Tool Bassist Justin Chancellor Says 'Fear Inoculum' Was About Getting 'Rid of the Fear'

Tool Bassist Justin Chancellor Says ‘Fear Inoculum’ Was About Getting ‘Rid of the Fear’

2020-01-02

Story by Charles Ken, photo by Travis Shinn

Justin Chancellor of Tool says the band refused to give up when creating their follow-up to 2006’s “10,000 Days”

Progressive rock band Tool took more than a decade to churn out a new studio album, the epic “Fear Inoculum,” and bass player Justin Chancellor is opening up about why the guys took their time with the release and, also, the mind space they were in creating it.

“I can’t speak for everybody, but I guess it would be: Do you have anything left to give? What’s your purpose?” Chancellor told Metal Hammer.

“When you’re getting older, you think about what you have to offer, and what’s the point of your life,” he added. “We are all musicians, and we’re not really good musicians. But we have this gracious gift that has been bestowed on us, and we don’t want to disappoint. So I guess our biggest fear would be, just giving up.”

Of course, Tool could have chosen not to even follow up 2006’s “10,000 Days.” After all, there is always anxiety to follow-up a great release, such as “10,000 Days,” and an expectation. But, drummer Danny Carey said the guys would not give up.

“The Fear Inoculum thing was, ‘Get rid of the fear and don’t worry about it,'” Carey said. “Especially after we had taken so long, because we knew we were going to take heat.”

Maynard James Keenan and the guys of Tool spent much of 2019 on tour to promote “Fear Inoculum,” and that trend will continue. The band will kick off a new leg of their U.S. tour on Jan. 10 in San Diego, California.

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Charles Ken

Meet the expert - Charles Ken is a graduate of Michigan State University where he studied writing and history. He's a longtime music buff and covers classic rock for Audio Ink Radio. Contact him at ken@audioinkradio.com.