The album appeared on several lists of the best albums of 1996,В including that of Kerrang!В and Terrorizer.В The album won theВ Grammy Award for Best Metal PerformanceВ in 1998.В In 2003, Г†nimaВ was ranked the 6th most influential album of all time by Kerrang!В In 2006, it placed 14th on a Guitar World readers poll that attempted to find the best 100 guitar albums. On its initial release, the album debuted at number two on the BillboardВ 200В chart, and has since been certifiedВ triple platinumВ by theВ RIAAВ on March 4, 2003.В As of July 7, 2010, Г†nimaВ has sold 3,429,000 copies in the US. The album was released on SepteminВ vinylВ format and on OctoinВ Compact DiscВ format.В The album was recorded and cut atВ Ocean Way,В Hollywood, CaliforniaВ andВ The Hook,В North Hollywood, CaliforniaВ from 1995 to 1996. Г†nimaВ is the second studio album by AmericanВ rockВ bandВ Tool. There really is no other band like Tool (at least, not to the best of my knowledge), and this album is one I proudly place in my personal 1,001 albums you must hear before you die. I remember hearing Message to Harry Manback and thinking, вЂњdamn, I wonder who that is and why heвЂ™s so hated.вЂќ I remember hearingВ Г†nema and thinking how much I loved that utter nihilism. German just about always sounds powerful, though. I remember hearing Die Eier Von Satan as a kid and thinking, вЂњwow, I wonder if thatвЂ™s some Nazi rant or something.вЂќ Goes to show the power that tone of voice and language can have. This, and Antichrist Superstar (which I wonвЂ™t include in this blog since itвЂ™s already in the 1,001 Albums book), really opened my eyes to the vast potential of art. This was an album that opened a lot of doors in my mind that I didnвЂ™t realize were there.

I mean, Tool is one of my favorite bands, and I couldвЂ™ve picked any album from their catalog and written about how much I love it and why, but I chose this because this is the one that resonated the most with me. This is still one of my absolute favorite albums after 15 years. Not that GrammyвЂ™s matter much in the end (in my opinion, anyway), but it does say something for the album.

Shit, the album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Recording Package. I mean, hello? Tool (and just about any Maynard band) sells out just about every venue they perform at, and theyвЂ™re the first band I think of when I consider the merit(s) of purchasing a physical copy of an album. Wow, guysвЂ¦ seriously? You write a book called вЂњ1,001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die,вЂќ and you donвЂ™t include any Tool albums whatsoever?! ? IвЂ™m astonished that such a fascinating band could possibly go overlooked by the writers of that book.

Tool aenima album art