Since there is a lot of information to cover here, I thought to break it down into a few small categories...just in case I miss anything.
001: The Members
As mentioned above, we see a couple new members added to the group. Those following Slipknot have known for some time now about the untimely death of bassist Paul Gray and his drug overdose (morphine and fentanyl) in 2010. This has a very hard affect on the band as it took quite some time for them to come to terms with it, express their emotions, and pass their grieving phases. This also served as motivation for the production of the new album. The grayest of blue skies (no pun intended) can sometimes act as that extra 'umph' when searching for musical/lyrical inspiration. Emotions (whether good or bad) drive the best work out of us. Same goes for Slipknot.
"Despite his corporeal absence, Paul Gray is very much present and accounted for on this album, and not just in its title. Musically, the band’s new bassist and drummer are very clearly (and very capably) following the same thrusting rhythmic template that Gray forged with Jordison, but Gray is also quite clearly there in the lyrics, obliquely or otherwise." -Revolver
"It was almost like getting to know each other again. We were all kind of grieving in our own way and dealing with things in our own way. And knowing that we had to be healthy to go in – we had to be creative to go in – and knowing that we were gonna have to fill this huge void, we just kind of took it upon ourselves to make up for that emptiness by being a little bit of Paul. Like we were all a little bit of Paul in our own way." -Taylor
The new member's identities have been sheltered by the band thus far and not giving any indication who they have behind the bass and the drums. As you all have probably read as well, long time member Joey Jordison exited the band in December of 2012. While no bad blood has slipped onto the Internet yet surrounding the sudden exit, a fair amount of people have speculated a potential disagreement between Jordison and other members. Either way, what happens between them as a band is their business and don;t necessarily care as long as the music quality is still there. Feel free to make your own guesses as to whom the new members are. The rest of the world is.
002: The Masks
Like most albums with Slipknot, new masks were introduced as the beginning of the promotion for the album. It has become just as much of a marketing ploy as it is for a new chapter in the band's existence. Fans will cling to their social media and music sites to catch a glimpse of what the guys will look like in both the album and on tour. So smart move for them to make the revealing of masks to be a promotion POV.
"With every album, some of us kind of us stick the same way and change it in subtle ways. People like me, Clown, Sid and a couple of others, we change ours drastically. Because, for me, the mask is a representation of the person on the inside, and nobody stays the same over time; that's my belief. So, for me, with every album, my mask has evolved and evolved and evolved, and so this one, specifically, is supposed to represent the person behind the mask, but then the person behind that person, which is one of the reasons why it's two pieces, and you can peel the one off, and it's still a representation… So it's almost like having two different faces, but it's the same person." -Taylor (via Blabbermouth)
003: The Album
As mentioned above, ".5: The Gray Chapter" will be released on October 21st, 2014 via Roadrunner Records. Pre-orders for the album itself have been launched at Slipknot1.com.
1. XIX
2. Sarcastrophe
3. AOV
4. The Devil in I
5. Killpop
6. Skeptic
7. Lech
8. Goodbye
9. Nomadic
10. The One That Kills the Least
11. Custer
12. Be Prepared for Hell
13. The Negative One
14. If Rain Is What You Want
15. Override (Special Edition)
16. The Burden (Special Edition)
Early play and promo copies of the album clearly states who the producer and mixer are for this. The album was mixed by Joe Barresi, who has done previous work with Tool, QOTSA, Clutch, Bad Religion, and many more. Production duties were handled by Greg Fidelman, who has also done work with Metallica, Neil Diamond, Audioslave, Black Sabbath, and more. And another piece of info to note is the photography for the album was done by 006 member Shawn "Clown" Crahan.
004: The Music
So I had the chance to listen to the album as a whole already and all I have to say is... WELCOME BACK! I am already in love with this album and do agree with critics (and band members) that a cross between V3 and Iowa is the best way to describe this album. It's hard hitting right from the get go with songs like "Sarcastrophe" and "The Devil in I". I can't get enough of that double kicker when the chorus kicks in for "The Devil in I"! So to fans who might be a little weary about new members and songwriting process, fear not as the Knot has returned for another round. Check out some of the audio clips the band has shared thus far.
Loudwire: Which song on the new album ‘.5: The Gray Chapter’ was most difficult to get to completion and why?
"As far as from an emotional standpoint, the one for me that really rung my bell was the last song on the official album, a song called ‘If Rain Is What You Want.’ That song is really a reaction to the album that people expected us to make or thought that we were going to make. Anyone who’s dealt with the kind of loss that we’ve dealt with realizes that there’s no one side to this story. There are so many different sides to it that enable you to be able to tell it honestly. You have to come at it from all these different sides and talk about some of the ugliness of losing a loved one. So, ‘If Rain Is What You Want’ is really a response and an opening up. You talk about catharsis, it was a way to let go of a lot of what we were sitting on as far as trying to get to the point where we could, I don’t want to say cry about it, but just make amends with it, really. That song is really special for that. It’s got some of my favorite lyrics in it." -Taylor (via Loudwire)
005: The Videos
For the direction of the second video, "The Devil And I" ,Slipknot threw out a casting call for fans (also known as "human maggots") to be featured in said video. The only requirements for the video were ages 20-35 and shooting the video barefooted. Not that bad right? Plus, you get to be in a freaking SLIPKNOT MUSIC VIDEO!!
"After everything we went through, there's a catharsis that comes with this, being able to throw all the emotion and aggression out that we've been holding onto. At the same time, getting to be creative again. Feeling that juice coming back into us. It's been a real positive experience just from an artistic standpoint, a lyrical standpoint.
We're making an album that's not just a reflection. Let's just get new music out there. There's something very vital with what we're trying to do. There's something very visceral with the emotion we're playing with and trying to tell the story of a band that's gone through hell, and yet we're back. It's been really fulfilling." -Taylor (via Blabbermouth and Full Metal Jackie)
"The Negative One" (*NSFW) was directed by 006 member Shawn "Clown" Crahan. It features some rather disturbing imagery and does not feature any band members in the video, making it rather artistic than anything else. In order to watch the video (at least from YouTube and not AFGM) you must be at least 18+. I don't attempt to assume my target audience's age while posting these so use common sense folks.
006: The Tour
The touring aspect of this album will begin with a huge bang. Slipknot have forged together a music festival unlike any other on the globe currently. And with good reason as they are a band unlike any other (unless you cynics want to argue other metal bands that wears masks). Knotfest kicked off in 2012 in Council Bluffs, Iowa on August 17th, and in Somerset, Wisconsin on August 18th. Headliners included bands such as Deftones, Lamb of God, Cannibal Corpse, and many more. Since then, it has grown into quite the 2 day festival with headlining acts (for the 2014 edition) such as Danzig, Anthrax, Black Label Society, Hatebreed, Testament, Carcass, In This Moment, Fear Factory, Otep, and [of course] Slipknot for two days!
Loudwire: The touring cycle for the new album kicks off with Knotfest and the lineup this year is amazing. How much is the band involved in choosing what bands to book? What criteria makes a band best suited for Knotfest?
"We were very, very involved in putting this package together. The cool thing was, there was absolutely no lack of bands that were lined up to be a part of it. That was lucky for us. We were given a list of bands who were available and we went through and picked the ones that we wanted to put something together with. Then as soon as word got out that we were putting something together, we had all these bands coming out of the woodwork that wanted to be a part of this. It was the best of both worlds for us.
At the same time, it’s also a testament to the fact that we’ve been able to create something now that when we put our name on it, people understand that this isn’t something that’s put together just for show. This is quality. This is for the fans, something special, unique and it’s something that we’re always going to try and top ourselves. When bands see that we’re putting something like that together, one of the reasons why they want to be a part of it is because they know we treat it very special. We treat it in a way that maybe not a lot of other bands treat the things that they put their own name on." -Taylor (via Loudwire)
October 25 - San Bernardino, CA @ Knotfest
October 26 - San Bernardino, CA @ Knotfest
October 29 - El Paso, TX @ El Paso County Coliseum
October 31 - Dallas, TX @ Gexa Energy Pavilion
November 1 - Corpus Christi, TX @ American Bank Center
November 2 - San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center
November 4 - Little Rock, AR @ Verizon Arena
November 5 - Oklahoma City, OK @ Chesapeake Energy Arena
November 6 - Omaha, NE @ CenturyLink Center
November 8 - Madison, WI @ Alliant Energy Center
November 9 - Sioux Falls, SD @ Denny Sanford Premiere Center
November 11 - Denver, CO @ Denver Coliseum
November 19 - Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Arena
November 21 - Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
November 22 - Lexington, KY @ Rupp Arena
November 23 - Ft. Wayne, IN @ Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
November 25 - Moline, IL @ iWireless Center
November 26 - Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center
November 28 - Rosemont, IL @ Allstate Arena
November 29 - Detroit, MI @ Palace of Auburn Hills
November 30 - Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre
December 2 - Reading, PA @ Santander Arena
December 3 - Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center
December 5 - Uncasville, CT @ Mohegan Sun
December 6 - East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center
December 7 - Boston, MA @ Paul E. Tsongas Arena
Great read man, I'm gonna go check out the new album
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