Tool are in talks for a Sphere residency next year, which could coincide with a new record.
READ MORE: Puscifer: “It might seem dark at the moment, but humans at their core are a positive light”
In a new interview with Spiral Out, the Los Angeles metal band’s drummer, Danny Carey, confirmed that they were working on the follow-up to their latest LP, ‘Fear Inoculum‘, which arrived in 2019.
“[We’re] working on a lot of new Tool songs right now,” he said (per Blabbermouth). He went on to add that the ultimate goal was to release the new material in 2027.
After the interviewer noted Tool were “a very cinematic band”, particularly when it came to the visual spectacle of their live shows, Carey agreed. “Yeah, we’re very much into that,” he said. “We’re hoping when we release the new record, maybe do a stint at the Sphere ’cause I think we’re the perfect band for that. We’ve been talking to those guys.”
He went on to say that “the preparation” involved in bringing a huge Sphere residency to fruition was “pretty intense”, explaining: “It’s a very expensive endeavour, and it takes a while to get into the black. I think [you have to play] quite a few shows before you make any money.”
Asked if he has ever been to the Sphere, Danny said: “Yeah. Well, I just took a tour of it. I haven’t actually seen a full-on show, but they took [us around the venue] to show it off. It’s incredible, man. I almost got vertigo [just looking at it].”
The groundbreaking Las Vegas sphere – which opened in 2023, cost $2.3billion to make, and features an exosphere with over 1.2million puck-sized LEDs that transmit images across the Las Vegas skyline.
It opened its doors in September 2023 with a residency by U2, which NME hailed as “taking the live concert experience ‘to the next level’” and delivering “a fine balancing act of doing just that while also ensuring their music remains very much at the forefront”.
Since then, Phish, Dead & Company, the Eagles and the Backstreet Boys have all played residencies at the venue, and it is also the home to an immersive 4D version of The Wizard Of Oz.
Tool are also not the only metal band who’ve been linked to the Sphere. Last year, reports emerged that Metallica were supposedly close to signing a deal to play a residency at the Las Vegas Sphere in 2027.
Rumours have been swirling for some time about the possibility of the band being the latest act to play a series of shows at the state-of-the-art venue, with local media suggesting they were “ready to ink a deal” last summer, and both Lars Ulrich and Robert Trujillo openly discussing the scenario in recent months.
Late last month, a report from The Sun has cited a source in Las Vegas who said the band are about 90 per cent done with the deal and are now just waiting to sign the final contract.
As for Tool, back in 2024, NME sat down with bassist Justin Chancellor shortly before they set off on a UK and European tour, where he touched on departing from their usual style and the possibility of doing some more stripped-back, intimate gigs.
“Personally, I think that would be great,” he said at the time. “I don’t know how feasible it is at the moment because we’re riding this wave and it’s hard to get off it. While so many people want to come and see us and be a part of the bigger shows, it’s hard to not say yes to that.
“But to do a good club show would be amazing. I guess a few years ago, we did a theatre run which was a bit more intimate and had a different vibe to usual. And we have talked about it — the idea of grouping up in the middle of the stage and just standing around, playing as if we were in a club — but we haven’t quite made that leap yet. Maybe we’ll wait until it winds down, then we’ll start playing at the cigar bars, being stuck in our old ways!”
Meanwhile, the band’s Maynard James Keenan also spoke about Puscifer’s new album ‘Normal Isn’t’ to NME recently. On the long-awaited follow-up to 2020’s ‘Existential Reckoning’, he said: “With any music that we’re doing, there’s an element of trying to challenge yourself and break your own mould.
“I think it helps as an artist to, instead of just settling into a process, find a way to throw yourself back to the beginning and start over.”
The band will also be embarking on a US tour later this month – visit here for tickets and a list of upcoming tour dates.
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