To consider Fear Inoculum’s mounting hype, and the special place Tool has in the hearts of their fans, one must consider all of the rumors, false starts, and ideated fantasies that have sprung up during the 13 years people have been waiting for it. At any given moment, fans had a brand new zany notion about Tool’s upcoming album — either it was never coming out, it was coming out tomorrow, or it had already come out and was being listened to by Tupac and Napoleon on a secret island somewhere.
Here, for your amusement and amazement, is a timeline of the rumors leading up to Fear Inoculum’s release this Friday (special thanks to the folks over at MetalSucks, whose rabid Tool megafandom helped fuel this piece):