Slipknot won’t do a Kiss over masks

Corey Taylor believes Slipknot will never follow Kiss down the route of abandoning their stage costumes.

Gene Simmons and co abandoned their trademark makeup in 1984 before putting it back on a decade later. And while Taylor says his band could easily perform without their masks, he doesn’t believe they ever will.

The frontman tells HTZ-FM: “I don’t think we’d want to. I always think back to when Kiss took the makeup off. I know why they did it – they kind of hit a wall and it was time to evolve.

“But for us, the masks always evolve and our look always evolves. We don’t feel that pressure to take them off because we allow ourselves to roll with the times and to change with the albums.

“So even though I think we could, I don’t think we will. Because it’s not just about the masks – it’s about everything.”

Taylor reflects that no one told him what the masks represented when he joined Slipknot in 1997. That gave him the opportunity to create his own reasons.

“For me, the mask represents the person inside, who may or may not have a voice,” he says. “Or you may not have the courage to give that person a voice because it may be too controversial.

“If you don’t give that person a voice it gets held back, then all of a sudden it overcompensates and takes over for the rest of you. That’s what it became to me, and that’s what it means to me to this day.”

Slipknot launched .5: The Gray Chapter – their first without late bassist Paul Gray – in October. They’ll headline the 2015 edition of Download in June 2015 after a UK tour with Korn next month:

Jan 14: Dublin 3Arena

Jan 16: Sheffield Motorpoint Arena

Jan 18: Glasgow SSE Hydro

Jan 19: Newcastle Metro Radio Arena

Jan 20: Manchester Arena

Jan 22: Liverpool Echo Arena

Jan 23: London Wembley SSE Arena

Jan 24: Cardiff Motorpoint Arena

Jan 26: Nottingham Capital FM Arena

Jan 27: Birmingham Barclaycard Arena

Not only is one-time online news editor Martin an established rock journalist and drummer, but he’s also penned several books on music history, including SAHB Story: The Tale of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, a band he once managed, and the best-selling Apollo Memories about the history of the legendary and infamous Glasgow Apollo. Martin has written for Classic Rock and Prog and at one time had written more articles for Louder than anyone else (we think he's second now). He’s appeared on TV and when not delving intro all things music, can be found travelling along the UK’s vast canal network.