Slipknot story jumps through time says Taylor

Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor says long-awaited album .5: The Gray Chapter is more like a Quentin Tarantino movie than a concept album.

And while the lyrical content tells the story of the band’s struggle for survival after the death of bassist Paul Gray in 2010, it doesn’t tell that story directly.

Taylor – whose new mask was revealed in the video for The Devil In I earlier this month – tells 98 Rock: “I didn’t want to do a concept album because we’d already done one with Stone Sour. It’s autobiographical. Some of the songs are about Paul and some are about the hell we’ve had to go through.

“There’s a story there but there’s no outline. It’s almost like a Tarantino movie, when he jumps around in time and shows you what’s going on. It doesn’t start with one period and go in a linear fashion. Each song tells a different little part, but you have to kind of look at it as a whole.”

The phrase that hangs heaviest in his mind over the turmoil is “war of emotions,” he admits. “There’s a lot of guilt – survivor’s guilt. There’s a lot of anger towards the person you lost. There’s a lot of anger towards yourself. You have to reach that point of, ‘Okay, everything that needed to happen happened, and there’s nothing I can do about it.’ And that’s what this album is.”

Slipknot haven’t confirmed the identities of their new bassist and drummer, although they’re thought to be Alessandro Venturella and Jay Weinberg respectively.

.5: The Gray Chapter is released on October 21 via Roadrunner. Slipknot are the cover stars of the current edition of Metal Hammer, on sale now.

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.