%25201.jpg)
James Keenan was born in 1964 in Ohio. He joined the military after college, after which he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in set construction and design. There he met Adam Jones and formed Tool
Keenan's vocal style is very well known and unique. A primary purpose of Keenan's lyrics for Tool involves a desire to connect with the listeners on a personal level; to encourage them to look within themselves for self-identity, understanding and reflection. It is from this that Tool received the moniker "thinking man's metal".
Maynard is even more unorthodox in his live performances. He stands at the back of the stage, next to drummer Danny Carey. He is never in the spotlight, and usually faces sideways or away from the crowd. He does this because he wants the focus to be on the music and the experience, not the performers. He often wears very strange outfits, such as a police uniform, cowboy outfit, or body paint.
He has multiple ventures outside of Tool, including 2 other groups (A Perfect Circle, Puscifer), a winery, acting, and stand up comedy.
Danny Carey was born in 1961 in Kansas. Carey's first encounter with the drums began at the age of ten by joining the school band and taking private lessons on the snare drum. Two years later, Carey began to practice on a drum kit. In his senior year of high school, Carey joined the high school jazz band and began to study under drumming great Ben Kelso specifically for jazz drumming training. Jazz would later play a huge role in his signature approach to the drum set in a rock setting.
As Carey progressed through high school and later college at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, he began expanding his studies in percussion with theory into the principles of geometry, science, and metaphysics as well as delving into Sacred Geometry and certain hidden aspects of life and the occult. Carey also played jazz while attending college and got to experience the jazz scene in Kansas City.
Danny was friends with Adam Jones, and through him met Maynard and Tool was formed.
Danny renowned for his complex, dynamic, and expressive playing style. He does not conform to one set style of drumming. He uses the entire kit effectively and creates powerful passages that act as the backbones to the songs. He is sponsored by Sonor drums and Paiste cymbals. He has a Sonor kit that is made out of melted down Paiste cymbals, yet is rarely used because of its incredible weight. He implements electronic sounds into his playing, with multiple specialized Mandala pads located on his kit.
Adam Jones was born in 1965 in Illinois. Jones grew up playing classical violin and acoustic bass. Out of high school he moved to Los Angeles to study art and sculpture. His focus shifted to film and special effects, and he even worked on several big Hollywood movies. This experience benefited him later as he directed most of Tool's music videos.
Adam Jones is known for not predominantly using any particular guitar playing technique, but rather combining many techniques such as "alternately utilizing power chords, scratchy noise, chiming arpeggios, off-beat rhythm patterns, and a quiet minimalism".[6] On Lateralus and 10,000 Days, he made heavy use of triplets. Other techniques used to expand his band's sound repertoire require forms of instrumental experimentation, for example, on the Tool song, Jambi, Jones uses a talk box. In the song "Third Eye", he makes use of a guitar slide for the opening. Live, Adam uses a pedalboard full of effects.
Jones uses Gibson Les Paul Customs and multiple amplifiers, including Mesa/Boogie, Marshall, and Diezel.
Chancellor was born in 1971 in England. He grew up there and moved to the US with his wife as an adult. Justin is the quietest member of the band, but his bass parts speak volumes. They are almost always memorable, such as in Schism and The Pot. They are simple, catchy, and fit the overall tune of the song.
His bass tone is always towards the front of the mix and easily identifiable. He uses a custom Wal 4-string bass and mainly Mesa/Boogie amplifiers. He also uses a large range of effects to achieve his signature sound.
