Free Solo‘ star Alex Honnold made headlines last month, captivating audiences around the world via his January 26th Netflix broadcasted 101-story climb up the side of the Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan. Performed without the aid of ropes, that daredevil stunt also made headlines in the music world after Honnold revealed he personally soundtracked that ascent with a playlist consisting mostly of Tool tracks.
His preference for the music of the aforementioned mathematically-inclined alternative metal juggernauts wasn’t just motivational. As Honnold told Variety, the length of the songs featured on his playlist also helped him establish a steady pace. He told that publication the following about his playlist:
“It was mostly Tool. It’s a random playlist that I made, that I shared with production. I made it months ago while I was driving. I’ve been training to it a bunch. Basically, rock music that I’ve liked my whole life. Part of the appeal of music is that actually it helps me with pacing.
Each bamboo box had been taking me about five to six and a half minutes. I just know how long the songs are. So it gives you a sense of if you’re going fast or slow. But in this case, it all kept cutting out anyway, and I couldn’t really hear and I was kind of like, ‘Whatever. I’m just doing my thing.'”
Honnold‘s playlist, aptly named ‘T101’, has since been shared online and did not skimp on Tool cuts. Opening with “Forty Six & 2” & “Ænema” from the enigmatic band’s 3x multi-platinum sophomore opus “Ænima“, that playlist also included a pair of tracks from the chart-topping “Fear Inoculum” (“Invincible” & “Pneuma“), as well as four songs from Tool‘s third studio album, 2001’s 3x multi-platinum “Lateralus” (“The Grudge“, “Lateralus“, “Schism” & “Parabola“.)
Gold-certified alterantive rockers NOTHING MORE also took up some prime real estate on Honnold‘s playlist, with six songs being featured, while two cuts from diamond-certified nü-metal stars Linkin Park (“The Emptiness Machine“, “Papercut“) and multi-platinum post-hardcore band The Used (“Men Are All The Same” & “Hands And Faces“) also got placement.
Outside of that, some lone songs from Chevelle” (“Rabbit Hole – Cowards, Pt. 1“), Senses Fail (“Choke On This“) and an early track from The Offspring (“Session“) made the cut.
