10 Best Hard Rock Albums Of The 2000s

As the new millennium was dawning, Tool had already shown themselves to be one of the most off-the-wall metal acts of the modern age. While their debut Undertow set the stage, their last release Aenima had many fans curious about the band's creative direction. If this is just the second release, what would the band's next effort sound like?

Upon first listening to Lateralus, the album is an absolutely brain-melting experience that takes the listener on a sonic journey through a myriad of different topics from human existence to the loss of connection between individuals. This is the juncture where the band went from being a complicated metal band to being the heaviest prog rock act to come out of the metal sphere. The beauty behind these tracks comes from the fact that they can be listened to on different levels. Various time signature changes and recording idiosyncrasies are perfect for music nerds, but the songs are equally as strong if you just wanted to headbang to them.

Before they reached the 2000's, Tool was another exemplary metal band standing out amongst the rest. After Lateralus, the world found out that this was a band that could not only push themselves forward, but even push the entire hard rock genre into unchartered territories.