Jambi (Tool song)

"Jambi" both begins in and is primarily in 9/8 time, interspersed with sections of 6/4. The entire band's first change to 6/4 begins in the section immediately preceding the guitar solo and continues through the solo. [3] During the solo, Adam Jones uses a talk box effect;[4] Justin Chancellor plays in 6/4, but unlike the rest of the band, he subdivides the riff into a pulse of 4+2; Danny Carey accompanies in 6/4 with a 4 over 3 polyrhythm to link the bass's subdivisions with the rest of the band. As the solo ends and the song moves into the next section, the drums and bass shift back into 9/8 while the guitar remains in 6/4 to create a polymeter. Once the 9/8 vocals rejoin, the guitar shifts back into 9/8. The entire band then remains in 9/8 until moving back into 6/4 for the final two measures, which reuses the first two measures of the first 6/4 section. [3]

Its title has been said to primarily refer to the iambic meter used in the lyrics of the song, as 'jambi' means 'iamb' in Finnish.[5] Drummer Danny Carey stated that when bassist Justin Chancellor played the bass track of the song, it instantly reminded him of the children's television program Pee-wee's Playhouse, then singer Maynard James Keenan thought of the genie "Jambi" and had the idea to make the song's theme about making wishes.[6]