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Slipknot

A nine-member, masked and numbered band from Des Moines, Iowa, who took percussion, turntables and samples into heavy metal and reached number one in the United States with All Hope Is Gone.

Origin
Des Moines, Iowa, United States
Years active
1995-present
Genres
heavy metal, alternative metal, groove metal, nu metal
Labels
Roadrunner

Des Moines

Slipknot formed in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1995, started by percussionist Shawn Crahan, vocalist Anders Colsefni and bassist Paul Gray. They began as the Pale Ones, made their public debut as Meld, and became Slipknot in late 1995 when Joey Jordison suggested naming the band after one of its songs. They self-released a demo, Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat., on 31 October 1996. Corey Taylor, recruited from Stone Sour, became the singer and moved Colsefni to backing vocals and percussion. In February 1998 the producer Ross Robinson offered to make their debut after watching a rehearsal, and Roadrunner Records signed them to a seven-album deal, announced publicly on 8 July 1998.

By late 1997 each member was to wear an individual mask and a matching jumpsuit, and each was given a number from 0 to 8. The idea began with a clown mask that Crahan took to rehearsals. Taylor described the masks as a way of becoming "more intimate with the music." Since 2000 they have been custom-made by the special effects artist and musician Screaming Mad George.

The first two records

Slipknot was recorded at Indigo Ranch in Malibu in late 1998 and early 1999 with Robinson, who had the drums down in three days and persuaded the band to cut solos and experimental passages for a straight metal sound. Guitarist Josh Brainard left over the 1998 Christmas break, and Jim Root joined to finish the record. It came out on 29 June 1999, was certified platinum in May 2000, a first for Roadrunner, and earned a Grammy nomination for Wait and Bleed. Spit It Out was the second single.

Iowa was recorded in early 2001 at Sound City and Sound Image in Los Angeles, again with Robinson. It went to number one in the UK and number three on the Billboard 200. Rolling Stone gave it four stars, and David Fricke wrote that with it Slipknot were "the new kings of extreme." In mid-2002 the band went on hiatus, and members turned to Stone Sour, Murderdolls, To My Surprise and Wilson's DJ Starscream.

Vol. 3 and All Hope Is Gone

In 2003 the band moved into The Mansion in Los Angeles to work with the producer Rick Rubin. Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses) came out in May 2004 and reached number two in the US. It leans more on melody, acoustic guitars and traditional song structures. Opinions on Rubin split: Taylor said he saw him only about four times, while Jim Root called the record his favorite Slipknot album. In 2006 Before I Forget won the band its first Grammy, for Best Metal Performance. Roadrunner has listed the video for Duality as the best in its history.

For All Hope Is Gone the band worked at Sound Farm in Jamaica, Iowa, in 2008 with the producer Dave Fortman. It was their first album written and recorded at home, and all nine members took part in the writing, producing more than 30 songs. New masks were unveiled on 1 July 2008, and eight million people visited the site that day. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, the first Slipknot album to do so, and at number two in the UK. Psychosocial and Snuff were among its five singles. The world tour began on 9 July 2008, but the European festival dates were cancelled after Jordison broke his ankle.

Since 2010

Gray died on 24 May 2010. Slipknot returned to the stage in 2011 and held the first Knotfest in August 2012. Jordison was no longer in the band by December 2013, and .5: The Gray Chapter followed in 2014. We Are Not Your Kind was recorded at EastWest Studios in Hollywood between November 2018 and April 2019 with the producer Greg Fidelman, and debuted at number one in the US. Its lead single Unsainted features a choir, and Pitchfork called it "a Slipknot record, one that has more to offer than expected." The End, So Far arrived in 2022, the last album under the Roadrunner contract.

Loudwire's staff named Slipknot the 16th-greatest heavy metal band in 2016. Metal Hammer readers voted the debut the best first album of the previous 25 years in 2011, and Revolver readers placed it second among nu metal albums in 2018. A Loudwire comparison of the band's catalog with tour statistics finds (sic), Surfacing, Spit It Out and Wait and Bleed to be the four most played songs on stage.

Members

Records

Songs

Mr. Bungle, Faith No More, Stone Sour, Kiss, Korn

Where to go next

Reference

Writing and criticism

Interviews

Live performance archives

Sources

  1. Slipknot (band), Wikipedia
  2. Slipknot: We Are Not Your Kind, Pitchfork
  3. Slipknot, All Hope Is Gone (Roadrunner), Spin (2008-08-25)
  4. Slipknot: Iowa, Rolling Stone (2001-10-11)
  5. Review: Slipknot's We Are Not Your Kind permeated with experimentation, Loudwire (2019)
  6. These are the 42 songs Slipknot have never played live, Loudwire