“We decided to go very dark, really get brutal with it, because it just needed to go that way. … We play this for us and for the kids who believe in us. … (‘Iowa’s’) probably the heaviest album that ever hit the Top Three on Billboard. That’s saying something.”
— vocalist Corey Taylor
In the spring of 1999, a rumble began to grow from the Midwest. By the summer, a band of masked maniacs, nine in total, exploded onto the metal scene spewing enough venom and bile into a cacophony of metallic bliss to conquer the masses.
Hailing from Iowa, Slipknot immediately garnered a slew of media attention. Maybe it was because each member hid his identity by wearing a mask; maybe it was because this was a metal band made up of nine members; or maybe it was because this band came (seemingly) out of nowhere with an absolute blistering metal release.
The band’s independent debut, 1997’s “Mate, Feed, Kill, Repeat,” was a schizophrenic blend of metal, rock, industrial noise, jazz and experimental sound. Utterly gritty, it laid the foundation for what the band would become. Following a few shifts in the lineup, including the addition of frontman Corey Taylor, the band honed in on its metal prowess.
Signed to Roadrunner, the band’s national self-titled debut was a dark, brooding mix of metal styles tempered with all-out aggression. The band got even more extreme with its follow-up, 2001’s “Iowa,” and then added a little more melody and mellow moments with it’s most resent release, “Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses.”
When it came to picking a classic, there was never a doubt in my mind. “Mate, Kill, Feed, Repeat” is a phenomenal release, but way too off-the-wall; “Vol. 3” is more of a masterpiece than a classic, a perfect evolution for the band; the self-titled debut was just that — a killer debut, chock-full of classic tracks. But the classic … the classic is definitely “Iowa,” an oft-overlooked released that only the diehard fans ever really clinged to.
Slipknot
Iowa
Roadrunner Records
Much like Pantera and Skid Row, when Slipknot prepared for its sophomore album the band decided to turn the metal up to the extreme. It could have spelled career suicide, but the group didn’t care. It set out to release an unrelenting metal assault and that’s exactly what resulted. The band was interested in touring with Deicide to promote the release, that’s how heavy it was. Taylor opened the album with a guttural, death metal wail; the three-piece percussion unit performed like a fine-tuned machine; the guitars and bass traded riffs back and forth at a sometimes breakneck pace. The nine-piece outfit pulled together and unleashed a metal assault like a precision bomb.
The metal anthems (“Left Behind,” “My Plague”) just gives way to heavier tracks (“New Abortion,” “Heretic Anthem”) to even heavier fare (“I Am Hated,” “Disasterpiece”).
Much like a death metal album, apart from a handful of tracks (that ultimately became singles anyway), there wasn’t anything that immediately jumped out at you. The beauty of the album is that it begs to be taken as a whole. It’s as heavy as an album can get without shifting into a different realm of the genre (think Pantera’s “Great Southern Trendkill”). Nothing feels overproduced but everything avoids sounding underdeveloped.
As it turns out, “Iowa” ended up being a completely misunderstood album. It was far too extreme for the masses that had embraced the aggression of “Slipknot.” And fans from the heavier side of the tracks chose to shun the album with the impression Slipknot was nothing more than a “Hot Topic” band of the month (read: overly commercialized). But what I see is a classic.
“Iowa” captured a moment in time for Slipknot. The band wanted to make a statement and it did. The album and subsequent tour were so brutal it almost turned out to be the group’s swan song. Instead, the members scattered and spent time working on other projects (The Murderdolls, DJ Starscream, Stone Sour, To My Surprise) and were able to regroup with a new appreciation for what Slipknot could become.
“Vol. 3” sees the band more in a different direction with the band exploring other dimensions of its sound and drawing inspiration from various extremes (metal and melody). I don’t see the band ever reaching into the depths (of hell) to create “Iowa” part 2, let alone match or further the extreme nature (like I said, you can’t get much more heavy without shifting into the death realm). Slipknot is capable of creating another classic, but will never outdo “Iowa.”
Like I had already mentioned, “Iowa” seemed to get lost in the mix upon release. It was so extreme that most didn’t know what to make of it, let alone embrace it. Five years later, it still stands the test of time for me. A blistering metal release, I have absolutely no qualms putting the album on in between spins of Slayer’s “Seasons in the Abyss” or any other classic metal album. If you were one of those people that ignored the album or never gave it a chance, you owe it to yourself to try another listen. I don’t think you’d regret it.
And that’s that. Until next time, take it easy. Stay tuned and enjoy the ride …
