Reflection presented by the percussionist occurs amid celebrations of the 25th anniversary of the American band’s debut album
It is normal for successful artists, when interviewed, to guarantee that they have no regrets in their careers. It is not the case that M. Shawn “Clown” Crahan: the percussionist and conceptualist leader of Slipknot He was sincere about past hurts.
In an interview with Kerrang! Regarding the 25th anniversary of the band’s debut album, the musician pointed out that his only remorse linked to the group has to do with the former members. He points out that he would have liked to have spent more time with the bassist Paul Graythe drummer Joey Jordisonalso percussionist Chris Fehn and the keyboardist Craig Jones.
The first two have already left us. Gray died in May 2010, aged 38, from an overdose of morphine and fentanyl. Jordison passed away in July 2021, at the age of 46 — the cause was not given. The bassist was still part of the group when he left, while the drummer had not been a member since 2013, when, depending on the version, he “left” or “was fired”. The other two are still with us, but broke up in 2019 (Fehn) and 2023 (Jones).
Clown says:
“I don’t know how I can talk about 25 years of that first album without mentioning Joey and Paul, or even Chris and Craig. The sadness is great. I really have no regrets other than not spending more time with these guys.”
On the other hand, the percussionist recognizes that he would not have been able to predict, even in 1999, what the future would be like: from good times to bad. He points out:
“You don’t start a band by looking at your brother and thinking, ‘Man, you’re going to be the best drummer of all time!’. It’s more like, ‘Dude, wake up, we have a store event today!’. You’re chasing a dream, then living the dream, then suddenly someone’s gone and it’s like, ‘what the fuck’. It’s life.”
Joey Jordison and Paul Gray Remembered
Still during the interview, Clown reinforced that the year 2024 — during which Slipknot toured celebrating the aforementioned 25th anniversary of their debut album — was marked by constant memories of Paul Gray and Joey Jordison. He reflected:
“Joey and Paul come around every night lately, in my energy anyway, and I just go into a wormhole of thoughts. It’s completely spiritual reminiscent and it’s wonderful. I spend a lot of time thinking, ‘Thank you!’.”
Despite this, the show must go on. Even with the losses, Slipknot moved on — and now even has a Brazilian, Eloy Casagrandeon the battery. Regarding the new phase, Crahan states:
“Our legacy is that we are still here. We’re not talking about a disbanded band. I’m most proud that we’re still here. We’re still doing it. We still compose. We still do shows. We still thrive. We’re still together. And we will continue until this is over. There has never been anything like Slipknot — not before and certainly not since.”
Slipknot in 2025
With their commemorative tour, Slipknot performed more than 40 shows throughout 2024, with visits to Europe and North and South America. The itinerary included two performances at the festival Knotfest Brazilheld on October 19th and 20th at Allianz Parque, in São Paulo.
The 2025 agenda features presentations in Oceania (between February and March) and Europe (June). In interviews, the musicians have also said that they are composing and recording new material, the first sessions being with Eloy Casagrande. There is no release date yet.
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Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
