Lzzy Hale, vocalist/guitarist for multi-platinum hard rockers Halestorm recently recounted how her early 2000s devotion to cryptic alternative metal stars Tool was so fierce it affected her love life. In a conversation with Guitar Player published earlier this month, Hale recounted the ten records that changed her life.
Among her choices was Tool‘s 3x multi-platinum 2001 opus, “Lateralus“. Recalling the impact that album had on her, she told the aforementioned publication:
“My little bro Arejay was getting really good on the drums. He had learned Tool’s song ‘Schism’ from the radio, so I thought that I should get him the whole album for his birthday. We just devoured it. I ended up getting really into it myself. Listening to their music was just like watching a horror film.
I had a shitty waitress job, and I got us tickets to see Tool at Hershey Park. I was so stoked. Then Arejay did something to piss off our parents, so they wouldn’t allow him to go. I thought, Okay, this could be an opportunity to ask somebody out on a date, which I did. I asked this guy Nate, and he said yes. I was like, Sweet! We didn’t have great seats, but it didn’t matter — the show was amazing. I was singing every world. Halfway through, I looked at my date and saw that he had fallen asleep — total deal-breaker for me.
So in a weird way, Tool’s Lateralus was a life-changer. My brother still teases me about it: ‘I wouldn’t have fallen asleep.’”
Hale has long since bounced back, having been involved in a relationship with her Halestorm bandmate Joe Hottinger for numerous years now.
