Produced with a clear, heavy modern sheen, the album balances massive low-end weight with surprising sonic detail. Guitars are jagged and often industrial; percussion (including the layered presence of both core drumming and percussionists) is thunderous and intricately arranged. Moments of atmospheric noise, glitchy electronics, and unexpected melodic lines give the record an unsettling breadth—heavy, but not one-note.
Following the release of .5: The Gray Chapter in 2014—the band’s first album after the death of bassist Paul Gray (2010) and the departure of drummer Joey Jordison (2013)—Slipknot entered a period of intense internal recalibration. By 2019, the nine-piece from Des Moines, Iowa, had settled into a new lineup: percussionist Shawn “Clown” Crahan, guitarist Jim Root, and vocalist Corey Taylor remained the creative anchors, joined by drummer Jay Weinberg (son of E Street Band’s Max Weinberg), bassist Alessandro “V-Man” Venturella, guitarist Mick Thomson, sampler Craig Jones, DJ Sid Wilson, and percussionist Michael Pfaff. Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind -2019-
But the road to We Are Not Your Kind was rocky. Taylor battled severe depression and creative burnout after releasing solo work and fronting Stone Sour. Clown underwent surgery for a torn bicep. The band scrapped an entire album’s worth of material mid-session, deeming it “not Slipknot enough.” What emerged from those ashes was a record that defied expectations: darker, more experimental, and lyrically visceral—a direct challenge to the toxicity of fandom, fame, and modern tribal hatred. Produced with a clear, heavy modern sheen, the
This is the WTF moment. "Spiders" is driven by a creepy, strutting piano line that sounds like a cabaret show in hell. There are no power chords until the very end. Taylor sings in a low, seductive whisper about paranoia and crawling dread. It is Slipknot doing Depeche Mode. For some fans, it was jarring. For critics, it was genius. It proves that Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind -2019- refuses to be predictable. Following the release of