2002.09.04 - St. Paul, MN, USA @ Xcel Energy Center
Source A: DAT --- Soundman OKM-II Rock > Sony TCD-D8

Notes: Very clear recording. The bass is crisp, sharp but not at all muddy like so many other recordings. The guitar sort of just punches and Dan's drumming is very clear. Vocals, of course, are mixed in very nicely. One of the better audience recordings from the Summer tour. Everything, the sound, is just so damn full & vibrant - it would be nice to hear more recordings of this caliber. And, taking a guess, the taper was not exceedingly close to the speakers but the quality is still very high. It is arguable as to how Tool was really feeling or doing at this point, tired I assume, as some have mentioned a lack of energy. All in all, this recording is a good capture of a decent performance and is, if nothing else, definitely a good listen.

  CD 1
Time: 77:01                                                                                

CD 2
Time: 56:53

Tuva
Sober
The Grudge
(-) Ions
Stinkfist
<Suspicious Minds + White Lines>
H.
Schism
Parabol
Parabola
Opiate
Intermission
Disposition
Reflection
Triad
Lateralus

Source B-1: Digital 8 --- Realistic 33-1065 > Sony TVR330  - Center Shot
Taper:         Sixwords
Source B-2: Unknown Video Recording Equipment - Right Shot
Taper:          ?
Source B:     B-1 + B-2 = This source

Notes: All in all, a pretty nice capture of Tool with the ever-so-interesting 2 camera mix angles. Unfortunately, this was version was put onto VHS & then to DVD thus there are hints of VHS 'grain' that is a trademark of these transfers. Also, there is a little bar of color at the bottom of the screen - common in VHS > DVD (or just VHS) copies of shows. The sound is pretty nice, overall. The microphones do have their limitations but is decent for a video source. The mix between the 2 camera angles was done rather nice as there are some real smooth fade ins/outs between them. Close-ups are a little lacking but this is due to the filmers’ being a good distance away; the same could be said about the audio as well. Now, is there a better source of this exact show somewhere out there w/o the added Gen from the VHS? I think so. One of the taper's contacted me once & offered this show to me for $50 - I obviously said no way; that is a lot for an AUD of Tool, no? As for the CD transfer, decent sound. Slightly muffled sound but relatively clear. There are a couple of slight audio drop-outs. I would say they would be mini-drops. Not terribly bad but not all that charming, either. This part of the tour, I am pretty sure that the band wanted nothing other than to go home, relax & watch some porn. As such, I think this performance seems quite a bit un-inspired, rehearsed and standard. Like, Tool was giving it all they had to give at this point of the tour.

Maynardism:
"Minnesota. Are you sure? Sounds more like Wisconsin. Well, step up -  you are embarrassing Kevin."
Maynardism:
"I wasn't going to take off my shirt but I saw some of you people getting naked so I figured why not...feel free to continue"

Time: 1:45:45

Source C: Unknown Recording

Notes: To my ears, this sounds like a Core Sound Binaural recording sourced from a Mini Disc. Unsure when it was released. Muffled vocals, bass hits hard, guitar and drums somewhat buried but that said not a bad recording. Crowd screams by the microphones, loud, several times. If this was the only source one would think not too bad but, alas, there are two other verified sources. There are several instances of what sounds like the input of the recorder having issues where one side (Left or Right) is limited for a few seconds.

Time: 2:04:17