“Schism” by Tool

"Schism" was the first single and first video from Lateralus, Tool's third full-length album, released in 2001, and it's a knot of a song that keeps untying itself and tying back up. It's famous among the faithful for its odd time signatures and how often the meter shifts underfoot. Justin Chancellor's bass carries that main riff, which he says came out of idle fooling around, and in 2013 Loudwire counted it among the best metal riffs of the 2000s.

Adam Jones's guitar circles it, Danny Carey's drums lurch and pivot as if counting in a private language, and Maynard James Keenan starts cool and measured before the band cranks the tension. All four share the writing credit. Like much of Lateralus, it borrows math and science as metaphors for relationships, the hard work of getting people talking again once things have fallen apart. David Bottrill co-produced with the band, recorded and mixed it.

In 2002 it won Tool the Grammy for Best Metal Performance, and it came out on a DVD single in 2005 with commentary from David Yow and a Lustmord remix.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.