People are obsessed with enigmas, especially enigmatic musicians.

When The Weeknd released his critically acclaimed mixtape House of Balloons, his haunting voice, eerie production, and ambiguous lyrics were further studied and discussed because of his anonymity. He refused to reveal his identity and didn't make public appearances until he was already a certified underground icon. This kind of air of mystique has historically aided in generating buzz around a band or artist.

For Maynard James Keenan and the other members of Tool, the mystique surrounding everything, from their recording process to their lyrics, have raised them to an almost quasi-religious status among fans. In The Weeknd's case, it was revealed that the singer historically struggled with crippling shyness and anxiety. He wasn't anonymous by choice; the idea of fame reportedly scared the shit out of him. In contrast, for Keenan and the boys, they've purposefully kept their fans at arm's length. The quintet has been teasing a new album for 13 years, giving Tool fans the longest-lasting blue balls in the history of rock and roll.

Keenan has purposefully dodged questions surrounding a new Tool release, many times expressing frustration at journalists for even inquiring. In an interview with The Phoenix New Times in 2015, Keenan attacked his fan base and refused to discuss anything Tool-related. The interview came at the tail end of a two-year-long miscommunication. "The record will be out later this year," said Drummer Danny Carey in 2013 after admitting a near-fatal scooter accident temporarily derailed recording. Later that year, Keenan dismissed this notion, saying there were "no actual songs" even created yet. In 2014, Carey once again said a new Tool album would surface in "early 2014." Keenan once again denied these claims: "I can't write until I hear the sounds...and I haven't heard the sounds." The back and forth continued every year, all the way into 2018. "I'm saying definitely," Carey told Loudwire of a new Tool album. "We'll probably have it done in the first half [of the year] if things go as planned." He later told Kerrang! that the record was actually still a "work in progress." In March 2018, the band formally announced that they had actually just "entered the studio" to begin the "recording process."



Last week, guitarist Adam Jones took to Instagram to announce that the wait was finally over. While the caption spoke of his "excitement," fans were quick to point out how miserable Jones looked in the announcement photo. The new album is called Fear Inoculum and will supposedly be released on August 30th. Keenan followed up the band's announcement with an awkward statement of his own. "Our obsession with, and dream of, a world where BetaMax and Laser Disc rule has ended," he wrote. "Time for us to move on. But never fear. There's a brand new thing we think you're really gonna dig. It's called Digital Downloads and Streaming. Get ready for the future, folks!"

Tool has always had a perplexing resistance to mainstream conformity, and once upon a time, their enigmatic behavior no doubt contributed to their edgy and cool image. But to make such odd and dated statements about streaming music indicates a frontman out of touch with reality. Streaming is no longer the hip new wave of the "future" but the general norm, and if the band's sudden flux of online activity has proven anything, it's that that they know the general public has lost interest in the drama and mystery that encompassed "Tools 5th record."

Keenan's statement was, in its own way, a white flag, because they know if they were to release Fear Inoculum just like past Tool records, it would only appeal to the same fanatics Keenan once called "insufferable retards." The lethargic back and forth over the last 13 years became tiresome for many and painted Tool as hollow and self-obsessed. "Tool's entire marketing platform is steeped in a mystique that tool fans buy into any time you hear Maynard sort of express himself…" wrote a Tool fan on Reddit. Keenan, after A Perfect Circle's flaccid return, is forced to turn towards the band he hates most in order to regain mainstream relevance. At some point, the chicken has to come home to roost, but is it too late for Keenan and the boys?