Culture Tool Is Booed Onstage at Their Own Music Festival as Fans Mull Class-Action Lawsuit Over 'Disappointing' Set

https://people.com/tool-booed-onstage-at-their-own-music-festival-over-disappointing-set-11695719

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Tool Is Booed Onstage at Their Own Music Festival as Fans Mull Class-Action Lawsuit Over 'Disappointing' Set

The rockers performed two sets at the Tool in the Sand festival, and played four repeat songs on the second night

By Rachel DeSantis Published on March 12, 2025 02:40PM EDT

When Tool announced its Tool in the Sand music festival in the Dominican Republic in October, fans were excited to shell out upwards of $7,500 for two concerts over two nights that promised “unique sets.”

But after the Grammy-winning rock band repeated four different songs over the two shows, festivalgoers turned on them, booing from the crowd and even threatening class-action lawsuits.

“Why fly to the [Dominican Republic] on a 3 night ticket to watch an hour of repeat songs from the night before?” one fan wrote in a post on Reddit that’s received nearly 3,000 upvotes. “Not sure what to say but this was a very disappointing show.”

A rep for the band declined to comment when reached by PEOPLE.

Tool in the Sand, which was billed as an “all-inclusive destination festival,” took place on March 7, 8 and 9 at the Hard Rock and Royalton resorts in Punta Cana. The lineup also included Primus, Mastodon, Coheed and Cambria and more. Tool performed on the first two nights, and tickets were sold as a package, meaning fans were not able to buy one-day passes.

During their first set, the rockers played 10 songs, including hits like “Stinkfist” and “Schism.” The next night, they played nine — four of which had been on the previous night’s setlist.

In fan video posted to Reddit and YouTube, fans can be heard booing throughout the set, though the band was greeted with applause as they finished.

In another post on Reddit, one fan who claimed to have seen the band in concert 16 times called the repeated songs “inexcusable,” as Tool “advertised unique setlists and played the same s--- they’ve been playing for six years now.”

Stas Rusek, a Georgia-based lawyer and Tool fan who attended the festival, told Louder Sound he’s even considering a class-action lawsuit against the festival’s promoters, as the band did not deliver on the “two unique sets” that were advertised.

“There was a palpable sense of betrayal in the air as the show began the second night, and it lingered throughout the remainder of the weekend,” he said. “Most Tool fans, like me, have attended multiple shows on the same tour, and we know that, due to the spectacular and complex nature of their show, most songs will be repeated. However, this is not what festival attendees were promised. [I’m] a huge Tool fan, but also a festival attendee who feels your pain and seeks justice for all of those ripped off by a classic bait and switch.”

Other fans, however, felt differently, with one person posting on Reddit that they “loved [Tool in the Sand] and I would go again.”

"Unpopular opinion, let me start by saying I was absolutely disappointed/let down by the setlist for both nights,” the fan wrote. “People were booing at the start of the duplicate songs but mostly cheering (at least from where I was) and I had such a good time that’s an invaluable experience even if I didn’t see a single song I’ve never heard them perform at least a handful of times each.”

The festival’s website said that packages included a room at either the Hard Rock or Royalton Punta Cana, all-inclusive food and drinks, all music events and transportation to and from the airport. Prices ranged from to $2,358 to $7,775, depending on room size and number of people.

Tool — comprised of singer Maynard James Keenan, guitarist Adam Jones, drummer Danny Carey and bassist Justin Chancellor — have released five albums. Their most recent, Fear Inoculum, came out in 2019.

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TOOL SUUUXXXXX11!!!1!

 
Unrelated to the topic at hand but every time I see the word "mull" I think of this:
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Oh for fuck's sake, the level of entitlement. I saw Aerosmith in 1985 and even after their "clean up" Tyler was a stuttering wreck and they closed the show after 45 minutes. We threw shit at the stage and left pissed, THE END.

Fuckin' lawsuits over a shitty set, get over yourselves.

Unrelated to the topic at hand but every time I see the word "mull" I think of this:
View attachment 7092093
I'd wager the Venn Diagram crossover between xkcd and tool fans is probably a near circle.
 
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Oh for fuck's sake, the level of entitlement. I saw Aerosmith in 1985 and even after their "clean up" Tyler was a stuttering wreck and they closed the show after 45 minutes. We threw shit at the stage and left pissed, THE END.

Fuckin' lawsuits over a shitty set, get over yourselves.
But see, those weren't Tool fans and especially not a Jewish lawyer Tool fan.
 
I met this chick once who told me a story about going backstage at a Tool concert with some groupies. Apparently they just had the girls strip down to their underwear and sit in a kiddy pool full of water while the band just chilled there talking to eachother completely ignoring the girls. She said it was super weird and awkward and that they were all really weird dudes. I have no idea if the story was true or not but it sounded believable enough to me.
 
Fuckin' lawsuits over a shitty set, get over yourselves.
From the article, he sounds like the one guy who sued the Miami Heat for putting in bench players to start a game to rest their stars a few years back, insisting that was false advertising and it really really upset his poor poor kid who was emotionally damaged for life.

Consider how far your life has fallen off the ideal track when you consider suing people trying to entertain you......
 
Oh for fuck's sake, the level of entitlement. I saw Aerosmith in 1985 and even after their "clean up" Tyler was a stuttering wreck and they closed the show after 45 minutes. We threw shit at the stage and left pissed, THE END.

Fuckin' lawsuits over a shitty set, get over yourselves.
Back in the 80s it was like 10-15 bucks for a concert, so yeah you'd throw beer bottles and shit at them and write it off as a loss. Seven and a half grand I'd want a fucking refund also.
I'd wager the Venn Diagram crossover between xkcd and tool fans is probably a near circle.
It'd be A Perfect Circle.
 
I remember being a stoner in school back in the mid 00's, and the Tool fans who would smoke with us sometimes were absolute faggots.. like white middle class pricks with dreadlocks and goatees who would sniff their own farts. I bought one of Tools albums (Aenima or w.e it's called) and listened to it quite a bit for a few weeks, was alright but nothing to write home about.. the ballwashing of that band is super cringe tbh.
 
I saw Tool years ago at a huge music festival and they were amazingly good live. Maybe they're losing it in their old age?

And $7500 is absolute lunacy. Not too long ago you could get into a four day music festival with tons of popular artists for like $400 a person. I love concerts but there's no way I'm going to pay fucking thousands of dollars for that.
 
I saw Tool 5 years ago, and I thought they were pretty good live. The venue had signs warning people not filming or you'll get kicked out. Towards the end of the gig Maynard announced 'okay you can take your phones out now and film', and in unison the vast majority of the crowd pulled their phones out and started filming. Probably something they do every gig so the band can laugh at what faggots their own fans are.
 
Should note Tool has been coasting off of Aenigma (their one good album) for DECADES.

Seriously, if that album never came out, they'd only be known for the creepy stop motion Music video about Manyard being raped as a kid.
 
I thought it would be cool to go to this and drop acid listening to Tool but for once im glad I'm poor and broke on a Friday night. Thanks god.
 
Love tool but honestly who the fuck spends money to go to any concert? If I wanted to listen to it surrounded by sweaty retards I’d just set up a boombox in the woods and call my friends
Went to Danzig, King Diamond, and Electric Six last year. These niggas are getting ooooold. If you get the opportunity to see them one last time? DO IT.
 
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