Maynard James Keenan Opens Up On Tool Album Delay

Maynard James Keenan is putting the finger on his bandmates for the long wait for Tool's new album.

The group has been working for some time on a follow-up to 2006's 10,000 Days, and Keenan tells "The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast" that he's mostly waiting for guitarist Adam Jones, bassist Justin Chancellor and drummer Danny Carey to come up with the musical goods:

"Their writing process is so drawn out, and I'm sure there's a lot of reasons why the delay has been long. Their process is very analytical and I think at some point, maybe because so much time has gone by from the last album there has to be a little fear there in here...They're always going back over things and questioning what they did and stepping back and going back farther and going forward and, in a way, they're laying a foundation. They're putting in the footings for a house. So I can't write melodies until the footings are in place. I can't write words until the melodies are in place. I can't build walls and then start decorating until the foundation is in place."

Tool was on the road during May and June and has posted studio updates during the past year. There's no word yet on any completion or timetable for release.

Keenan, meanwhile, is gearing up for a tour with one of his other bands, A Perfect Circle, later this year as well as the release of that group's fourth album later this year or during early 2018.

Gary Graff is an award-winning music journalist who not only covers music but has written books on Bob Seger, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen.