Here’s Tool’s Grammy Acceptance Speech

As expected, Tool picked up the win in the Best Metal Performance category at last night’s Grammy awards for the song “7empest.” They lost to Gary Clark, Jr. in the Best Rock Song category, where “This Land” beat out “Fear Inoculum.”

Tool bested Killswitch Engage’s “Unleashed,” Death Angel’s “Humanicide,” Candlemass & Tony Iommi’s “Astorolus – The Great Octopus” and I Prevail’s “Bow Down” in the Best Metal Performance category .

This is Tool’s second win in the category following their awards in 1997 for “Ænema” and in 2001 for “Schism,” and third Grammy overall, picking one up in the Best Recording Package category for 10,000 Days in 2006. They were also nominated for Best Recording Package in 1996 with Ænema, Best Music Video in 1997 with “Stinkfist,” Best Hard Rock Performance in 2006 for “Vicarious” and Best Hard Rock Performance in 2007 for “The Pot.”

You can check out video and a transcription of the band’s acceptance speech, delivered mostly by drummer Danny Carey with bassist Justin Chancellor at his side, below:

“Wow, kind of renews my faith in human kind to know there’s long attention spans left out there that can listen to a 12-minute song. [laughs]

“I’d like to thank all the Gods because I don’t think it’s a good time to piss any of them off. My bandmates Justin, Adam and Maynard, who I couldn’t do anything without, my mom for educating me, and over a thousand other people, my lovely mother of my children — about to be children, just a child right now — this is for you also, baby.

“I’d like to thank, as artists we’re all influenced by, the people that come before us and for me, it’s all the great drum Gods, I suppose, that come before and I do my best to channel them every time I’m working; namely John Bonham, Tony Williams and recently my good friend Neil Peart. So for all of you guys, thank you. Thank you for all your votes.”

Chancellor went on to briefly thank his family members and producer/engineer Joe Barresi.