Watch this jazz drummer absolutely nail Tool's Schism without having ever heard it before

Danny Carey/Dennis Chambers
(Image credit: Richard Ecclestone/Redferns/Monica Morgan/WireImage)

Tool's Danny Carey is one of metal's all-time greatest drummers, a percussive powerhouse whose mesmeric beats and unusual time signatures have helped shape prog metal

But what happens when you move away from metal and introduce Tool's music to musicians from another genre? 

Online drum lesson platform Drumeo wondered just that, drafting in legendary jazz/funk drummer Dennis Chambers to get his take on Carey's idiosyncratic style. 

And, as you might expect when one legend takes on another, the results are pretty stellar. Though Chambers admits to some misgivings in the beginning - "I got a problem with this, this is not my type of thing," he admits early on - he quickly gets into the mood for it, offering his own one-take improv over the track. 

Even with a disclaimer that Schism "isn't [his] cuppa tea" and having only heard the song once, Chambers is quick to break down its components, from the odd time signatures to the overall tonal approach of the song. 

Naturally, Chambers' own take leans heavily on his background. A member of Parliament/Funkadelic from 1978 to 1985, he has since played with many of the world's most renowned jazz fusion musicians, a factor which clearly shines through during his performance. 

Despite only hearing the song once, Chambers' performance fits incredibly well. He even qualifies towards the end that he recognises that "some figures were going down", forcing him to step up his improv as he has no isolated tracks to work from. 

Although Chambers initially attests that the song isn't for him, it seems by the end he's a convert, calling Schism a "great song" and asking which album it hails from. Considering Carey's love for dual-drum jams, maybe a team-up could be on the cards in future. Watch the video below.

Rich Hobson

Staff writer for Metal Hammer, Rich has never met a feature he didn't fancy, which is just as well when it comes to covering everything rock, punk and metal for both print and online, be it legendary events like Rock In Rio or Clash Of The Titans or seeking out exciting new bands like Nine Treasures, Jinjer and Sleep Token.