You people are completely exagerating with the Dre having the biggest album of the year, it'll be big but not that big. Besides, 50 bucks says it won't even get released this year -_-.

NOW HOKU! That'll BE HUGEEEE!

Sorry but I said that because everyone on ATRL seems to attempt it one way or another.

Ive got a good feeling about Janet, after the flop that was Damita Jo she better come out with something good otherwise shes finished for good, and from what i've heard, her new album sounds hot.

Britney is obviously going to have a huge comeback, she was and still is the biggest pop star in the world and i'm sure she's going to have a brilliant year.

I'm looking forward to hearing what Justin is going to come up with, it really is 50/50 on whether he's going to do well or not, it all depends on how well his new stuff fits in with the current market.

You're right about that but it's going to sell at least 3 million due to the fact that LP has accumulated many more hip-hop fans over the last 3 years and that anything Rick Rubin touches turns gold.

Anywho, I think Dr. Dre or Red Hot Chili Peppers are gonna have the biggest albums this year...

The new RHCP should be awesome. ^_^

Kelly Clarkson's new album should deliver big numbers once it's released at the end of the summer. Christina, Britney & Justin will be big sellers too.

LMAO at Britney. Her album sales have been declining and I doubt even a 3 million selling album will be the #1 selling album of the year.

I don't know about you but i'm sick of Kelly, she should wait until 07 to release a new cd, by the time Walk Away is finished she'll have a NEW single out..

I heard TC is standing outside the record store as we speak.

If Americans had any taste, quality music would sell the most. But it never does, so that crosses Chemistry off the list.

Britney Of Course !!!!

Go away. If you're not going to give me a freakin' reason, just go the **** away.

Now, for my personal choice, which will shock absolutely no one who has talked to me for the last week:

Dr. Dre - "Detox"

It'll not only sell a million in its first week, it's the most anticipated rap album of all time and everyone that has wanted new Dre material has been waiting for FIVE ****ING YEARS! There are certainly contenders to the throne...Janet and Red Hot Chili Peppers come to mind...but I think 2006 will wind up being the year of Detox.

I hope Janet has a big year !

Either Detox or Chinese Democracy will be if one of them comes out this year. If they both come out, I really don't know which will sell better

This won't be the biggest album, but most definitely ONE OF the best:

There is something delightfully Toolian about staging a series of European album press/radio playback and ‘meet-the-new-Record-Company’ dates whilst not only not revealing the name of said new album but also keeping all the track titles themselves firmly under wraps.

For your roving Tool reporter, this presents two particular difficulties – firstly it makes accurate reviewing a task almost as hazardous as Quail shooting whilst under the influence (perish the thought that anyone could even contemplate such foolishness) and secondly it prompts momentary, and forgivable, cynicism along the lines of ‘They’re ‘avin’ a larff! This is just an elaborate, fake decoy album!’. Oh ****, there I go with those hunting expressions again.

Today (and I use the word entirely accurately - as my Tool obsession squirts into me such blind courage as to prompt me to lurk, contrary to Record Company wishes, in the shadows for 90 minutes - so as to catch both the 4pm and 7.30pm playbacks) - today, the Record Company has displayed a remarkable degree of Tool-savvy by booking an unheard of pub-for-bohemians in West London’s debatably fashionable and trendy (or downright dangerous – unless, like me, you have at least two layers of hoodies on top of your baseball hat) W10 area. 10, Golbourne Road is at the foot of one of London’s once most notorious and scary tower blocks – Erno Goldfinger’s (not to mention The Clash’s) Trellick Tower – now perversely, and miraculously, transmogrified into one of the City’s most desirable residences. It sez ‘ere.

It’s a joy – in this day and age and with such a multi-million selling global mega-band (yes, it really is true, fans!) – to immediately bump into ¾ of the band casually swigging beer from bottles (or, somewhat surprisingly, Starbucks from a paper cup in Maynard’s case) and chatting amiably with the assembled mid-afternoon gathering of hacks. It’s always a joy to meet a man so much ‘his own man’ and Maynard, as usual, manages to take such an expression to dizzy new heights. As inscrutable as the bastard offspring of Chairman Mao and Wallace & Gromit’s Were Rabbit (slightly caught in the headlights of my immediate and presumptuous ‘hail fellow well met’ self-introduction) Maynard professes to ‘feeling a little jet-lagged’ and at once hops off to safer environs. Meanwhile big haired Danny and Justin look, for all the world, like a brace of goddamn hippies from the Bong Shop down the road. As has been revealed – Adam has remained in LA ‘directing the video’.

After a 30 minute delay in proceedings – caused by a tardy and self-important bunch of hacks creeping out of some rank corner of the evil EMAP Empire (they’re all Borgs, we suspect) the Anonymous Playback of The Nameless Songs commences… ‘probably nearly in their Final Running Order’, we are told. Readers will, hopefully, forgive any inaccuracies in reportage. On first listen I surmised this was an 9 track album, managing to squeeze this figure up to 10 on second hearing, whilst having confirmation from the band that it was, in fact an 11 track album. (They thought).

Queens Of The Stone Age, The Melvins, Turbonegro, Satyricon, Weezer and Hole. Hmmm... Joe Baresi’s CV might not be an immediate one to catch the attention whilst puzzling over a new Producer for a band such as our heroes. But then, Tool never have been noted for the obvious, the easier, softer way. The band dynamic IS different on this work. But it’s a challenging difference – perhaps no great surprise for a band which often borders on the recalcitrant. As might have been expected from a ‘guitar-oriented’ knob twiddler– the guitars are very much to the fore. Perhaps more so than on any work since Opiate. And there are other notables – but more of those later. What we have here with The Album With No Name (rather a good title, boys… why not go for it? Surely it’s not too late?) is yet another milestone in the journey of one of the most innovative of rock bands of the last 30 years. It’s a Rollercoaster. It’s difficult (‘Hurrah!’ I hear you yell!). It’s at points dense, frustrating and impenetrable (‘Wahaay!’). On occasion it provides the band’s most commercial work to date. At worst, it heavily borrows hooks and snippets from, mainly, the Lateralus album. At best, it’s soaring and stunning and staggering – an exercise in aural, no sensory, exploration. In short, it’s the new Tool album and it’s f@!# great…

Track 1 (7min 3sec). Mesmeric start. Hypnotic beat. Jagged, angular off beats. Familiar trancey passages punctuated by a guitar part reminiscent of an older Tool track. Tribal drum beats f@!# with a lovely melody and climax with Maynard’s vocals. I am going to cry.

Track 2 (7min 12sec) Melodic intro with almost balladic vocals from Maynard. Lighter feel (almost, dare I say it, APC-tinged) but not for long. Danny gets stronger – Baresi releases our tubthumper and the feel gets much heavier into ‘chugga chugga’ off beats. Then – here’s some unusual guitar work. Man, it’s almost Hendix-like! Then back into a heavy tribal groove. I fight off the urge to masturbate furiously.

Track 3/4 (This is either one 17 minute monster or two tracks – of 6min 20sec and 10min 26sec – only the Gods Of The Stinkfist know the answer). Whichever it is – DO NOT SMOKE THE WEED WHILST LISTENING TO IT! Starting with Buddhist temple-flavoured gong tweaking the collective nipples of Kraftwerk, a deep sphincter-rumbling bass and om chanting might recall ‘Parabol’. After 3 minutes of this nerve-wracking niceness, all Hell breaks loose with mega-heavy riffdom before slipping back into spaciness after 30 seconds. Like an epileptic convulsion in a night of deep sleep. Hawkwind does Greensleeves whilst Pink Floys look on. The Record Company people are starting to look nervous and uncomfortable as if they have seldom HEARD anything so strange and worrying. What the f@!# is this? Let me outta here! I need to go snuggle the Radio One Playlist! Suddenly it’s a crazed sea shanty for whacked-out space travelers. ‘You’re the only one who can hold your head up high. It’s my time now… my time now… give me my… give me my…’ duets Maynard with himself. Danny fights free of the evil clutches of Dr Baresi and goes off on one. Adam’s guitar recalls something off Lateralus again. It’s Triad, I think, but it’s almost impossible to identify one riff whilst another song goes on. The musical equivalent of rubbing one’s head and tummy simultaneously in different directions. They’re doing this on purpose to f@!# with our heads. Bastards! Returns to full-on rhythmic Toolishness to end. No it isn’t the end. It doesn’t end like any other song ends. Tool never ends. I’m losing it. Therap me now, please.

Track 5 (Probably. 6min 11 sec definitely). Oooooooh. This is THE one. Ya know what, pluggers? Radio might even go for this! Maynard’s vocals at the start are quite extraordinary. Place equal parts of Chris De Burgh, Tiny Tim and Bilal The Muezzin in a blender and run for your life. Easily the most commercial track to date. In fact, easily the most commercial track Tool have EVER done. That guitar is waaay strong again. Did Adam bribe Baresi? This is still twisted. It’s hard but commercial. The end spells a relief as climactic as a boil bursting. I go ‘Yessssss’ and the whole room of cool jouros looks round at me as if I’m a Bateman cartoon ‘The Man Who Ordered A Pork Sandwich In Blooms’. This is a SERIOUSLY awesome track. Just you mark my words.

Track 6 (1min). In which Maynard becomes a Native American for no good reason. Strange, but we like a bit of strangeness.

Track 7 (Maybe. Could be two medium length tracks and a terribly short one, too. I’m now losing the will to live with the stopwatch. It’s 14min 45sec of music, whatever). Guitars to the fore again. One long note with almost blues-like, overlaid note progressions. f@!# me, it’s House Of The Rising Sun cut with Ketamine. There are unsettling whispers and talking. Is this a bad trip or a psychiatry session? Come to think of it, is there a difference? ‘How Are You Today?’… ‘Tell Me Everything’ then THWACK! Into such a breathtakingly slappy, powerful riff kick that I’m actually physically winded for a nanosecond. Demonic, growling, rap noise over rhythmic heavy heavy groove. Forget the Were Rabbit jibe. This is a f@!# full-on, nasty, shaven headed WEREWOLF. A lightbulb goes mental in the room. The Record Company almost lose all cool and run for it. I damn nearly join them but now I AM crying. I am gulping back wracking sobs at the sheer Toolishness of this monstrous, magnificent track. This is the real deal. Again snippets from Lateralus. You ARE playing with us. You ARE! This is Tool’s equivalent of ‘spot the Hitchcock in the Hitchcock film’! But I don’t care. It’s like The Best Of Tool in one song. The Bomb. It ends like the violent end of a violent life. And then it ends again. Unless that’s another track, of course….

Track 8 (6min 44sec). Odd noises. Sea shore meets ironworks. Ever see the cartoon meisterwerk ‘Spirited Away’? You MUST! In it there is a character called Kamajii The Boiler Keeper who has 6 arms and an army of small black coals. This sound is similar. Soon joined by elastic bass and drum twangling over multi-layered Maynard whisperings and chanted vox. Shades of Pink Floyd again. Shades of the more ‘moody’ Lateralus tracks again. Reflection. Disposition. Tribal and hypnotic.

Track 9 (9min 04sec. I think). Melodic, slow, hypnotic. Almost balladic. Wall of Sound build-up. Danny does some Bamboo pole-type drumming into big riffage. Big, big sound. Tool at their weightiest. It’s almost Chinese at the end. I can think of worse things to be like. Perhaps the boys have their eyes on the World’s fastest developing market?

Track 10 (OK it’s 11 but I’m f@!# if I can work out how we got here). The walk out track (their description not mine). Oddness. The Noodles of Satan.

And that’s it. First playback and Maynard bids us farewell. ‘Hope you enjoyed it. If you didn’t we could put on a little Green Day for you?’. Second playback and Justin apologises for not being The Arctic Monkeys. We smoodge and chatter. We remember that Danny is actually the World’s nicest (and tallest) man. If only I could feel as comfy in my skin as he does. That’s it – go on, compare my insides with his outsides. We rejoice in the fact that ¼ of Tool is, in fact, English. We clamber onto our pushbike past legions of hoodies whilst the Tool Carnival ups and offs to Amsterdam. f@!# knows where THAT playback will take place but I have a shrewd idea or two…

- Andy King of TotalRock

Basically, that website had the chance of a lifetime to hear the new album (Tool's 4th since 1993,) in its entirety, and well...it's going to be amazing. That's all that needs to be said.

Can't wait for Tool's new one, hope it kicks major ass ^_^.

Can't really say anything that hasn't already been said. Dr. Dre, Christina, Pink, Britney, Red Hot Chili Peppers, whether I want them to or not, will probably have pretty good years for album sales.

The artists mentioned (Britney, Christina, etc) will probably have great selling albums as always. But, I believe this year it will be Janet. After Damita Jo and the Superbowl mess, I believe that she really put her time into this album with Durpi and Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis.

Also, this is the 20th anniversary of the release of Janet's 1986 album "Control". So, I expect not only great album sales in America but internationally.