They’re the biggest multi-platinum band that your best friend has never heard of.  Playing brooding, unflinching psychedelic rock accompanied by unnerving visual imagery, the quartet draws tens of thousands worldwide every year. And guess what? They enjoy playing cricket, too.

Tool is the most popular band that you know nothing about. Over the past 17 years, the California quartet has established itself as one of the most enigmatic and mysterious forces in rock, selling millions of records and filling countless arenas while refusing to obey the standard rules of engagement. The band creates stunning packages for its albums (last year’s 10,000 Days offered stereoscopic glasses and hallucinatory art) and composes experimental, often sprawling songs with surreal lyrics and provocative titles. “Prison Sex,” “Hooker With a Penis” or “Stinkfist,” anyone? Guitarist Adam Jones produces and directs nightmarish animated and live-action videos that almost never feature the group members, who actually go to somewhat great lengths to avoid the spotlight.

Occupying its own niche amid the metal, prog, goth and avant-garde worlds—and hardly radio-friendly—Tool has only released four studio albums since 1993, but has cultivated a tenacious following that immediately gobbled up a half million copies of 10,000 Days, making it the band’s second consecutive album to debut at No. 1. Their multifaceted musical outlook has allowed the band to make a stir at Lollapalooza during their early years, tour with musical idols King Crimson in 2001, conquer Coachella in 2006, and convert the masses at Bonnaroo this past spring.

Despite their multi-platinum success, frontman Maynard James Keenan, guitarist Adam Jones, bassist Justin Chancellor and drummer Danny Carey purposefully elude media attention and reveal little about their personal lives. Until recently, there were few publicity shots that did not feature them disguised, obscured or sporting a new look—Keenan once reportedly showed up to a photo shoot shrouded within a hat, scarf and sunglasses, and onstage with one of his other bands, A Perfect Circle, he dons wigs—while the current images on the band’s website are hazy, underexposed or oblique. Devoted fans know their faces, but more casual followers have no definitive idea of what they look like. They’re even obscured by shadow and light during their dark and moody shows—Keenan performs at the back of the stage, behind his bassist and guitarist–subsuming their audience within its total sensory experience. And they grant few interviews.

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