Corey Taylor says he’s as surprised as anyone that Slipknot have had such a long and successful career.
The singer says he always felt the band could have gone one of two ways, but admits he never took success for granted and reveals he’s proud they’re still doing things their way 20 years after forming.
Taylor tells the Irish Times: “I’m very proud of the fact that, this being our 20th anniversary, we are still doing things our way.
“It is one of the reasons we do the things we do. We’ve never jumped on trends, we’ve never chased notoriety. We’ve never chased a certain type of success. We’ve always looked at it as the long run and the long haul. That’s how you make your mark. That’s how you do things that are great and not just fashionable.
“I’m just as surprised as anyone else. This band could have gone one way or the other, but we were embraced in such a way that it gave us the confidence to try new things and really keep shaping this music to our satisfaction rather than the latest trend.
“That’s why we are still there and still at the top of our game. We may be the last remnant of that type of band.”
Slipknot released their fifth album .5: The Gray Chapter last year after a six year gap in which they tragically lost bassist Paul Gray and parted company with drummer Joey Jordison.
Taylor says he can’t be sure whether Slipknot would have made it if they formed today, but he reckons they’ve always found a way to make it work in the past.
He adds: “It is such a different world to make music in especially if you are in a metal or a hard rock band. There’s no guarantee if you’re starting out that you’re going to be able to catch that tail and ride it out.
“I’d like to think that our message would still resound as well as it did back in 1999 when we put the first album out. That’s not to say that we wouldn’t have to work for it.
“I look at the newer generation of fans that we have and there are so many new kids coming to the show. I’d like to think we’d have the same type of impact today that we had when the first album came out. We would find a way. This band is renowned for finding a way to get that message out, to get in front of the fans.”
Slipknot start the UK and Ireland leg of their tour later this week. They’ll be supported on all 10 dates by Korn:
Jan 14: Dublin 3Arena
Jan 16: Sheffield Motorpoint Arena
Jan 18: Glasgow SSE Hydro
Jan 19: Newcastle Metro Radio Arena
Jan 20: Manchester Arena
Jan 22: Liverpool Echo Arena
Jan 23: London Wembley SSE Arena
Jan 24: Cardiff Motorpoint Arena
Jan 26: Nottingham Capital FM Arena
Jan 27: Birmingham Barclaycard Arena
Slipknot also play Download Festival this June.
