Slipknot’s full hype return

Slipknot are back and Roadrunner Records along with the band themselves are in full on hype mode in the lead up to the release of their new album All Hope Is Gone. I’ve been a big Slipknot fan since they broke through back in 1999, but I’m not feeling excited about this record. Maybe it’s because my tastes have veered away from heavy metal over the years, or maybe it’s because we heard too much of this kind of talk from Corey Taylor and co: “It’s going to rip your face off, I don’t think the world will be ready for this album” …what else is new?

Also, we seem to be getting some mixed messages from the band. They’ve been putting out “eerie” teaser pictures for weeks showing the band in a rural American setting wearing oversized, stone-look masks. They seemed to be telling us to expect something new, something that’ll confuse and mesmerize, but now they’ve revealed the title track for the record that sounds like…well…good old Slipknot.

Having said all that, and as I write this while listening to the new track, a strong political message is emerging loud and clear and awakening that excitement I’ve been talking about. Slipknot may still have something to offer; they may still have a lot to offer, but all the marketing crap is seriously getting in the way.

Maybe some songs are too important to cover

When Billie Holiday recorded Strange Fruit, it was an important moment. The powerful atmospherics of the composition profoundly expressed the horror of the lynching of black men that occurred primarily in the south of the United States of America during the 100 years proceeding the American civil war, and has become synonymous with the American civil rights movement of the 1950’s and 60’s.

Lately I’ve come across a couple of recent covers of the song by contemporary singers, that have artfully reconstructed the atmosphere of the early recordings, and deliver powerful vocal performances. Check them out on my space:

XEO3
Killing Mood

As well as these covers are delivered, I’m left wondering what it is these performers believe they can add to a song of such importance. Can anyone covering this song in this day and age be anything more self indulgent posturing, and ultimately disrespectful to the seriousness of the issues the song confronts? Perhaps some songs are just too important to cover.