Oh boy, are you guys ready for a blast from the past? 🤯 Because Corey Taylor just spilled the beans about his first encounter with SLIPKNOT, and it’s a wild ride. I mean, who doesn’t love a good story about a bunch of crazy Iowans in masks, right? 😂
So, it all started back in 1996 when Corey Taylor, the legendary frontman of SLIPKNOT (and STONE SOUR, but who’s counting?), saw the band perform live for the first time. And let me tell you, it was a game-changer. Taylor recalled the moment in an interview with Josh Scherer, the host of the YouTube channel Mythical Kitchen (because, you know, cooking and metal go hand-in-hand 🍳). He said: “I started STONE SOUR in ’92. I was in it until I joined SLIPKNOT in ’97. I had moved away for a little bit. I was living in Denver. So I come back, and everyone’s talking about the new band that all the guys had put together. And I knew everybody in SLIPKNOT, because I knew all of their individual bands.”
The Birth of a Metal Icon
Fast forward to April 4th, 1996, when SLIPKNOT first took the stage at the Safari Club in Des Moines. The original lineup consisted of Shawn Crahan, Joey Jordison, Paul Gray, and Anders Colsefni. And, boy, did they make an entrance! Taylor described the scene: “They start their intro, and it goes on for an incredibly long period of time, which I loved. So I’m, like, right in front of the stage. I’m, like, ‘I can’t wait to see this.’ Intro starts, and then all of a sudden they walk through us. They crawl through us from the back, and we’re, like, ‘What the hell is…?’ They all roll onto stage or climb up onto stage… And I was, like, ‘Oh, shit. What the hell, dude?'”
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “What’s the big deal about a bunch of guys in masks playing music?” Well, my friend, it’s all about the energy, the passion, and the sheer craziness of it all. Taylor continued: “There was such a feeling of threat in a good way, ’cause we all had grown up listening to extreme music, whether it was hardcore or punk or metal or — I mean, just whatever. Because it was Iowa, it was never hard enough, it was never fast enough, it was never crazy enough.” And, let’s be real, who doesn’t love a good dose of chaos and anarchy in their music? 🤘
A Legacy Born
SLIPKNOT’s first album, “Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat,” was released in October 1996, and it’s safe to say that it changed the trajectory of modern metal forever. I mean, who needs a record deal when you can just press 1,000 copies of your album and call it a day? 😂 The album became a collector’s dream, with only a handful of copies available. And, as Taylor noted, it was all about the hustle: “When I wasn’t working, and I had two jobs, I was going and I was flyering for the next STONE SOUR show. I was going and climbing up on overpasses and zip-tying sheets that had been spray painted with all the details. So they saw that hustle. And I saw that in them. And it’s so weird to say it now, but it was so meant to be.”
So, there you have it, folks. The story of how Corey Taylor joined SLIPKNOT and the rest, as they say, is history. And, if you’re feeling nostalgic, you can always dig out your old copy of “Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat” and reminisce about the good old days of metal. Or, you know, you can just listen to it on YouTube like a normal person 📺. Either way, it’s a wild ride, and we’re all just along for the ride. 🎢
Chord F. Discord, the Beethoven of Buffoonery, is a self-taught expert in music who once claimed he could “play the kazoo in four languages.”
Born in Crescendo, Indiana, Chord’s first brush with fame came when he accidentally entered a yodeling contest thinking it was a pie-eating competition—and won both categories.
Chord F. Discord: proving that laughter, much like a poorly tuned ukulele, is truly universal.
