Tool Triumphantly Cap Second Night of All Points West

Most bands wouldn't be able to successfully headline a multi-band festival touring behind a three year-old album, but then, most bands aren't Tool. The enigmatic quartet capped off the middle day of the second annual All Points West festival on Saturday, August 1. Saturday was the only day of the festival that didn't feature torrential downpour, but the after-effects of the previous night were present, with Jersey City's Liberty State Park in N.J. essentially transformed into a gigantic mud puddle. After being primed by an energetic set from gypsy punk troupe Gogol Bordello and being droned into submission by a very loud My Bloody Valentine, the crowd, many of whom were wearing Tool shirts, were ready.

"New York City, it's a hell of a town, but all joking aside, you can't f--- with Jersey," were singer Maynard James Keenan's first words to the crowd following opener "Jambi."

The band's 90-minute set was familiar to anyone that's seen the band on their most recent tour for '10,000 Days.' Drawing mainly from that release and 1996's 'Aenima,' the set had all the characteristics of a Tool show. Clad in leather, Keenan was introduced as a silhouette performing against a backdrop of video screens next to drummer Danny Carey. The rhythm section of Carey and bassist Justin Chancellor locked into intricate, bass-heavy grooves, while guitarist Adam Jones provided both the atmospheric guitars and many of the visuals that played on the video screens. The stage show also featured lasers and a guest drummer during "Lateralus," (or a "drumsterbation," as Keenan labeled it). While their constituency already knows that Tool is one of the best live bands currently touring, any adventurous indie-rock fans that stuck around likely had their minds opened.

Set List:
Jambi
Stinkfist
46& 2
Schism
Rosetta Stoned
Flood
Aenema
Lateralus
Vicarious