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Slipknot (band)

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Slipknot

Slipknot (sometimes typeset as SlipKnoT to fit their logo) is a band made up of nine members from Des Moines, Iowa. The group formed in 1995 and is currently signed to Roadrunner Records.[3]

The band has been on major tours such as Ozzfest and international tours through Britain, Australia, South America, Japan, Stockholm, Singapore and Poland. Their albums and home videos have achieved platinum sales status.[1] The band also has Grammy award nominations in the Best Metal Performance and Best Hard Rock Performance categories for songs from three of their four albums and in 2006 the band won its first Grammy.[4]

Band history

Early history (before 1995)

Slipknot's first songs were composed in 1993.[5] The band went through the names "The Pale Ones," "PyGSYSTEM," and "Meld" before they settled on Slipknot.[5] Many of the songs on Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat and some that were added to later albums were written during these sessions. Shawn Crahan was the lead drummer before Joey Jordison entered the band.[5] Crahan, being the founder, came up with the idea of having three drummers; first to create a powerful tribal sound, and second to create a "wall of sound", both of which Crahan wanted.[5]

Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat and Slipknot (1995-2000)

The band achieved a stable line-up in late 1995, and released an album entitled Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat on Halloween 1996.[1] The album was distributed by the small, Nebraska-based label -ismist Recordings.[6] A year later Slipknot hired Corey Taylor as the new lead vocalist and pushed Anders to percussion.[7] Anders was not interested in being a percussionist and left the band to pursue his own musical goals.[7]

At the urging of Midwest Promotion rep John Kuliak, Roadrunner Records signed the band in 1997.[1] A year later, Slipknot, which was produced by Ross Robinson, was released in June of 1999.[1] Regarding the album, Rick Anderson of All Music Guide wrote "You thought Limp Bizkit was heavy? They're The Osmonds. Slipknot is something else entirely."[8] Also in 1999, the band toured with Ozzfest, which greatly expanded the band's fanbase.[1] In early 2000 the album was certified platinum, a first for any album released by Roadrunner Records.[1] In July of 2001 Q magazine named Slipknot as one of the "50 Heaviest Albums of All Time".[9]

Iowa (2001-2002)

Iowa, the band's second album with Roadrunner Records, was released in 2001. Critical response to the album was generally favorable. Jason Arnopp of Kerrang! called the album "one beautifully crafted labour of hate",[10] and David Fricke of Rolling Stone called the album "the first great record of the nu-metal era."[11] The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Magazine album charts and at number one on the UK album chart.[12][13] In mid-2001, the band once again toured with Ozzfest.[1] In fall of 2001, the band went on The Pledge of Allegiance Tour with System of a Down. A live album titled Pledge of Allegiance Tour: Live Concert Recording was recorded from this tour.[14] The band also appeared in the concert scene of the 2002 movie Rollerball.[15] The single "Left Behind", a track off of Iowa, was nominated for a Grammy in 2002.[16] In 2002 the BBC said that Slipknot stole the show and proved entertaining after the band performed at Reading Festival in England.[17]

Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses) and hiatus (2003-2007)

In late 2003 the band began writing and recording with renowned producer Rick Rubin, who had previously worked with artists such as Johnny Cash, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Slayer.[1][18] The band released its fourth album, Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses), in May 2004. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.[3] Johnny Loftus of All Music Guide called the album "a satisfying, carefully crafted representation of [the band's] career to date."[19] Robert Cherry of Rolling Stone said that the album "experiments with even newer extremes, which in Slipknot's case means tunefulness and traditional song structures."[20] In 2004, the band toured with Ozzfest for a third time.[21] In early 2005, the band went on The Subliminal Verses Tour with Shadows Fall and Lamb of God.[22][23] Several members of the band collaborated with other artists on the Roadrunner United: The All-Star Sessions CD released in October 2005.[24] On the record Joey Jordison was named a "team captain".[24] James Root, Corey Taylor, and Paul Gray also contributed to the album. 9.0: Live, a live album recorded from shows in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Osaka, Singapore, and Tokyo, was released in November 2005. The album peaked at 17 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.[25]

In 2006 the band won the Grammy for Best Metal Performance for "Before I Forget".[4] The DVD Voliminal: Inside the Nine was released December 5, 2006. In January, Corey Taylor stated in an interview with VH1 that the band is currently on hiatus until 2008 while the members work on their side projects.[26]

Reformation and new album (2007-present)

On April 19, 2007, the band's website posted a news article stating that a new Slipknot album "will surface in 2008."[27] On April 19, 2007 Joey Jordison stated that he would be drumming for Korn in the summer of 2007.[28] Originally, it was believed that Corey Taylor had began working with thrash-band Anthrax on their new album, but this was later announced to be false. In addition to the original Slipknot nu-metal sound, Jim Root has also stated that there will be a definite thrash-metal influence on this album.[29][30]

Style

Slipknot has an extreme performance style provided by their massive line-up featuring a typical heavily downtuned guitar setup (lead, rhythm, and bass guitars),[6] two percussionists in addition to the primary drummer, and electronics (samplers and turntables). Robert Cherry of Rolling Stone compared the band's sound to "a threshing machine devouring a military drum corps."[20]

Their early work hosted a large range of vocal styles, ranging from rapping to occasional singing to grindcore-esque growling.[6] In more recent work, this vocal style remains present, but now includes more melodic singing.[19] The lyrics generally follow a very aggressive tone, "[are] not generally quotable on a family website."[8], and feature themes such as darkness, nihilism, anger, disaffection, and psychosis.[19][1]

Image and identities

The band is known for its attention-grabbing image.[1] The members wear matching uniform jumpsuits and homemade masks.[1] In the past, their jumpsuits have featured large UPC barcodes printed on the back and sleeves, which are identical to the barcode on their first album, Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat. The initial reason for the band wearing masks was the disbelief and ridicule the band received in reaction to their musical ambition.[1] Aside from their real names, members of the band are referred to by numbers 0 through 8.[1]

Today most members of the band have now been photographed without their masks, largely as the result of their work outside of Slipknot:

In the video for "Before I Forget" the band performed without their masks; however, the band members' faces are shown only as brief glimpses, with the camera mostly focused on their hands and instruments. In the video, the masks are visible hanging off hooks, possibly representing their unwillingness to "forget."[32] Each member is also unmasked in individual interviews on their DVD Voliminal: Inside the Nine.[32]

The band's image has sparked controversy over the years. Some of the controversy comes from the band Mushroomhead, who, along with their fans, claim that Slipknot stole their image.[33] In 2005, another source of controversy was the band's lawsuit against Burger King, claiming that company created the advertising based band Coq Roq to capitalize on Slipknot's image.[34] The band's lawyer claimed that Burger King had contacted the band's label to get Slipknot to take part in "adversitising campaign designed to motivate young people to vote."[35] Burger King responded to the suit with a suit of their own, and in that suit pointed out that many other bands, such as Mudvayne, Kiss, and GWAR have used masks as part of their image, although after private discussions the advertising campaign was dropped.[34][35]

Band members

Current members

Former members

Discography

Main article: Slipknot discography

Studio albums

Live Albums*

Videography

Collaborators

Members of Slipknot have recorded with numerous other artists, including:

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Steve Huey. "All Music Guide article on Slipknot". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  2. ^ Garry Sharpe-Young (2006-12-17). "Rockdetector Article". Rockdetector.com. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  3. ^ a b "Band Bio on Roadrunnerrecords.com". Roadrunner Records. 2007. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  4. ^ a b "A List of 2006 Grammy winners From CNN.com". CNN. 2006-02-09. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  5. ^ a b c d "M.F.K.R. Facts". black-goat.com. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  6. ^ a b c Jason Birchmeier. "M.F.K.R on All Music Guide". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-02-15.
  7. ^ a b "Ex-Members". black-goat.com. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  8. ^ a b Rick Anderson. "An All Music Guide Review of the self title album". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  9. ^ July 2001 Edition of Q Magazine. Q Magazine. 2001.
  10. ^ Jason Arnopp (2001-08-27). "Kerrang! review of Iowa". Kerrang!. Retrieved 2007-02-17.
  11. ^ David Fricke (2001-10-11). "Rolling stone review of Iowa". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-02-17.
  12. ^ "Billboard.com's page on Iowa". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  13. ^ "theofficialcharts.com's page on Iowa". theofficialcharts.com. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  14. ^ Chris Genzel. "All Music Guide Review of Pledge of Allegiance Tour: Live Concert Recording". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-03-17.
  15. ^ Jolie Lash (2002-04-11). "Slipknot Play Rollerball". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-02-15.
  16. ^ Jerry Armor (2002-02-27). "Slipknot Contemplates Grammy Chances, Favors System". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  17. ^ Michael Hubbard (2002-08-26). "Slipknot liven up Reading's finale". BBC News. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  18. ^ Jason Ankghgeny. "All Music Guide's article on Rick Rubin". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
  19. ^ a b c Johnny Loftus. "All Music Guide Review of Vol. 3". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-02-15.
  20. ^ a b Robert Cherry (2004-06-10). "Rolling stone review of Vol. 3". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-02-15.
  21. ^ Corey Moss and Joe D'Angelo (2004-02-20). "Judas Priest, Slayer, Slipknot To Join Ozzy On Ozzfest". Vh1. Retrieved 2007-03-17.
  22. ^ Jon Zahlaway (2005-02-01). "Slipknot's 'Subliminal Verses' tour continues to grow". Live Daily. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
  23. ^ Doug Gibson (2005-03-09). "Subliminal Verses Tour Show Report From Philadelphia, PA". Metal Underground. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
  24. ^ a b "A roadrunner records page about the album". Roadrunner Records. Retrieved 2007-04-12.
  25. ^ "Billboard.com's listing of 9.0:Live". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2007-02-13.
  26. ^ Jon Wiederhorn (2007-01-09). "Stone Sour's Sweet Success May Mean Slipknot-Free 2007". VH1. Retrieved 2007-02-13.
  27. ^ "Slipknot1.com news". Slipknot. 2007-04-19. Retrieved 2007-04-29.
  28. ^ "SLIPKNOT Drummer JOEY JORDISON To Tour With KORN - Apr. 19, 2007". Blabbermouth.net. 2007-04-19. Retrieved 2007-06-15.
  29. ^ Revolver Magazine
  30. ^ FUSE interviews
  31. ^ "The Smoking Gun's Page with Paul Gray's mugshot". The Smoking Gun. Retrieved 2007-02-13.
  32. ^ a b Shawn Crahan (Director) (2006). Voliminal: Inside the Nine. Roadrunner Records. {{cite AV media}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); |format= requires |url= (help)
  33. ^ Jeff Niesel (2000-04-13). "Soundbites". Cleveland Scene. Retrieved 2007-03-17.
  34. ^ a b "The Smoking Gun's Page about the lawsuit". The Smoking Gun. Retrieved 2007-03-17.
  35. ^ a b Charlie Amter. "Slipknot Seeks to Block BK's Coq". Eonline. Retrieved 2007-04-22.
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