Slipknot drummer Jay Weinberg recently guested onn T95 The Rock Station and discussed his favourite songs to perform live from before he joined the band. He also offered some insight on the band's forthcoming seventh album.
On the new album
Weinberg: "There's some stuff that's really, really incredible. There are some songs like where Corey (Taylor) is going off into this other voice that is totally, totally new and really exciting. And I remember when I first heard some stuff that he was laying on top of these demos and stuff; I was like, 'Oh my god, this is gonna be incredible...' and it's only been elevated since then.
My favourite stuff has always been the experimental side of the band, which seems, from record to record, the more experimental stuff is like experimenting in a very different way than we had before. Like 'Spiders' is a really good example of that. There hadn't been a song like that on any record. Or some of the some of the interesting parts of 'Unsainted'. We've never had a choir on a Slipknot record before. Cool stuff like that. So I really appreciate the risk-taking the chance-taking, and the fact that we can sit back and be like, 'Well, yeah, that sounds like nothing we've done before.' That's awesome.
I'm really excited for it to come out. 'The Chapeltown Rag' was exciting to put together and exciting to finally release and play live first time. It's just really wild because I feel like that's us performing at peak intensity. So yeah, I'm just really excited for everybody to hear it."
Slipknot have released an official video for the single, “The Chapeltown Rag”, which is available on all streaming platforms.
The Clown-directed visual frames the visceral experience of the band’s unparalleled live performance. True to form, heavy music’s generational ambassadors in Slipknot set the community ablaze late last year with the launch of a brand new offensive packaged with cryptic fanfare.
Within the span of about a week’s time, the band methodically disseminated veiled messaging from the then unreleased music, fuelling speculation that their plan of attack was imminent.
Launching an all out blitz, “The Chapeltown Rag” surfaced as Slipknot’s first showing of new material since We Are Not Your Kind and emphatically punctuated a monumental 2021 - a year that included the band’s triumphant live return following the unprecedented stall in the wake of a historic pandemic.
Thematically, the song utilized the true crime lore of the Yorkshire Ripper and the ensuing mania of the media during the murderous spree to draw parallels to the current social climate of the online era. From Corey Taylor’s tortured howl, “When everything is God online, nothing is” a loaded statement can be deduced about modern day misinformation and the kind of divisiveness that mares the digital age.
The intensity of the track was underscored when Slipknot opted to debut “The Chapeltown Rag” ceremoniously to a capacity audience just days later during the band’s historic showing at Knotfest Los Angeles at Banc of California Stadium. A sight to behold, the collective delivered a relentless rendition of the track in a performance that illuminated the L.A. skyline and further cemented the band as the undisputed champions of heavy culture.
Documenting the vehemence and volatility that has become synonymous with the band’s live experience, the latest Slipknot music video boasts a collection of Knotfest Roadshow 2021 live tour footage featuring “The Chapeltown Rag.”
The Clown-directed clip captures the contrasting pageantry and pummel synonymous with Slipknot in the flesh, while framing the significance of live music’s return led by one it’s most powerful innovators.
The music video arrives as Slipknot prepare to embark on the first and second leg of their Knotfest Roadshow. Watch the explosive visual for “The Chapeltown Rag” below:
