Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles , California . The band emerged with a heavy metal sound on their first studio album , Undertow ( 1993 ) , and later became a dominant act in the alternative metal movement , with the release of their second album , Ænima in 1996 . Their efforts to unify musical experimentation , visual arts , and a message of personal evolution continued , with Lateralus ( 2001 ) and the most recent album , 10,000 Days ( 2006 ) , gaining the band critical acclaim , and commercial success around the world . Due to Tool 's incorporation of visual arts and very long and complex releases , the band is generally described as a style-transcending act and part of progressive rock , psychedelic rock , and art rock . The relationship between the band and today 's music industry is ambivalent , at times marked by censorship , and the band 's insistence on privacy .
Tool is a band.