In October 2014, metal heavyweights Slipknot unleashed their fifth studio album, .5: The Gray Chapter, four years after the death of their founding member and bass player Paul Gray, and a mere ten months after the departure of core member and drummer Joey Jordison. The record, which seethes with irrepressible anguish and emotional unrest, exploded onto Slipknot fans like an aural grenade and skyrocketed to number one on the metal charts. For many, the release of the album was entirely unpredicted, and for the band members themselves, the record embodied one of the most tempestuous and tragic eras in the 15 years since the release of their blistering self-titled record. Yet according to vocalist Corey Taylor and guitarist Jim Root, while The Gray Chapter magnified the deeply lugubrious grieving process each of them had faced, the record united the band in a way no-one could’ve anticipated.
“There were some intense days in the studio,” Taylor recalls. “There were times I was so in the moment I was either breaking down or throwing up, and a lot of times doing both at the same time.
“There was something intuitively different about this album. Not only because of what we’d gone through, but because of the circumstances [in] which we were trying to make this album. It was very important that I tear the lid off everything and just let it go. I hadn’t done that in a long time – you try to, and sometimes you get close and sometimes you don’t, but the story we were telling was so personal and so intense that you couldn’t half-ass it. For us it was about ripping the lid off and screaming bloody murder.”
Indeed, the past five years have been among the most challenging times in Slipknot’s history. On May 24, 2010, Gray was found dead in his room at the TownePlace Suites hotel in his hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. Then, in December 2013, Jordison controversially left the group. While the reasons for Jordison’s departure are unclear (the remaining members remain tight-lipped about it), one thing’s for certain: he didn’t quit the band of his own will. Looking back now, Root says the impetus to commence writing for the record was borne from impatience at delays in getting the album started.
“We fucking waited way too long to start this album, and it just kept getting pushed back,” Root explains. “I was having conversations with Clown [Shawn Crahan, percussion] and Joey about starting the writing process – we were going to start in January. But when events unfolded the way they unfolded and we’d come to the conclusion that Joey wasn’t going to be with us anymore, it became apparent to me that I just needed to sit my fucking ass down, plant my head in my computer with a guitar in my lap and go to work. It was very obvious to me that it was time for Slipknot to start.”
For Taylor, the process of writing and recording the album was a deeply therapeutic one. His lyrics and performance for The Gray Chapter were cathartically crafted and executed, embracing the residues of his heightened emotional turmoil and transforming them into art.
“I had an epiphany while writing the demo music for this album,” adds Root. “I realised I was approaching writing songs the way Paul would have, and it hit me like a tonne of bricks. I had to put my guitar down for a while and think about it. Essentially, I realised Paul was here helping me through the process of putting these demos together. That might sound fucking hippy or spiritual, but to me it was a logical thing – I had spent a lot of time with this guy in the trenches, we had [spilt] a lot of blood in the game together, and it’s only obvious that certain traits of this person are going to rub off on you.”
Given the circumstances the band has faced over the past five years, is Taylor surprised at the collective strength of the group, and its innate ability to persevere during times of profound hardship?
“I’m never surprised by anything that we do,” Taylor hesitates, “but I am surprised by how quickly it all came together. People are amazed by the quality of what we were able to put together from scratch, and I think that’s the best compliment we could have as a band; the fact that we can still blow people away this late in the game, especially after everything that we’ve been through.
“I’m not surprised by it, I’m proud. I’m proud of the fact this band came together the way it did, in lieu of detractors, in lieu of doubters, in lieu of a whole generation of bands that have come in the wake of what we did 15 years ago. The fact that we were able to stand our ground, evolve, and yet tell our story the way we wanted to tell it is fantastic.”
Slipknot play Soundwave XV,Saturday February 28 and Sunday March 1 at Sydney Olympic Park, and.5: The Gray Chapter is out now through Roadrunner/Warner.
