Did you know that Slipknot only played the title track to their 2008 album All Hope Is Gone once?
Despite being the very first single issued from the record, it has barely been represented onstage, performed on July 9, 2008 when the Mayhem Festival made its first stop at the White River Amphitheater in Auburn, Washington.
On that tour, which was headlined by Slipknot and featured Disturbed, DragonForce, Mastodon, Underaoth, Machine Head and more, the band generally played an 11-song set. "Psychosocial" was the lone All Hope Is Gone track to stay in the setlist, one that remains a popular live fixture to this day. But on the tour kickoff, the band performed 13 songs in total, including "Spit It Out" which was also dropped after opening night.
In the fan-filmed footage below of Slipknot's only performance of "All Hope Is Gone," frontman Corey Taylor chants the release date of the record, which wound up being the last with drummer Joey Jordison and bassist Paul Gray.
Slipknot, Only Live Performance of "All Hope Is Gone" — July 9, 2008
Slipknot Setlist — July 9, 2008 (via setlist.fm)
01. "Surfacing"
02. "The Blister Exists"
03. "Get This"
04. "Spit It Out"
05. "Before I Forget"
06. "Disasterpiece"
07. "Psychosocial" (Live debut)
08. "The Heretic Anthem"
09. "Prosthetics" (First time played since 2000)
10. "Duality"
11. "All Hope Is Gone" (Only live performance to date)
12. "People = Shit"
13. "(sic)"
Corey Taylor's Thoughts on Slipknot's Setlists
In a late 2022 appearance on the All Things Music podcast, Taylor opened up about some of his own frustrations with Slipknot's setlists, touching on how difficult it is to include deep cuts while also revealing he's "fucking tired" of playing "Wait and Bleed."
Regarding deep cuts, Taylor said there's constant chatter online about what rarities they'd like to see the band play, but it hasn't worked out all that well when they've gone down that road.
"The fans are fickle too, because every other fucking fan favorite is like 'you fuckers never play 'Metabolic.' Then we bring it out and you could've heard a pin drop. Nobody gave a shit about 'Metabolic,'" Taylor said on the podcast (via Metal Injection).
Taylor also stated the one song he'd love to play live but the band will never agree to is "Gematria (The Killing Name)," which happens to be off All Hope Is Gone.
"There are certain odiums around the way that song was created and recorded, which is why some of the guys in the band are like 'fuck that, we'll never play it. [The reason] isn't even sentimental. It's resentment. But for me man, it's such a fucking burner that I just love that song," he explained, lamenting, "But it'll never happen."
Slipknot on Tour
Slipknot's schedule is lined with festival dates in the U.S. and overseas, all of which can be seen at the band's website. For tickets, head here.
