Alex Honnold listened to Tool while setting new free-solo world record

Alex Honnold, the bloke who recently set a new world record by free solo climbing Taiwan’s tallest building, did it while listening to Tool to stay calm and keep pace.

The climber was the centrepiece of Netflix’s Skyscraper Live over the weekend, scaling the 1,671-foot Taipei 101 tower over one hour and 35 minutes. No ropes, no safety gear, just Honnold, gravity, and one of the tallest buildings on the planet.

Recently, Honnold revealed that music played a big role in getting him to the top.

“It was mostly Tool,” he told Variety. “It’s a random playlist that I made, that I shared with production. I made it months ago while I was driving. I’ve been training to it a bunch. Basically, rock music that I’ve liked my whole life.”

Honestly, if you’re going to dangle hundreds of metres above the ground, Tool feels like a pretty solid choice to keep you going. Long songs, slow builds, and just enough tension to keep you locked in. Honnold said the tracks helped him pace the climb.

“Part of the appeal of music is that actually it helps me with pacing,” he said. “Each bamboo box had been taking me about five to six and a half minutes. I just know how long the songs are.”

There were a few tech issues along the way, with his audio cutting out mid-climb, but Honnold didn’t seem fazed.

“It all kept cutting out anyway and I couldn’t really hear and I was kind of like, ‘Whatever. I’m just doing my thing,’” he said.

By reaching the top of Taipei 101 without ropes or protection, Honnold officially set the record for the highest free solo climb of an urban structure. 

Most of us use Tool to get through a workout or a long drive. Alex Honnold uses it to calmly free solo a skyscraper. Same band, wildly different stakes.