Ænima

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Professional reviews
Ænima

Studio album by Tool
Released	October 1, 1996
Recorded	September 1995 – March 1996 at Ocean Way, Hollywood, California and The Hook, North Hollywood, California
Genre	Progressive rock Alternative metal
Length	77:25
Label	Volcano Records
Producer(s)	David Bottrill
All Music Guide link Alternative Press 7 January 1997 (p. 84) Entertainment Weekly (A−) October 4, 1996 (p. 62)
Tool chronology
Undertow (1993)	Ænima (1996)	Salival (2000)

Ænima is the second full-length studio album by the American rock band Tool. It was released on October 1, 1996. The album was recorded and cut at Ocean Way, Hollywood, California and The Hook, North Hollywood, California from 1995 to 1996.

1 Overview
2 Track listing
3 Personnel
4 Trivia
5 Charting
- 5.1 Album
- 5.2 Singles
6 References

[edit] Overview

The title Ænima (English pronunciation "onoma" as revealed by guitarist Adam Jones in a radio interview, which can be downloaded from the band's website) is a combination of the words 'anima' (Latin for 'soul' associated with deep emotionality and the force of life itself, a term often used by psychologist Carl Jung) and 'enema' (anal cleansing), hence creating a new word for catharsis: cleansing of the soul.

Videos were made for both "Stinkfist" and "Ænema". At the time of its release, there was much speculation as to possibly offensive meanings behind the term "Stinkfist". For that reason, it was only referred to as "Track #1" on MTV and VH1, and VJs never actually referred to the song by its proper name. VJ Kennedy would often make fun of this, and would symbolically sniff her fist before playing the video. Stinkfist has been a popular choice for club DJs playing Tool because of its popularity, familiarity and suitability.

The track "Ænema" won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 1997.

Ænima was certified triple platinum by the RIAA on March 4, 2003.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by Keenan/Jones/Chancellor/Carey, except as indicated.

"Stinkfist" (Keenan/Jones/Carey/D'Amour) – 5:09
"Eulogy" (Keenan/Jones/Carey/D'Amour) – 8:25
"H." – 6:07
"Useful Idiot" – 0:38
"Forty Six & 2" – 6:02
"Message to Harry Manback" – 1:53
"Hooker with a Penis" – 4:31
"Intermission" – 0:56
"jimmy" – 5:22
"Die Eier von Satan" – 2:16
"Pushit" (Keenan/Jones/Carey/D'Amour) – 9:55
"Cesaro Summability" – 1:26
"Ænema" (Keenan/Jones/Carey/D'Amour) – 6:37
"(−) ions" – 3:58
"Third Eye" (Keenan/Jones/Carey/Chancellor/Hicks) – 13:47

Songwriting credits sourced from Toolshed website FAQ.^[1] Tracks 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14 are interludes.

[edit] Personnel

Danny Carey – Drums
Justin Chancellor – Bass
Adam Jones – Guitar, Producer, Art Direction
Maynard James Keenan – Vocals
Bill Hicks – Guest vocals
Chris Pitman – Synthesizer
Karen Mason
David Bottrill – Keyboards, Producer, Engineer, Mixing
Joel Larson
Concetta Halstead – Producer, Design
Jeff Novack – Photography
Eban Schletter – Organ
Kevin Willis – Producer, Art Direction, Paintings
Alana Cain – Model
Keith Willis – Artwork
Mark Rappaport – Effects Consultant
Cam de Leon – Artwork, Computer Illustration
Jeremy Glasgow – Assistant Percussionist
Fabrico DiSanto – Photography, Photo Assistance
Marko Fox (member of ZAUM) - Vocals on "Die Eier von Satan"
Gudrun Fox – Translation of "Die Eier von Satan"
Billy Howerdel (A Perfect Circle) - Guitar Tech, 'Pro Tools' technician

[edit] Trivia

The album was released a week early on vinyl only.
In Jungian psychology, the feminine aspect of a male that exists in the subconscious mind is called the anima, which appears in the dreams as a prominent female person. It is also the Latin word for "soul" or "mind" depending on context. (For females, Jung said an animus existed, which was instead male.) In the last LA show of the Ænima tour, Maynard says that Ænema is a combination of "anima" and "enema." He refers to a process when someone has an enema and interprets the remains in a way similar to the way one would tea leaves.^{[verification needed]}
The album is a dedication (of sorts) to the late comedian Bill Hicks:
- A painting of him is included in the liner notes, proclaiming him "Another Dead Hero".
- The lyrics in the song "Ænema" refer to the state of California falling into the ocean after the San Andreas Fault breaks, an idea by Bill Hicks presented in his album Arizona Bay. The idea is also illustrated in the interior disc tray of the album art.
- The final track, the thirteen minute epic "Third Eye", samples a few of Hicks' sketches — including "Drugs have done good things for us."
North American pressings of the Ænima CD were packaged in a custom jewel case that consisted of a lenticular jewel case (called a "Multi-Image™ CD case" in the liner notes) for the cover and interior disc tray; the cover art, as well as other images in the liner notes can be set behind the lenticular "lens" to create an effect of sequential animation (another allusion to the album's title). European pressings of the CD featured a standard case, and the insert contained the covers of fictional Tool releases. The special images used for the lenticular effect:
- Cam de Leon's painting Smoke Box,^[2] with animated smoke and encompassing eyes.
- A touched-up version of Cam de Leon's painting Ocular Orifice,^[3] with the pupil of the eye animated to rotate completely around.
- A photo of a nude contortionist sitting on the floor in a position that suggests he or she is performing autofellatio or autocunnilingus, but the person's back is to the viewer and thus it is not revealed what he or she is doing. In the background is the band Tool seated on a couch (both Danny and Maynard are also nude) looking on. This picture may refer to a Bill Hicks sketch about autofellatio.
- An image of California before and after a major earthquake (seen in the jewel case tray) — presumably a nod to the lyrics of "Ænema" and the aforementioned "Arizona Bay" Bill Hicks sketch.
A "useful idiot" is a derisive term to describe a person whose ignorance or blinding loyalty to a political movement often results in reinforcement of the opposite view. The Ænima track "Useful Idiot" is actually the sound of a vinyl record reaching the end of a side. Because on vinyl pressings this track is at the end of the first side, it has lead some listeners to believe the track is missing.
"Message to Harry Manback" is, according to drummer Danny Carey, "a recording of the words of an uninvited Italian guest who came to Maynard's house one day. A so-called friend of a friend of a friend of Harry's ... Before we finally managed to figure out that nobody really knew him, he had already emptied the fridge and run up a huge phone bill. He got kicked out of the house."^{[verification needed]}
The track "Intermission" is the chorus melody of "jimmy" played on a organ, a throwback to the organ music frequently played during theatrical intermissions.
"jimmy" is indeed written without a capital letter, as written in the album's liner notes.
"Die Eier von Satan" is a hash cookie recipe spoken in German. The title translates to "The Eggs of Satan", although "Eier" is a double-entendre in German as a slang word for testicles.
"Cesaro Summability" is the name of the mathematical convergence of a Cesàro mean.
The title "(−) ions" refers to negatively-charged ions, also known as anions. The track uses samples of a High Voltage Travelling Arc, commonly known as Jacob's ladder, which could reference the title. Also sampled are sounds of a steel sheet being shaken, and wind.

Lyrics were not printed in the liner notes, but are available on the band's website.^[4]
Vinyl copies of the album are rare, with sealed copies having sold on eBay for well over US$500.00. The picture-disc vinyl promo version is extremely rare (less than 50 copies exist), and has sold on eBay for well over US$1000.00.
The entire album (including the sound collages) was covered by a string quartet in 2006 as The String Quartet Tribute to Tool's Ænima, arranged by Eric Gorfain.
Danny Carey's third cyberclinic on his personal website discusses the time signature and solo for the song "Forty Six & 2." His notes include his establishment of an inner pulse in order to easily play the song, and as such he breaks the 7/4 time of one measure into 2-2-3. These two numbers seem to hold much significance for the band ("Viginti Tres", "Disposition/Reflection/Triad"). (http://www.dannycarey.org/cyberclinicthree.html) Not only are these numbers important in music as the building blocks of rhythm, but they are important in contrast to other numbers because 1 times any number is simply that number (in other words, 1 is an identity number), and 4 is 2^2 or 2x2 or even 2+2. Any number higher than 3 can be found by a combination of the numbers 2 and 3, while 2 and 3 themselves cannot be found without the use of the number 1 (1+1=2; 1+2=3/1+1+1=3) in composition (as opposed to division/subtraction). The titles of Disposition, Reflection, and Triad can be seen as metaphors for 1, 2, and 3 (respectively, because disposition (as displacement, a synonym) is the movement inside 1 body (in relation to the song, any change in a singular system causes eveything else to change), and is commonly discussed in Greek philosophy as the means for the illusion of movement in the singular body of reality (there is only that which exists, making all that exists singular), reflection is the perception of one body/time in relation to another, and triad is the unity of 1 and 2 together, creating the third separate thing (so there is 1, there is 2, but there's also 1 with two, or 3, which pushes the boundary of what already is there)).

[edit] Charting

[edit] Album

Year	Chart	Position
1996	Billboard 200	#2

[edit] Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1996	"Stinkfist"	Mainstream Rock Tracks (U.S.)	#17
1996	"Stinkfist"	Modern Rock Tracks (U.S.)	#19
1997	"H."	Mainstream Rock Tracks (U.S.)	#23
1997	"Ænema"	Mainstream Rock Tracks (U.S.)	#25
1997	"Forty Six & 2"	Mainstream Rock Tracks (U.S.)	#22