Do the Math

3.12.2006

Fibonacci Abounds in Tool's Lateralus

Based on the findings of a Kentucky blogger, the Fibonacci sequence manifests itself in Tool's current album, Lateralus. In the first instance, Maynard James Keenan sings the title track by keeping each line's syllables in step with the sequence. For example:
black [1]
then [1]
white are [2]
all I see [3]
in my infancy [5]
red and yellow then came to be [8]
reaching out to me [5]
lets me see [3]
there is [2]
so [1]
much [1]
more and [2]
beckons me [3]
to look through to these [5]
infinite possibilities [8]
as below so above and beyond I imagine [13]
drawn outside the lines of reason [8]
push the envelope [5]
watch it bend [3]
Maynard's mathematical musings don't end there. Drummer Danny Carey also plays the sequence ranging from one to thirteen throughout the song.

The article also suggests that there is some alternate order to the songs on the album, based on clues offered by Fibonacci and Maynard's lyrics.