Prison Sex

"Prison Sex"
Song

"Prison Sex" is a song by American progressive rock band Tool. It was their first single and second music video from their first full-length album, Undertow.

Track Listing

1. "Prison Sex (LP Version)"
2. "Undertow (Live)"
3. "Opiate (Live)"
4. "Prison Sex (Edit)"

Controversy

With the release of the 1994 single "Prison Sex" and its music video, directed and created by Adam Jones, MuchMusic called the band into question by deeming the video too graphic and offensive, later running an episode of its Too Much 4 Much series to discuss the video. MTV stopped airing the "Prison Sex" video after a few viewings — both due to a symbolic dealing with the sensitive subject of child abuse. Maynard James Keenan, who wrote the lyrics, has been quite clear about his antipathy towards his stepfather during early interviews about the song.

Song structure

Although "Prison Sex" is relatively long - clocking in at 4 minutes and 56 seconds, it pales in comparison to some of Tool's later 10+ minute compositions - it is indicative of their developing sound at the time. The song opens with the rattling and scratching of a low guitar string (tuned down to a low B), after which it launches into a guitar line and the main melody. At about the song's midpoint, it changes tempo and begins to slow down, taking on a new melody and bassline. It shortly intensifies for an instrumental, and then gradually dies down with the closing lines. It should be noted that the structure of the song is odd, due to the fact it starts out at a quick pace and eventually decreases in speed, contrary to most upwardly intensifying songs.

Video

The video for "Prison Sex" was created with stop-motion animation techniques, and was directed by the band's guitarist Adam Jones (who had previous experience in art direction and animation). The video was removed from the MTV playlist due to its disturbing content. "Prison Sex" was also nominated for 1995's MTV Music Video Awards' Best Special Effects category.[1]

The video itself is set in a dimly lit, cube-shaped prison, its walls lined with cabinets resembling those found in a morgue. Its protagonist is a small, battered mechanical doll missing an eye. At the video's beginning, its legs are removed as well. The narrative consists of the doll's adventures through the prison, looking for other "inmates". Periodically, it is pursued and cornered by a tall, menacing figure resembling a "grey alien" (a similar figure appears in a more benign role as the protagonist of Tool's later video, "Ænema"). The Figure subdues and tortures the Doll in various ways, such as removing or damaging various parts of its body or symbolically painting it with a dry brush. Along the way, the Doll encounters a tiny humanoid being (composed of what appears to be either mud or feces), a mechanical trolley in a jailguard role sporting the spinning face of a baby, and a caterpillar like creature with a head similar to that of the doll.

At video's end, the Doll gives into the abuse and paints itself with the brush. The last shot is that of the Doll, turning about in desperation and confusion in its cell. As it pulls back, we see that the cell is in fact one of the many cabinets lining the walls of the prison, as it is slid shut by the alien-like Figure.

The "Prison Sex" video was edited by Ken Andrews.

External links

• The unofficial Tool FAQ