Opiate (album)
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Opiate was an extended-play release by alternative rock band Tool in 1992, coming just a year before their first full-length album, Undertow, and some two years after their formation in 1990 and tours with Rage Against the Machine.
It features six tracks with seven songs (a hidden track entitled "The Gaping Lotus Experience" starts at 6:06 of Track 6; the second side of the vinyl version is double-grooved; dropping the needle at a certain point during "Cold and Ugly" will actually play the hidden track instead). Unlike their later releases, Opiate doesn't deal with a wide range of topics, or incorporate a lot of complexity in its songs. More than anything, it's a typical Metal record from the early '90s. The first track, "Sweat," is quite indicative of their future work, dealing with a slightly more complex topic and using metaphorical material. The rest of the album uses society as a focal point—more specifically, society's problems.
The song "Hush" is about censorship and political correctness, and is accompanied by a video featuring the whole band wearing signs reading "Parental Advisory: Explicit Parts" over their genitalia. The songs "Jerk-Off" and "Opiate" also deal with society, and while it may not be life-altering material, it is definitely a great starting point to open up one's mind to the rest of the band's work.
Opiate was certified gold by the RIAA on January 12, 1996.
Track listing
- Sweat (3:46)
- Hush (2:48)
- Part Of Me (3:17)
- Cold And Ugly (Live) (4:09)
- Jerk-Off (Live) (4:23)
- Opiate (7:41) ((5:22) on the vinyl printing. The hidden track is not tacked onto the end of the track, but is placed elsewhere)
- Contains the hidden track The Gaping Lotus Experience.
- On the vinyl pressings, side 2 is double grooved. Depending on where the needle falls, The Gaping Lotus Experience will play or Cold And Ugly (Live) will play. Both tracks are followed by some silence, then the record player will go and play the last two tracks.