Вторник 25 Янв 2011, 17:32
Despite taking to the stage to the sound of awkward silence, it doesn’t take long for New Zealand’s Jakob to win over the Brisbane crowd with their brand of instrumental post-rock. With a massive level of noise being pushed out by the three piece, the combination of heavy riffing and breathtaking soundscapes is instantly addictive, and the Kiwi trio have certainly won over a huge amount of fans tonight.
It’s almost unbelievable that a band who writes lengthy, complex and completely non-commercial music can pack out the 15,000-plus capacity Entertainment Centre – especially after they just headlined Australia’s premier touring festival in the same state a night earlier. Well, as you should probably know by now, Tool are no ordinary act. In front of a wall of amazing visuals and an eye scorching light show, the Californian quartet are greeted to the stage like returning heroes, and although their setlist is quite similar to their Big Day Out slot the evening before, the longer stage time gives the band the freedom to expand and jam out most of the songs on show.
Exceptional versions of Schism, Jambi and Vicarious have the entire building mesmerised, as the otherworldly drumming talents of Danny Carey fuse with guitarist Adam Jones and the highly impressive bass work of Justin Chancellor. A lack of Forty-Six & 2 in the set is slightly disappointing, but an amazing extended version of Lateralus sees the band delving into a brief cover of Metallica’s Orion, as well as a jaw-dropping solo spot for Danny Carey – all of which is helped along by a perfectly balanced mix.
Interestingly the show is basically completely lacking in camera flashes and there’s only a minimal amount light radiating from camera screens in the crowd throughout – whether it’s because of the patrons abiding by the numerous signs plastered across the Entertainment Centre foyer warning against engaging in any amateur filming/photography, or perhaps more likely because most have been scared off by the ever present security force threatening to chuck out anyone for even glancing at their mobile phone.
Stalking in his signature position beside Carey’s kit, frontman Maynard Keenan’s vocals are a perfect replication of his work on the studio albums, and even though his stage movements range from the non-existent to the ridiculous (often in the same song) the mohawked singer knows when to take the limelight and then slink back to let his band mates take the foreground. A particularly spacey run-through of Right In Two creates a nice break in the middle of the set, while a very rare cover of You Lied by Chancellor’s old band, Peach, has the diehards in raptures.
As the show closes with the back to back adrenaline rush of Ænema and Stinkfist, it seems like the Tool has only been performing for a heartbeat – however the band takes their final bow, and the huge mass of fans leave the auditorium some two hours after the group took to the stage, the power and sheer impact of tonight’s show will stick in the mind of everyone in attendance for many, many years to come.