Lawrence.com

In today's world of Limp Bizkit clones, Tool provided a breath of fresh air Sunday night at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo.

One of the first '90s rock bands to prove you could be angry and cerebral, the quartet took the stage following an opening set from Tricky.

Drummer Danny Carey, raised in Paola, paid tribute to his roots by wearing a Jeff Carey replica Kansas University basketball jersey, while singer Maynard James Keenan looked like a bald and buff Riff Raff from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."

Backed by a dazzling visual show that included two of the band's videos ("Schism," "Stinkfist"), hypnotic geometric designs and guitarist Adam Jones' artwork, Tool played all but one song off its newest album, "Lateralus."

Carey's impressively quick, almost tribal drumming and Justin Chancellor's bass playing set a perfect rhythm for the deeply textured numbers, while Keenan's time with side project A Perfect Circle was apparent in his more melodic singing than at past shows.

Although Tool played just four songs from its first two full-length albums, it did so with a fury, invigorating the crowd with "Stinkfist," "Undertow," an extended "Pushit" and a ferocious version of "Aenima."

Another visual highlight was Osseus Labyrint, a nude man and woman who were painted silver and walked on all fours during "Schism" and performed acrobatics while suspended from the ceiling during the encore.

Band members talked little between songs, instead letting the lyrics and music speak for themselves. One of Keenan's few comments, said before closing with the new album's title track, was an entreaty to crowd members to remember the feeling they had � a request few in attendance will have trouble fulfilling.