Album Reviews : Slipknot – Slipknot: 10th Anniversary Edition

Slipknot fans consider the band to be one of the many pioneers of the “nu metal” scene from the mid to late 90’s. Slipknot brought a fresh new sound and style which gained the attention of both long time heavy metal fans and newbies alike.

The bands simple yet dominant sound has matured over the years  offering more complex layers of intensity, brutality and musicianship, further showcasing the bands already well known reputation in the heavy metal industry.

Now 10 years after their conception, Slipknot release to the masses the 10th anniversary edition of their debut self-titled album.

The album doesn’t have much in terms of a new visual face lift for it’s re-issue. Its pretty much the original album artwork reversed with minor additions to the liner notes, so be careful when purchasing the album as you may accidentally pick up the original version, and not the 10th anniversary edition.

Musically speaking the album is delivered in its entirety along with a handful of rare demos and unreleased tracks, racking up a whopping 25 tracks album. One of these tracks is the once banned song ‘Purity’ which landed the band in legal hot water. The track was originally on the first pressing of the debut album, but due to a legal battle it was completely taken off the album and replaced with the track ‘Me Inside’ on the digipak version.

‘Purity’ is haunting to say the least, as it details the story of a young girl named Purity Knight, who was subjected to being buried alive. Many misinterpreted the song thinking it was a fictional story; as it was. Corey Taylor, however was convinced otherwise and thought the story was real which inevitability landed the band in a legal battle, due to the original author of the story regarding the lyrics to the song as copyright infringement.

The 10th anniversary edition of Slipknot‘s debut album still carries all the trademarks and brutal intensity its significant other did when it was originally released . If anything, the 10th anniversary edition of the debut album shows how far the band have come in the past 10 years.

Listening to the album now, it seems a little outdated as the sound is so simple and not as complex, as say ‘Vol. 3 Subliminal Verses’ or ‘All Hope Is Gone’. This is partly due to producer Ross Robinson who has a knack to give albums a very raw and somewhat garage sound, which was even highlighted in some of his other projects which included Fear Factory‘s first album ‘Concrete’ along with Korn and Soulfly‘s debut album’s, respectively.

For its time, Slipknot‘s debut album was considered revolutionary by many critics, as it entered hostile waters not yet charted by mainstream metal bands at the time.

I remembering listening to this album when I was in high school. I was overcome with so much adrenalin and excitement, as I never heard such heavy music (at the time) in my life. Slipknot paved a new musical road so to speak, not only introducing turntables and sampling to their mix, but also percussion instruments which engulfed the album with a steel tin hiss. This trademark sound along with the band’s quintessential wall of sound, accompanied by Joey Jordison‘s insanely lovable drumming was definitely a step up and a breath of fresh air in terms of the other commercial metal saturating the market at the time.

To be honest, I’m  a bit over Slipknot at the moment. I like their music but I wouldn’t considered myself a die hard fan. However, I can easily enjoy Slipknot‘s debut album from start to finish as it not only offers a degree of nostalgia for me, but is one Slipknot‘s best and most brutal album, for me personally.  Tracks like ‘Sic’, ‘Liberate’, ‘Spit it Out’ and ‘Wait and Bleed’ still hold their integrity and solid sound, as does the entire album.

The addition of bonus tracks and demos certainly ups the ante of the listening experience, as does the bonus DVD which accompanies the special edition release of the album. The footage included doesn’t offer much in terms of studio diaries or musical techniques. Its a short movie showcasing the bands shenanigans and live performances throughout their touring schedule in late ’99. The DVD also consists of video clips ‘Surfacing, ‘Wait and Bleed’ (including an animated version) and ‘Spit it Out’ along with band’s entire performance at the Dynamo Open Air festival in early 2000.

This album would be considered the most definitive version of Slipknot‘s debut album, as there seems to be 5 versions of the album including the 10th anniversary edition in circulation at the moment. It never ceases to amaze me how many times Roadrunner Records decides to re-release an album, then 6 months later releases it again with an extra track.

If you’re new to Slipknot, you’ll easily fit into the album’s comfort zone as it not only offer’s a great debut album by the band, but also includes a plethora of bonus features which include rare songs, video footage and an entire live performance all in the one package. If your a long time fan however, it’s most likely you’ll pick up the album anyway, as having 5 versions of this album clearly isn’t enough for you. 7.5/10

Band: Slipknot
Album: Slipknot: 10th Anniversary Edition
Year: 2009
Genre: Metal
Label: Roadrunner Records
Origin: Iowa, USA
www.myspace.com/slipknot1

Track listing:
1. 742617000027
2. (sic)
3. Eyeless
4. Wait And Bleed
5. Surfacing
6. Spit It Out <- Reviewer’s choice
7. Tattered & Torn
8. Purity <- Reviewer’s choice
9. Liberate
10. Prosthetics
11. No Life
12. Diluted
13. Only One
14. Scissors
15. Eeyore
16. Me Inside
17. Get This
18. Spit It Out” (Hyper version)
19. Spit It Out” (Stamp You Out mix)
20. (sic)” (Molt-Injected mix)
21. Wait And Bleed” (Terry Date mix)
22. Wait And Bleed” (demo version)
23. Snap” (demo version)
24. Interloper” (demo version)
25. Despise” (demo version)

Of The Sic: Your Nightmares, Our Dreams (Short Film)

Music Videos:
1. Spit It Out
2. Wait and Bleed
3. Surfacing
4. Wait and Bleed (Animated Version)

Live at Dynamo Open Air, Nijimegen, Holland: June 3, 2000

Setlist:
1. 742617000027
2. (sic)
3. Eyeless
4. Wait and Bleed
5. No Life
6. Liberate
7. Purity
8. Prosthetics
9. Spit It Out
10. Get This
11. Surfacing