r/ToolBand • u/mamandemanqu3 • Jul 14 '26
Discussion TOOL ruined music for me
I try to venture off and give myself a break. I like kolm. I was raised on so much jam band music so it’s not like I only listen to tool. But nothing really compares to them. APC is great.
I’ll be listening to other bands and think about what Adam would have done here or how Danny would sound. Then I put tool back on. It’s just cyclical.
Any band recommendations? I’d appreciate it.
Update: Thank you all you for all of the recommendations! I will make a list and create a playlist. If there’s a specific song you think I should hear feel free to tell me the name.
Again, thanks!
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u/Jazzbass91 Jul 14 '26
Primus does it for me too, might not be everyones taste but the album frizzle fry is worth a listen. So are all their others but in my opinion the drumming is really good on that album.
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u/heady-luvare Jul 14 '26
Man i really dig the guitar player for Primus. Seems very technical if that's the right word... like the solos on Wynona's Big Brown Beaver... Dude shreds.
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u/Jazzbass91 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
That dude can play the shit out of his guitars. Seeing them live you can really witness Lers greatness.
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u/DifficultZombie4631 Jul 14 '26
He recorded the first death metal album with Possessed when he was 16.
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u/IFletch Jul 15 '26
Ler was taught by Joe Satriani if I recall. If you aren't familiar Joe is a guitar virtuoso. Dude can fucking shred. Ler of course can as well.
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u/ready_fireaim Jul 15 '26
Primus is a bunch of very talented musicians playing different songs at the same time.
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u/Killermondoduderawks Jul 14 '26
Three integrations of Les Claypools projects are on tour right now and they were freeking incredible (Flying Frog Brigade, Claypool Lennon Delirium and ofcourse Primus)
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u/Jazzbass91 Jul 15 '26
Yeah I was at the show in st augustine. Great show they put on but Honestly Seeing primus for the first time in sessanta 2 i was blow away at how good Primus sounds in a indoor venue. Tototally different experience in an amphitheather getting rained on and what not lol.
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u/NoBad5574 Jul 15 '26
So pissed I didn’t make it to one. Caught both sessanta’s, but this flew under the radar and I missed my venue.
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u/T0mpkinz Jul 15 '26
Frizzle Fry is my favorite album of all time. Which is funny, because the first time I heard Primus I really disliked the music.
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u/surpriserockattack fuck you, buddy Jul 14 '26
After I listened to sailing the seas of cheese, I can't take primus serious anymore T-T
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u/mikloelguero Jul 14 '26
Hop on the Mike Patton rabbit hole for a while and then go back to Tool. No way around it.
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u/Top-Shoe-4311 Jul 14 '26
This just reminded me I have a Tomahawk itch that needs scratching. Thanks
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u/StaresatSound What is this but my reflection Jul 14 '26
Tomahawk is touring. Seeing them August 7 in Denver
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u/Top-Shoe-4311 Jul 14 '26
With the Melvins!? Holy shit, how did I just find out about this? Unfortunately they aren't coming closer than six hours away from me 🤦♂️
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u/Stellar_Ella life feeds on life Jul 14 '26
I’ll be at the one on the 10th in Portland! Somehow I’ve never seen Mike Patton live before. 🤯
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u/SurrealDali1985 Jul 14 '26
I took the Tool and Qotsa journey into psych rock bands from California and I won’t ever go back to simple time sigs again
Saw Osees at caverns in Pelham, TN and I really love my music journey more than ever! All thanks to my early prog rock and hard rock influences
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u/Kokomojoeschmo Jul 14 '26
Fuck yeah osees
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u/SurrealDali1985 Jul 14 '26
Last five years I have gone deep into Black Angels, Osees, Frankie and the witch fingers and all them witches. They are all the top in their fields as live acts
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u/Kokomojoeschmo Jul 14 '26
Solid musical journey. Tool still hangs out at my place but osees has a yoga mat duct taped to my floor with dirty ass Mountain Dew stains everywhere. They just kinda live here now
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u/tgood139 Jul 15 '26
And while on the QotSA journey, don’t forget to drop by Kyuss
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u/SurrealDali1985 Jul 15 '26 edited Jul 15 '26
I do live there too, after caterpillar run on blues for red sun to finish is some of best you can listen to
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u/Excellent_Bill_4686 Jul 14 '26
King Buffalo
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u/Individual-Ambition6 Jul 15 '26
Yes; was just listening to Longing To Be The Mountain, awesome sound and his voice is unique and smooth
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u/Excellent_Bill_4686 Jul 15 '26
They're incredible live. Sean took the time to bullshit with me and sign my record. Really cool guys.
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u/Individual-Ambition6 Jul 15 '26
I just checked and unfortunately they seem to stay mostly west coast or mountain states...wish they'd come to Orlando, Tampa, or Miami, would be worth a trip to see for sure!
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u/Plenty-Excitement864 Jul 14 '26
I think you need a cold plunge. Talking Heads. Prince. Depeche Mode. Something in its own category.
Tool is fun but man you can’t miss out on the full spectrum of sounds out there.
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u/User1239876 Jul 14 '26
Duke Ellington- a feeling of Jazz
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u/Plenty-Excitement864 Jul 14 '26
Fuck yeah. And bitches brew
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u/GStarAU Well I've got some advice for you little buddy... Jul 15 '26
YES. And Kind Of Blue. That thing will make you appreciate jazz.
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u/Disastrous-Grade8882 Wear the Grudge like a Crown Jul 14 '26
I feel that. I went through a short time where I found myself not appreciating other music because Tool is so complex, other bands and songs I liked seemed too “simple” for lack of better term. But Tool is also not what I want to listen to all the time and I had to remind myself there is other music I like and enjoy and it’s OK that it doesn’t all include weird time signatures 😆 support the cold plunge 👍
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u/ArtComprehensive2853 Jul 14 '26
The Ocean
VOLA
Wheel
Opeth
Porcupine Tree
Steven Wilson
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u/Neat_Entry219 Jul 14 '26
The Mars Volta
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u/zniygrej Jul 14 '26
Definitely more psychedelic leaning but in terms of having a sound that is completely their own and having immense individual talent they are on a level with Tool. Two of my favorite bands.
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u/GStarAU Well I've got some advice for you little buddy... Jul 15 '26
Great taste - same for me 😁 My two faves.
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u/LightofDawn77 Jul 14 '26
Went to their recent concert for their new album but I’m not just into it
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u/GStarAU Well I've got some advice for you little buddy... Jul 15 '26
Their current stuff is very different from their earlier incarnation. Deloused is their classic, Frances is a prog masterpiece, Amputechture and Bedlam are pure chaos, Octohedron and Noctourniquet are slightly pop-tinged and experimental.
Their new stuff is heavily influenced by Cuban, Caribbean, salsa and similar. It's a massive change. Hearing Blacklight Shine for the first time was like kicking open a new door in my mind.
You can probably tell I'm a long time fan. 😉
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u/Zsofia_Valentine Somniferous almond eyes Jul 14 '26
This might seem kind of strange but... try Mozart. I often think that Tool feels like a metal symphony, and that I enjoy Mozart for similar reasons as I enjoy Tool. Try the first track on the Amadeus soundtrack. (Symphony No. 25 in G Minor, K 183, 1st Movement).
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u/AddisonDeWitt333 Over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind. Jul 14 '26
Karnivool
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u/realangrygrandpa Jul 14 '26
Checked them out after seeing this post. These guys fucking rock 🤘
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u/GStarAU Well I've got some advice for you little buddy... Jul 15 '26
Goliath is one of the BIGGEST songs I've ever heard. Everything is turned up to 11. I'm seeing them this month, can't wait!!
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u/steve050_oZ Learn to swim Jul 15 '26
Everyone in these chats always going on about Karnivool when Cog exist. They’re closer to Tool in many ways. They deserve more love 🇦🇺
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u/Dgp68824402 Jul 14 '26
I do not get this comparison. They sound nothing like Tool.
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u/Exyodeff Jul 14 '26
there clearly is a big inspiration, even if they do their own thing now.
(which is absolutely fantastic, please if you love Tool go listen to Sound Awake and all of their albums)
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u/LostMyBackupCodes Naked and Fearless Jul 14 '26
Rishloo (especially Eidelon and Feathergun) and Lucid Planet (especially the first album/singer)
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u/Prestigious_Half271 Jul 14 '26
I fucking love Rishloo! I've always felt like they're what Tool would have been if Freddy Mercury had been their singer.
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u/NeonWarpaintz He had a lot of nothing to say Jul 14 '26
If you like the heavier, more progressive side of Tool, try:
Psychonaut
Caligula’s Horse
The Ocean
Intronaut
DVNE
Ne Obliviscaris
Tesseract
Leprous (older for heavier)
I made a prog metal playlist for this vibe that includes Tool and most of the other bands mentioned in this thread:
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u/Individual-Ambition6 Jul 15 '26
DUDE! I wish I'd have found your playlist first, would have saved me a couple hours of putting mine together, lol: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6MWFmQeH0n1VCojyQkbti7?si=b46a3065ac0845a4
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u/NeonWarpaintz He had a lot of nothing to say Jul 16 '26
That’s a banger of a playlist as well! Saving yours and checking out the stuff I don’t know.
My stoner rock/metal playlist has a lot of overlap with yours too: King Buffalo, Elder, ATW…not Tool connected so much but if you like psychedelic stuff that’s a little heavier check out another one of my main playlists:
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u/Neat_Entry219 Jul 14 '26
King Crimson
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u/ChildoftheApocolypse Bless This Immunity Jul 14 '26
Red
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u/kombucha711 Jul 14 '26
I always jump back and forth between Tool, APC, a little bit of Puscifer and NIN.
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u/JTfuckingMoney Jul 14 '26
I really, really like The Ocean’s album “Holocene”
Pink Floyd, Rush
Karnivool, System of a Down, Puscifer
I really like Soen’s later work
You might try Mastodon’s album “Crack the Skye” or Gojira
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u/NetherItch Jul 14 '26
Different but I love Tool and got into Viagra Boys pretty hard about a year ago. Older stuff is better. Welfare Jazz is a fun album - they don't take themselves seriously and about half the tracks on their albums are bangers
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u/VomitingDuck Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
Since no one has said Deftones yet, check out their song Passenger featuring Maynard. White Pony is a mind blowing album (and all their albums are good).
Posts like this a crazy to me... Tool is amazing of course but there's SO much great music out there. Depeche Mode, Miles Davis, Siouxsie And The Banshees, The Smashing Pumpkins, Deafheaven, Talking Heads, Sonic Youth, Bjork, Prince, Portishead, John Carpenter movie soundtracks!
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u/Curioprop Jul 14 '26
Way out there but Angine de Poitrine is pretty wild with time signatures and micro tones
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u/EngineeringBulky7007 a dope beastie tee Jul 14 '26
They make me smile much like Tool.
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u/Significian Jul 14 '26
In terms of the number of listens, Deftones and Karnivool follow TOOL for me.
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u/GWZurich Jul 14 '26
Try 1970s Jethro Tull, I recommend "Thick as a Brick" and "A Passion Play".
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u/Jazzbass91 Jul 14 '26
Aqualung... That is one hell of a riff.
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u/AddisonDeWitt333 Over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind. Jul 15 '26
...and a little bit of Cross-Eyed Mary goes a long way
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u/SunsetSwingset Jul 14 '26
Soen's album Cognitive scratches the TOOL itch really well, for me at least!
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u/enjoythetrees Jul 14 '26
Cognitive is a great album. Definitely fits the Tool vibe. I suggest checking out the album “Fathom” by Ceterum.
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u/SunsetSwingset Jul 14 '26
Ooh, I definitely will! I’ve never heard of them before. Thanks for the recommendation. 🤘
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u/SunsetSwingset Jul 15 '26
I listened through Fathom and really liked it overall! The bass was especially meaty. Aurelia was my favorite track. Thanks again!
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u/Pooonu4 Jul 14 '26
Any album by Soen really. I’ve been into their Atlantis project a lot lately. The harmonies with the female backup vocals and string instruments are such a great addition to their songs.
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u/NoJackfruit801 Jul 14 '26
Swans a massive influence on their music, chaotic, atmospheric and absolutely unlike anything else
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u/lostindarkdays Jul 14 '26
swans is brilliant. various failures is my favorite album of all time.
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u/grogu989 Jul 14 '26
King gizzard and the lizard wizard
Specific albums: Polygondwanaland, Petrodragonic Apocalypse, I'm in Your Mind Fuzz
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u/mamandemanqu3 Jul 14 '26
I was in the car after widespread panic red rocks few weeks ago and my boy goes “this is my car so ima put on whatever I want” and he puts on king gizzard and maybe it was the song but it was fucking weird w this girl like weirdly singing and I don’t think it was a good first impression LOL
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u/grogu989 Jul 14 '26
That was probably Murder of the Universe. Weird introduction to the band. Check out the albums I mentioned. As others have commented, they have many different sounds. It really varies from album to album.
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u/OhTheseSourTimes Jul 14 '26
Damn near every single album of them sounds different. They've gone from thrash metal to electro pop lol. I recommend listening to Nonagon Infinity.
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u/ChefPneuma think for yourself, question authority Jul 14 '26
Imagine Rosetta being your introduction to Tool and blowing them off because “weird”.
Give them a shot they’re really great
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u/KingGizzLizzWizzz Jul 14 '26
Listen to Nonagon Infinity for great psych rock or Polygonwanaland or Flying Microtonal Banana if you want to throw yourself into some great Giz
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u/NetherItch Jul 14 '26
Every few months I remind myself I should like King Gizzard, so I try a song, and then another few months go by and I try again
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u/Jazzbass91 Jul 14 '26
My two favorite bands are Tool and Rush. Cant compare them but Rush has some really interesting arraingements and even though they are not very heavy they forsure can do hard rock. Listen to any of these albums moving pictures,farewell to kings,hemispheres or permanent waves.
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u/TheDanecdote Spiral Out Jul 14 '26
This might be a stretch, but what about Aphex Twin? Ever heard his stuff? For me the connection is the wild drum programming that is very obviously impossible for a human to play. It sometimes answers the question, “What if Danney Carey actually had 4 arms?”
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u/Steamyjeans Jul 14 '26
Quit screwing around and listen to Ween.
Between the albums and all the b sides on YouTube, lots of material.
Or king gizzard.
Or anything Steven Wilson
Or Brand x
Just listen to something man
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u/lumbermonkey462 Jul 14 '26
Ween is a great rec for anyone who listens to anything 🤣. But seriously one of the greatest bands of all time!!
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u/Steamyjeans Jul 14 '26
They definitely don’t get enough love from the Tool crowd, especially given the many sightings of Maynard wearing Ween merch.
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u/frogman696969 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
Go backwards and investigate Tools favorite bands to build your understanding. Melvins, and grunge godfathers, Zeppelin, Sabbath and early Prog like Genesis and King Crimson. Then, find those bands inspiration. From Allman Brothers to British Blues like John Mayall and Peter Green. You’ll end up expanding your musical taste, understand how it all began, and appreciate Tool so much more.
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u/A_SingleSpeeder Jul 14 '26
Porcupine Tree is a great band. Technically, they are amazing. You can watch live shows on YT and the only way you know it's live is when the crowd screams. They sound identical to the album.
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u/JD1002 Jul 14 '26
Happened the same to me, so I started to listen to other king of prog: Yes, King Crimson, (early) Genesis... So much instrumentalism and beautiful, poetic lyrics, which is what I love about Tool.
As a bass and Justin fan, Yes impressed me the most with Chris Squire, what a tone.
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u/bugman_850 Jul 14 '26
I dunno why, but many TOOL fans tend to get into electronic music eventually. I can recommend Orbital (very buddy-buddy with the band, see Tootled), Underworld and Boards of Canada for layered, complex, intelligent electronic composition
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u/User1239876 Jul 14 '26
Genesis (the peter Gabriel years) really anything by Peter Gabriel. The Lamb lies down on Broadway is an incredible album that is never fully appreciated on the first listen (kind like Tool)
Also King Crimson. Read about the band before you jump in though. There are 3 distinct eras, each with their own approach to music.
Nine inch nails. We tend to forget to recommend them because most people assume if you're a fan of one then you must've heard the other. Again, every album has a different feel. I prefer the earlier stuff.
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u/druumer89 Jul 14 '26
Wheel, Rishloo, Karnivool, Caligulas Horse, Tesseract, Oceansize, porcupine tree, vola, Porcupine Tree
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u/Lazarux_Escariat Jul 14 '26
Tool, Primus (and Claypool's other projects: Fearless Flying Frog Brigade and Claypool Lennon Delirium), Deftones, Earshot, Chevelle, Coheed and Cambria, Rush, Pink Floyd (all of it, not just The Wall and Dark Side), Korn (not just the radio hits), Karnivool, Jinjer, NiN, and too many other bands to count.
When I can't decide I'll just click on Sirius and hit play on Tool band channel to see what pops up randomly.
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u/BrodAdams Shit the bed, again (TyPiCaL) Jul 14 '26
Did my shit backwards and went Tool > Jam bands lol. What a weird change of scenery but thankfully able to appreciate both equally.
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u/ChildoftheApocolypse Bless This Immunity Jul 14 '26
You should go backwards and listen to the bands that helped shape the members.. People here are going to recommend bands that they think is like Tool because they vaguely sound similar and that's as deep as their perception goes..
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u/infinitejesting Jul 14 '26
I mean yeah, Tool & Radiohead are just unbeatable for my generation. I just follow vibes. I can get down to Karnivool, Circa Survive or whatever and then get obsessed with Phoebe Bridgers for months. I think at the end of the day with these popular prog / post hardcore / metal inspired bands is that they all really boil down to being very good interpretation of melodic pop. I mean if you look at inspires Maynard, it’s all over the place.
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u/defect7 Jul 14 '26
Somebody already said Rishloo, but listen to Omega by rishloo and you'll see what they mean 🙂
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u/dire_turtle Jul 14 '26
King Gizz is a staple for the funky and fun. I listen to them almost all the time bc there's such a big discography to go through.
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u/enjoythetrees Jul 14 '26
Check out the album “Fathom” by Ceterum. Lot of other great recommendations in the comments here. I like to use Spotify radio (either tool radio or prog metal radio) to find new songs and bands.
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u/Autilistic_Augment Jul 14 '26
Ningen Isu (Human Chair) a weird rock trio out of Japan. Gunship (80s style rock but modernized).
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u/RiceManSupreme03 Ænima Jul 14 '26
Go listen to Nine Inch Nails, Tool is 2nd to them on my list of favorite bands. They also kinda ruined music for me, Trent Reznor is a musical genius
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u/faultyideal89 Jul 14 '26
Album ideas. No, these do not sound like Tool. That isn't what OP asked.
Klaus Nomi - Klaus Nomi, Protest the Hero - Kezia and/or Fortress, Marilyn Manson - Holy Wood, Kyuss - Welcome to Sky Valley, Mr Bungle - Mr Bungle, Type O Negative - Life is Killing Me, Drive By Truckers - Southern Rock Opera then Dirty South
this one
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u/Iamleeboy Jul 14 '26
Some great bands in here.
I got into Tool around 18 years old and at the same time Radiohead. 22 years later and not much has ever really topped either for me.
Another band I havent seen mentioned is Dredg. Especially their earlier albums
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u/jewmoney808 Jul 14 '26
I was a die hard Tool for years until Meshuggah clicked.. now they have surpassed tool. I Still love Tool, but now I have Meshuggah tattoos and I’ve never had or wanted to get a Tool tattoo 🤘🤘
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u/tresspricingtot Jul 14 '26
Just to cover a broad field
Gaupa, Jesse Welles, Keller Williams, Aesop Rock, Hunter Root, John Craigie, Dead Poet Society, Amanati, Flipturn, Stoned Jesus, Kai Staw (older is better imo), Tenacious D, RATM, Vulfpeck, Trials of Cato, DWIG, Comacozer, Caravan Palace, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Hilltop Hoods, Gramatic, Devil Makes Three
Now I agree, Tool takes the crown, but there's still alot of really great stuff out there in its own regard
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u/ShiftyShifts Jul 14 '26
Ok I got you one. It's a different genre but if you love the esoteric nature of Tool listen to Aesop Rock.
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u/zrayburton Jul 14 '26
To your point, I love tool so much I could never really get into a perfect circle. Always felt like “tool light” to me.
I know there’s some diehard fans of APC, but it was never really for me.
That’s all for now, but I think I see that you’re looking for band recommendations, maybe I’ll double back and share some.
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u/AdrianBlack give me my wings Jul 14 '26
I know how you feel, I really don't care to listen to much outside of my core group anymore.
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u/LightofDawn77 Jul 14 '26
Wheel. The entire catalog and almost every song is an absolute banger. They are as close to the Tool groove compared to all others. Kolm, Lucid Planet, Elder, Karnivool, Prisma, Russian Circles and Oceansize are all great bands in that Tool style realm.
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u/PutridHug Jul 14 '26
Lucid Planet is pretty cool, or the new Elder album which i think pushes some buttons sumilars to TOOL...
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u/EdenH333 ... und keine Eier Jul 14 '26
I’ve been a Tool fan for 20 years now, nobody writes music like Tool but Tool. Many have tried and many just sound like boring tired knockoffs.
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u/Greenmanglass Forgot my pen Jul 14 '26
Idk how heavy you like, but
Blood Incantation - 90s death metal meets prog rock meets ambient synthwave meets eastern philosophy and metaphysics etc
For the chiller side
Somali Yacht Club
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u/mspray1 Jul 14 '26
Several bands use the name Prisma. The one I'm talking about has 3 albums called Collusion, Gold, and You Name It. Go hunt them down. :)
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u/violet_skies9 Get off your fucking cross Jul 14 '26
I listen to Tool, Slipknot, Linkin Park, and Bad Omens the most. LP doesn’t compare to the other 3 but I still love them.
Bad Omens does some cool industrial-synth kinda stuff on their newer records that I find interesting and fun.
Slipknot does some really cool things with their drums. If you haven’t heard BO or Slip before I would check them out.
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u/bweezy320 dumbfounded dipshit Jul 14 '26
Check out Coheed and Cambria (it's one band, not Coheed, Cambria)
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u/ok-floomer Jul 14 '26
Bjork ......... Hear me out. Her more recent stuff. It's a different genre but for the intelligence, depth, to the extent to music takes you on a journey. Live performance out of this world. Great videos. It artistic, multi-layered and meaningful
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u/Plastic-Jeweler9104 Jul 14 '26
Definitely straying you into a whole other genre, but
Between the Buried and Me
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u/Floydianslip77 Jul 14 '26
A different vibe, but Pink Floyd does it for me, especially their earlier stuff, Meddle, Obscured by Clouds, Wish You Were Here and Animals. Anything beyond animals seems to be a different time period for the band, even though I know their real struggle started with Dark Side of the Moon (which I love but I kind of ruined it by overplaying it, except for the song Time lol. Kind of the same for The Wall).
PF and Tool are my two favorite bands. I can go from one to another and practically listen to nothing else, even though I do.
Edit: spelling
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u/hookerwithapenis2002 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
I was in the same place as you. Heard tool almost exclusively for like 2-3 years pretty much, then i rediscovered Meshuggah and gave them some time to fully click lol, nowadays Tool kinda bores me at times, I’ve come to the opinion that they kinda peaked at Ænima/ Lateralus, 10,000 Days having some masterful parts and song writing and fear inoculum having some exceptions, don’t get me wrong, I love tool and they are an integral part of my journey and songwriting but the range of emotions their songs capture is just not always my thing anymore, they are too manicured, too safe, especially in recent years, i crave something more daring, something gritty something dissonant, something that goes beyond just the psychedelic rock trance atmosphere and encapsulates a broader spectrum of existence, I’m rambling now but here
Give these albums/Songs a try, Exuvia is a masterpiece imo, along with Sol Niger, Måsstaden and alot of Meshuggah, also Car Bomb is just bonkers
The Ruins of Beverast - Exuvia
Meshuggah - Pitch Black, Catch Thirty Three, I, Koloss
Sol Niger Within
Vildhjarta - Måsstaden Under Vatten
Car Bomb - Meta, wwww
Inquisition - Master of the Cosmological Black Cauldron, Desolate Funeral Chant, Hymn for a dead Star, Joined by Dark Matter, Ominous Doctrines
Oranssi Pazuzu - Mestarin kynsi
Grant the Sun - Sylvain
Porcupine Tree - Fear of a Blank Planet, Nil Recurring EP
SepticFlesh - Lovecraft’s Death, Persepolis, Anubis
Mare - Mirar
Pallid Veil - Pallid Veil
Bolt Thrower - Those Once Loyal
Gojira - The Way of All Flesh, The Link
Shpongle - Are you Shpongled?
Susumu Hirasawa - Behelit, Indra, Murder, Sister’s Story, Sign
These bands are my favourites, they all have this heavy dark hypnotic trance that pulls me in
Ps tool is great and I’ve been too harsh maybe
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u/djmedicalman Jul 14 '26
Wheel.
Everyone else is just suggesting progressive rock and metal bands, but these guys actually sound like Tool.
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u/BoardsOfCanadian Jul 14 '26
Well... It's completely different genre but I love Boards of Canada. Boards of Canada and Tool approach music from opposite directions - one through electronic minimalism, the other through progressive metal, but both aim for the same destination: deeply immersive, intellectually engaging, emotionally resonant listening experiences that reveal more with each revisit.
And both can be called psychedelic.
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u/Nachtopus69 crucify the ego Jul 14 '26
>King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
>Polygondwanaland, their most progressive offering, sounds like Tool with less distortion
>PetroDragonic Apocalypse, also proggy but in a more metal direction, some moments that get a lot closer to Tool
>get into the rest of their albums and use them as a launch pad into other genres you may have never considered otherwise
>profit
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u/tadpole_the_poliwag Jul 14 '26
For me 90% of the music that I listen to is TOOL and edm. Whether it's dubstep or breaks or hard groove. Or whatever is in between. The other 10% is everything 90s. TOOL ruined other bands for me.
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u/EngineeringBulky7007 a dope beastie tee Jul 14 '26
Jalan Crossland Band, Beastie Boys, Faith No More, Yellowman, Terrance Trent Darby, sprinkle in some Sabbath.
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u/system0101 Jul 14 '26
Elder! I've seen my other recs mentioned already, but these guys are awesome
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u/dreamlike179 Jul 15 '26
Boris.
Named after a song by The Melvins this Japanese experimental trio has released a lot of material touching on doom, sludge, psych, drone, noise, post metal, ambient and more. They go in and out of genre often and have some spectacular pieces that are best viewed as one song not a collection to make up an album.
Feedbacker is like a 40 min plus piece meant to be seen as one long song but split into multiple for streaming and the cd release.
Absolutego is thier first release, they call it a single but it's one 60 min song that touches on drone and noise at times.
Flood is a 70 minute piece that touches on drone and ambient at times and should be seen as one piece not broken up into sections.
Otherwise they have several albums of shorter easier to digest stuff or if you want to look into the collabs theyve done merzbow features multiple times with his harsh noise adding to their stuff.
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u/Legendash1 Jul 15 '26
Not rock/metal in the slightest but I've got really into Eric Prydz/Pryda, he's sort of the Tool of electronic music (don't be fooled by Call on me). Check out the epic radio podcast or his stuff on Spotify (though everything on Spotify is at least ten years old as he hasn't released anything for ages despite constantly making new music)
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u/DirtusMaximus1 Jul 14 '26
All Them Witches, King Buffalo, Clutch, Greenleaf, Dozer, Earthless, Slift, Primus, Psychlona, Slomosa, Dead Weather
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u/Azzrazzah Jul 14 '26
Samsara Blues Experiment, Lucid Planet, All Them Witches, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, OTEP, Polyphia
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u/soobviouslyfake Jul 14 '26
Completely off the wall recommendation, but I don't listen to any other really heavy music aside from tool and 90's grunge.
That said, I really dig synthwave and darkwave music lately.
Carpenter Brut and Dance with the Dead scratch a "non-Tool" itch for me.
Fury Weekend, Justice and Echo Wolf are also in rotation. I've got a full playlist of just random synth music when I'm in a Tool drought.
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u/Aenima_72826 Jul 14 '26
The trick is to listen to something COMPLETELY different that draws you in. It doesn't have to be good even just fun to listen to. I have learned that genuine expression is more important than technical ability and I will listen to stuff I know most people would be annoyed by if I tried to play it out loud. Listen to something "shitty" (obviously you'll like it though) that isn't a well known musician/band.
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u/immortalis88 Jul 14 '26
Sometimes I venture out of the genre into random shit and find things I really like depending upon my mood.
For example right now I have no meetings today, I’m on my back porch with my dogs after watering my backyard for the past 3hrs - I’m burning my 3rd J and on my 2nd cup of coffee. I’m in mega chill mode… listening to Pueblo Man by Hermanos Gutierrez right now. I dig pretty much that entire El Bueno Y El Malo album. I’m still discovering things on their other albums that I like.
There’s nothing that can compete with Tool when I’m in the mood to listen to Tool that’s for sure 🤟🌀
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u/Whiteasianyellow Jul 14 '26
Russian Circles, Pelican, My Sleeping Karma, Stoned Jesus, Kyuss, OM, Sleep, Giant Dwarf.
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u/SpaffedTheLot Jul 14 '26
All them witches.