Tool, King Crimson Remind Audiences How Rock Should Be
by Brad Kava
Published on August 13, 2001, San Jose Mercury News (CA)

Heaviosity. Maximum heaviosity. The heaviest heaviosity.

OK, so Woody Allen's rock 'n' roll critic coinage was supposed to be a joke.

But somehow, it fit Friday's pleasing show at the Berkeley Community Theater by "nuovo metal" rockers Tool and King Crimson -- three hours of throbbing electric music at its darkest, thickest and yes, heaviest.

This was the kind of bill that shaped the great early years of rock, when Bill Graham would team up a veteran, such as Muddy Waters with an upstart like Jimi Hendrix.

Big rock promoters, now largely owned by multinational corporations, don't take many chances like this, limiting everything to certain demographics and fearing, sometimes correctly, that anyone over 30 doesn't spend much time listening to young bands, and those under 30 don't care much for music from the 1960s.

This sold-out show put on by a smaller promoter from Los Angeles, Goldenvoice Concerts, proved otherwise.

In an audience that was dominated mostly by Tool fans, many hadn't heard of King Crimson, yet they gave the 31-year-old band a standing ovation after its hourlong set.

And Crimson fans, who may not have spent time with the aggressive but very musical Southern California band, which started in 1990, couldn't help but be pleased hearing influences from the old progressive rock masters.

"King Crimson is pretty much who we ripped off over the years," Tool's singer, Maynard James Keenan, said toward the end of his two-hour set. "Don't tell anyone, especially them."

There were those who had no patience for Crimson's well-crafted, edgy, opening set, particularly with dispassionate band leader Robert Fripp sitting in a chair facing his musicians (Trey Gunn on bass, Adrian Belew on guitar and Pat Mastelotto on drums) for the entire performance. Some yelled for Tool during Crimson's quieter moments.

And, surprisingly, there were quieter moments. This was more melodic than some Crimson shows. Two new songs, "Level 5" and "Dangerous Curves," seemed like throwbacks to early 1970s elegiac Crimson. They were like what Black Sabbath might sound like if covered by Miles Davis -- dark, sensual, passionate, soft.

Tool fans probably would have been more comfortable with 1995's throbbing, anti-melody Crimson, songs like "Thrak." They did get some edge with "Red" and "Lark's Tongue in Aspic."

"I appreciated their talent," said Patty Marks, 29, of Sacramento, who had never heard of King Crimson before the show. "No, I wouldn't buy their albums or see them again, but they were good."

In any case, there was never any doubt who was headlining. The audience was on its feet throughout Tool's sci-fi tinged show.

Keenan proved himself as much an odd bird as Fripp. The singer had his own little stage in front of a video screen, where he performed mostly in darkness, like a character in the videos that accompanied the entire set.

First, he wore a skeletonlike bodysuit, like a junior Michelin Man, which fit in with the clone-like characters in the videos that brought to mind Aldous Huxley's novel "Brave New World."

Later he played practically naked, wearing only a small pair of Lycra shorts.

To a first time Tool listener, this music might sound like Black Sabbath covered by a mix of Cirque de Soleil and Nine Inch Nails. It's dark and brooding, but it pulses with angry life and mystical, literate imagery. Adam Jones on guitar, Justin Chancellor on bass and Danny Carey on drums built a wall of sound from which Keenan's screams leaped into the netherlands.

They mixed strong songs from the latest album, "Lateralus," including opener "The Grudge," "Schism" and a brilliant trilogy: "Disposition," "Reflection" and "Triad." They also covered "Eulogy" and "Sober," the kind of unlikely radio hits that restore some hope in radio.

Fripp joined Tool during a quiet part of the trilogy, and the elder master's "soundscape" gave background to Jones's pulsing guitar notes. It was the kind of cross-pollination you'd want to see more of. Maybe the two bands could really break out: Tool could try "21st Century Schizoid Man" while Crimson tackles "Schism."

Even without that, this tour is already showing fans that there is more to music than the demographic boxes the industry tries to lock it in.

For an interesting take on the tour, check out diaries of King Crimson members (www.disciplineglobal mobile.com).

Contact Brad Kava at bkava@sjmercury.com or (408) 920-5040

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Robert Fripp Unplugged is now available on CD!