Review by Allan on March 8, 2002.

"Opiate". This is where it all began for Tool, a band that has grown in leaps and bounds since they first started the band. This album is where it all started to fall in place for a band that continues to progress even today. Even with their first EP it was obvious that Tool was going to become a force to be reckon with.

The band, choosing at the time the heaviest songs they’d written, put together this six track EP, including one hidden track. While they are some of the heaviest songs the band has written, there still is a strong melody within the songs, and the ever-noticeable vocals of Maynard James Keenan. Even in his earliest days could this man sing! He only gets better from this day forward also. Moving through seven tracks of excellent hard-hitting rock, this album will leave you wanting more!

With this EP you could first start to see the potential in Tool. The ideas were there, the band was just having a little trouble manifesting it. They were hard rock on this album, but you knew they were striving for something more. You knew that there was a meaning to the music, but it was just a little vague. This is one of the few EP’s I know of that I feel the need to include in a discography. I would almost call it a debut. Despite it’s ruff edges, "Opiate" is one of the best EP’s I’ve ever had the pleasure of listening to.

Bottom Line: Tool has progressed on and surpassed this, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t something you shouldn’t have. This is one of the best EP’s any band has ever put out, and is worth more than just a look into the past of a great band.

Originality: 8
Musicianship: 7
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 8
Overall: 7

Rating: 7.4 out of 10