So Xander Went to Tool in Bangor on Saturday…

Everybody has bucket list bands - bands you have to see before you (or for classic rockers, they) die. I've been lucky enough to see a number of mine already - Queens of the Stone Age, The White Stripes, Green Day, etc have all been highlights of my musical life. However, there was always the one band that got away; the one band that I had to wait patiently for for years because they NEVER tour. Well friends, that band for me is Tool, and I finally got to scratch that name off the list.

Tool being Tool, the first set piece to pop up was a giant pentagram hovering over center stage. Shocking, but at least they know their crowd! As always, lead vocalist Maynard James Keenan performed up on the riser next to the drums, with no lights on him whatsoever. Seeing only his silhouette through the whole show adds to the mysterious, creepy vibe that fans of the band love.

The show was incredible. Having such a huge back catalogue of music that concert goers wanted to hear, it would be impossible for the band to hit everything in a night, but they highlighted fan favorites like Parabola, Schism, Forty Six & Two, Stinkfist and my personal favorite, Vicarious.

Tool's playing was top-notch, but perhaps the most mind-blowing thing about the show for me was the giant LED screens that dominated the stage (take a look at the pictures below to see what I'm talking about). The screens would show custom visuals for each song, including large snippets of the music for the song being played, if it had one. These included a creepy church, a pyramid that shoots lasers, and drowning humanoid... things?

Take a gander at the gallery to see some shots of the show! Really do try your best to catch them when they come through Maine again, if at all...