Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind (Album Review)

Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind
Released: August 9th 2019
Slipknot lineup:
Corey Taylor // Vocals
Sid Wilson // Turntables
Jim Root // Guitar
Mick Thompson // Guitar
Clown // Percussion
Tortilla Man // Percussion
Craig Jones // Samples, Keyboards
Alessandro Venturella // Bass
Jay Weinberg // Drums
Slipknot online:
It has been known throughout the history of music, bands often thrive on chaos. There’s just something about the inner conflict and turmoil that fuels their creativity. Slipknot is no exception to this rule, if anything, they’ve defined this rule for their entire musical career. Their new album, We Are Not Your Kind, comes in the wake of the much-publicised outing of Chris Fehn from the band and the inevitable fallout from his outing. But from the moment you hit play on this album, you won’t hear the lawsuits, you won’t be asking yourself who the new members are, you won’t even be wondering “what does Corey Taylor think?” mostly because he’ll be screaming what he thinks in your fucking face.
But honestly, If this album thrives on anything - it’s experimentation. Whether it’s on opener “Insert Coin” which features the same kind of intoxicating soundscapes you would hear on the Stranger Things soundtrack or the balancing act between beauty and ferocity shaped into the form of “A Liar’s Funeral” that features an absolutely aching acoustic section before it disintegrates you into nothingness the way only a Slipknot song.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpATBBRajP8&w=640&h=360]
It’s not to say there isn’t anything on this album with more conventional elements, “Unsainted” for instance builds upon a classic Slipknot riff, but it’s built with the thread of a choir running throughout that elevates it just a little above their usual fare and a song like “Nero Forte” recalls the haunted halls of Vol: 3 The Subliminal Verses and comes off almost like an absolutely devastating mishmash of all the elements from that album and sure, “Red Flag” hits you harder than a hammer against the face, while Corey Taylor spews his soul from his body a little bit at a time in that classic Slipknot style and the But for the most part, all bets are well and truly off.
This is non-more-obvious than on “Spiders” which is built on a foundation of drum beats, bass, and a persuasive piano section bleeding through the overall song, whilst Taylor holds it all together with his intoxicating vocals. Then there’s the slow, aching drawl Taylor brings to “Birth of Cruel” before it shatters bones with an absolutely headbang inducing middle section. It’s a perfect distillation of the experimentation the band are going for and yet features enough headbang inducing ferocity to make you wish there was a television nearby you could throw out a window.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGbjB0eVvko&w=640&h=360]
But the real challenge here is “My Pain” which forgoes guitar altogether as it pulses along with an almost industrial, minimalist electronic beat that brings Taylor to the fore as he sings about his pain before it ends with a sinister edge. It’s hard to imagine Slipknot even wrote this honestly. But by god, they fucking did. Closing the album out with “Solway Firth” sees the album come full-circle as the band grinds your bones into dust with one of the most ferocious songs they’ve ever committed to tape. Whether it’s the brutal, lyrical imagery conveyed by Taylor or the furious almost melodic death metal riffing. This song just goes straight for the jugular.
Ultimately, We Are Not Your Kind is the most experimental record Slipknot have made in their entire career. Born out of lawsuits, inner band turmoil and lineup changes, this album challenges and rewards listeners, while still pushing the very definition of who Slipknot are as a band. It will leave you breathless, it will make you want to punch the world in the face and when it’s all over, you’ll just want to start the album all over again.

Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind tracklisting:
1. Insert Coin
2. Unsainted
3. Birth of the Cruel
4. Death Because of Death
5. Nero Forte
6. Critical Darling
7. Liar’s Funeral
8. Red Flag
9. What’s Next
10. Spiders
11. Orphan
12. My Pain
13. Not Long for This World
14. Solway Firth
Rating: 10/10
We Are Not Your Kind is out August 9th via Roadrunner Records. Pre-Order Here.
Reviewed by Kaydan Howison.
