This is an absolutely massive album. Epic and sprawling it is composed of just five, ten minute plus tracks. The songs themselves flow smoothly from melodic, acoustic, almost medieval renaissance elements into the brutal, progressive death metal style.
Simplified, Nectar is about not being able to let lost love go. Unable to forget his/her dead lover the song describes the main character seeing their lost love in their dreams and at the very end of the song even indicates that the dead lover is seen while awake.
Plain and Simple its a reflection on what it is like to lose love.
…Alternative, Progressive Rock/Metal from Californ-i-a…
This album is the one that probably changed the whole way that I listened to music. Blew me away from the first listen and it still holds up well today.
There are many arguments out there about what the lyrics of this track fully mean. One theory is that its about the evolution of the human species, that we will develop two extra chromosomes for a total of forty six and two (the two being the sex chromosomes). Throw a little Jungian and Melchizedek theory into the mix as well and the song is supposedly self explanatory.
Personally I dont think its that simple. I agree its about evolution, but more the evolution of thought and eventually society. Ther moving of one conciousness to another, higher consciousness. The evolution of chromosomes from 46 to 48 I believe is to be taken not literally but metaphorically.
In the song Maynard sings about looking into the shadows and discovering who he really is. Also he sings the line “listen to my muscle memories” referring to the fact that the cells hold the memory for life to construct itself again and again in an orderly and efficient manner. Learning from the past and moving up into the higher level of consciousness.
But in the end an astounding song that really gets you thinking, which I beleieve is what Tool has intended all along. Remember believe in nothing, beliefs are crippling to the mind. Explore anything and everything.
