It wasn't until I was at military school that I finally decided to give the band a real listen, and it happened to be right about the time that Vol. 3 was released. Now you might think, "Oh, of course. Military school + angry kid = Slipknot." But that isn't entirely what the case was. It was more a matter of I was extremely bored, and was looking for new music. It just happened that Slipknot is aggression in audio form. And boy did it help on the days that I was a little more...upset...then usual.
That is the great thing about metal music in general though, for me at least. Whenever I'm feeling something that I can't properly spill forth, I listen to something heavy, fast, and relentless until I feel whatever stress, or anger I had dissolve.
So back to Slipknot...
It wasn't until I stepped foot at Roanoke College that I dug out the little Slipknot that I had and decided to give it a go full time. And thank the metal gods I did so. I joined the Slipknot ranks at an interesting time. Their first two albums had been landmarks in the new wave of American heavy metal (Slipknot, and Iowa...my personal favorite). This album (Vol. 3) would be a shock to the then loyal fans of the band...there would be heavy experimentation. There was a new producer (the legend himself Rick Rubin), and a new attitude (as always, new masks and outfits).
Each Slipknot album starts with an intro of sorts, a prologue to the madness that was to ensue. Up to this point the first two albums had at times horrific and static infused screams that would warn the listener of the HEAVY that was about to come. This album started with something a little more...welcoming.
What hooked me at first listen was the tightness of the group. Which is hard enough for a four piece to do...Slipknot has 9 insanely different members...
2 guitarist (Jim Root, Mick Thomson)
1 vocalist (Corey Taylor)
1 bassist (RIP Paul Gray, truly talented musican)
1 drummer (Joey Jordison)
2 percussionists (Shawn "Clown" Crahan, Chris Fehn)
1 DJ (Sid Wilson)
1 sampler (Craig "133" Jones)
The complete control this band had over the music was amazing to me. I had heard all the stories about how they were "emo" and nothing but "nu-metal". Whoever those people were must had been listening to something else, this album just got heavier and heavier until...they dropped it all and threw in a acoustic ballad. What?! This is heavy metal?! No...this is complete control over your career and music. Fearlessness. And THAT is what I love in bands. Most metal bands preach this ideal of doing what they please and this badass sense that they do whatever they want, but fail to ever really change and become more interesting. Every Slipknot album is a step forward. There are as with any band, minor setbacks on certain song ideas or choices, but through it all they always found a way to end up on the step above.
The album itself is full of thrashy riffs, brutal breakdowns, and double bass assaults (the first three tracks...The Blister Exists, Three Nil, Opium of the People). There are also the equally creepy and disturbing (Vermillion, The Virus of Life, Danger Keep Away). The scream that Corey Taylor emits during Vermillion is truly terrifying, you can almost hear pieces of his throat tear. Danger Keep Away is quite beautiful in a creepy/disturbing kind of way. But again proves that these guys are for real. Then they throw the ultimate curve and slow things down with tracks like Circle and Vermillion Pt. 2. Those two tracks really show that Slipknot don't need to hide behind distortion and percussion to prove that they are a talented group of musicians. These are the tracks that some say started Slipknot on a downward spiral, I however think this only made them stronger. It's funny, the ballads are what proved that Slipknot doesn't take shit from anyone.
BUT.
Slipknot also knows a thing or two about an all out assault on the ears and this album has possibly one of my favorite metal songs EVER. That would be the epic, triumphant, real mother fucker of a song called...Pulse of the Maggots. Now for the uniformed, maggots are what Slipknot fans call themselves, and this is their rally cry, courtesy of their idols. If anyone wondered why people head bang...throw THIS song on the stereo. Enjoy. Whoever thought Slipknot went soft with this album needs to turn this song up real loud and let the neighbors get a little nervous.
Overall this album is special to me because it got me into a band that I truly love, and have been following ever since. I guess you can call me a maggot after all.
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