Superlatives
A Vulture series in which artists judge the best and worst of their own careers.
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Slipknothas one of the grodiest lores in rock music.
By 1999, the members each had an assigned number, mask, and killer carny costume.
Almost all of Slipknots iconic attributes can be credited to Crahan.
Through his vision the masks, the boilersuits he left no unscrew unturned.
If the world wouldnt sit up and take notice, hed break down the door and force them to.
(They also stopped pooping and puking on stage.)
Theyve become a major influence, both sonically and aesthetically, on everyone from Code Orange to Playboi Carti.
Most gripping vocals
Big question.
Corey can go from screaming to singing in his sleep.
His confidence is on another level.
I could point out so many songs where he can bring you to your knees.
Its hard for me to choose between his melody and his aggressive tones.
Its like he jumped out of a plane and landed right into the song.
How does he go through all of that?
Best unreleased material
Oh my God.
I dont even know where to begin.
I mean, theres audio, and then theres video too.
We have tons of incomplete concepts, some just under completion.
Theres a lot of Slipknot I wish the culture could have.
There is so much I create throughout my career but very, very little is actually put out there.
Someone recently brought up the albumLook Outside Your Window.
No one believes that it even exists, or that its ever going to come out.
Its just a whole different approach in my mind.
Recently, I approved all the art.
Ive also worked really hard to get it mixed and mastered.
Riskiest move
Being born.
Favorite music video
The Devil In I.
Legally, they would not let me do that its a stunt double even though I offered.
But it was too dangerous.
I wanted to be on fire at the same time.
The moment he became clown
I was 14 years old.
I was in a mall with my girlfriend at the time.
We always went to Spencers because they had little adult novelty toys.
Then I saw this mask in the clearance bin.
I remember it exactly.
I put it on and I immediately understood what it was like to disappear.
I was gone and the real me had just shown up.
It was so natural.
From that day on, I molded my face to make my own masks.
I have always been the Clown no matter how the mask has changed.
The essences are always there.
I still have that baby.
Its shrunken a bit from all the stage lights.
If I were to donate it, theres no guarantee that itd be taken seriously or protected.
The moment he stopped pooping on stage
I thought every time would be my last.
But the obvious change came during the 2019We Are Not Your Kindchapter.
My body had just taken enough abuse.
Nastiest mask
Oh God, I mean, its pretty bad.
Just about every body fluid has gone onto it.
Its rolled around on every floor in every city.
Its rubbed up against human beings in the middle of a pit.
Its a disease on its own.
All the masks are.
When we did Ozzfest in 98 we were on a bus with 16 people.
We didnt have any money.
No one knew who Slipknot was.
We werent even getting a hotel room.
There was this lounge on the bus, with, like, six drawers.
We put our masks in there.
I ripped both those fuckers.
So my bicep was actually on my forearm.
Like, it just dropped down and my skin fell down with it.
People would vomit when they saw it.
I had surgery, and I lost 25 percent of that arm.
I have swelling on my right side where this dissolvable screw was.
Out of all the injuries, that one really is a daily reminder.
Song that reminds him of Paul Gray and Joey Jordison
I missthem.
You know, its too much.
I feel bad even doing interviews about our 25th anniversary because most of it lives with them.
Their contributions to my life are incomprehensible.
Yet here I am.
Its really hard for me.
I dont like that they dont get to talk.
They are the two people you should be talking to right now.
Now its all memory.
But none of the band ever talk about that.
A lot of humans like to tell you exactly what they know that I dont know.
We did some shit.
Whenever we play Vermillion I think of Paul.
I just remember him upstairs in the mansion whittling away at that song for weeks.
He was a genius.
And Joey, God, its just about everything.
Were finally back there.
It was a song where hed really just go off.
But even a song like Spit It Out, the way Joey demanded the attention in that song.
He was like the conductor everyone paid attention to him.
