a sight. The video screens were scaled down from the mammoth versions they used in their 2001-2002 tours. But it still worked. Maynard was animated, hopping around and writhing in his mohawk or cowboy hat. Also, the roadies/techies were garbed in white lab coats and would run out onto the stage between songs. At times, it was fun to turn around and look at the giant mass of humanity that gathered, bouncing along to TOOL.

Probably the best of the three TOOL shows I've seen. The venue was a bitch getting in and out of, but once we were in and seated, things were fine. The audience was fairly well-behaved for once. Some drunk dude and his girlfriend were next to me and did alot of fist-banging mania and bouncing around (hey.. they might have been the same two fools from the last TOOL show I saw! What're the odds?!!). She spilled her beer on my foot around the fourth song. It was no biggie, but I slowly turned, looked at my feet and clenched my fists. They apologized, freaked out and were living in fear for the rest of the show. They settled down and made sure to keep their distance after that. Really wasn't a big deal to me -- I've had worse things dumped on me, and this just barely splashed my ankle.

Maynard mentioned the band would come back next year, "Scout's honor". On my honor, I will do my duty to attend that show as well.

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