For a start, I've been listening to Tool since 1998 so that's nearly ten years of not knowing what I'm talking about. Maybe tool DO have a sound of their own, but that doesn't mean that other bands aren't influenced by them and sound a bit like them. Both the End and Tool write progressively structured songs that are based largely on complicated shifting time signatures, whilst retaining a relatively dark and ambient feel to them, and without being too heavy or extreme. Which band is 'better' is totally irrelevent, but the fact remains that 'Elementary' by the End has many attributes that are very comparable to Tool. I also wrote a short story that features both bands: You are a Tool. The End