The PRP reports that during a conversation with Revolver, guitarist Adam Jones talked about the idea behind Tool’s upcoming album “Fear Inoculum,”.
The musician said:
“That has to do with getting older, too. Things like, ‘I’m gonna wear socks with sandals. I don’t give a f*ck what people think. I’m just gonna be comfortable.’ [Laughs] So it’s about the little things in life. It’s making those choices that are important to you and moving on and growing.
“There’s a little bit of Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune’ in that, so I’m into it. I’m so excited, for this new record. The songs are very long, but they’re like movements. It’s like two or three songs in one, but they relate. They flow. So I don’t know. We’ll see how it goes. But I’m ecstatic.”
Drummer Danny Carey chimed in:
“Well, I suppose the main overview of it is getting older and more comfortable with yourself. That seems to be the result. I mean, it’s called ‘Fear Inoculum,’ so it’s kind of like being able to choose your fears and making them work for you rather than actually living in fear.
“You grow through that, and as you get older you kinda don’t give a sh*t. I mean, I’m not afraid of anything – or what people would think of my playing. It’s kind of an evolution in that way, getting through and getting over criticisms and our fears of various kinds, I suppose.”
Singer Maynard James Keenan also shared a few comments regarding the album’s general themes, saying:
“I can give you some broad strokes, but I don’t want to ruin the experience for you. I feel like that’s always an individual’s right to process things in the way they wanna process them, and I wouldn’t want to take that from you.
“But I can give you pieces. Again, it goes back to experience: I feel like this is [about] wisdom through age, through experience.
“Hopefully through aging, you do find wisdom in some of the things you’ve encountered. Learning from your mistakes, learning from your successes.
“So if anything is a broad stroke of this album, it would be embracing where we are right now, acknowledging where we’ve come from and some of the things we’ve grown through.”