That Time Slipknot Opened for a Jazz Band
It’s hard to imagine Slipknot as anything less than the giants they are today, but every band starts somewhere. As most upcoming musicians know, young bands do not always have first choice when it comes to their gigs, and that can lead to some bizarre situations. The same was true for Slipknot back in the day according to Our Lord and Savior Corey Taylor, who reminisced in a recent interview with BBC’s Radio 1 Rock Show about the time Slipknot opened for a jazz band in their hometown of Des Moines, IA.
“It was a gig-trade because Clown owned a bar in Des Moines. They all, like, stared at us like we had shit in our hands and had thrown it at them. They were so stunned with the madness.”
Weirdly enough, the booking did make a bit of sense; at the time, the band’s latest release was Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat., which included some jazz elements and odd time signatures. It remains unclear if anyone at the gig appreciated that, but who knows, maybe a few metalheads were born that day at the unlikely show. Even if that was the case, though, it was little consolation for the break down their vans suffered on the way home, just in case the whole experience wasn’t memorable enough:
“Driving home, both vans broke down in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of winter. So some of us stayed, some of us walked to call a tow truck. That’s what you did. And I can remember constructing cardboard ventilation for the heater just to get some back. We all huddled our gear as close as we can to this weird cardboard ventilation system – it was brutal. And then having to get up the next day and go to work…”
Remember that the next time you end up on a bill with a band as far from metal as could be, or the next your van breaks down; it happened to Slipknot, too!
Slipknot will tour the U.K., Europe and Asia this coming winter. Dates:
Jan. 14 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena [TICKETS]
Jan. 16 – Manchester, U.K. @ Manchester Arena [TICKETS]
Jan. 17 – Newcastle, U.K. @ Utilita Arena [TICKETS]
Jan. 18 – Glasgow, U.K. @ SSE Hydro [TICKETS]
Jan. 20 – Sheffield, U.K. @ Flydsa Arena [TICKETS]
Jan. 21 – Nottingham, U.K. @ Motorpoint Arena [TICKETS]
Jan. 22 – Cardiff, U.K. @ Motorpoint Arena [TICKETS]
Jan. 24 – Birmingham, Arena, U.K. [TICKETS]
Jan. 25 – London, U.K. @ The O2 [TICKETS]
Jan. 28 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Ziggo Dome [TICKETS]
Jan. 29 – Frankfurt, Germany @ Festhalle [TICKETS]
Jan. 30 – Paris, France @ AccorHotels Arena [TICKETS]
Feb. 01 – Luxembourg, Luxembourg @ Rockhal [TICKETS]
Feb. 02 – Lyon, France @ Halle Tony Garnier [TICKETS]
Feb. 04 – Budapest, Hungary @ Sportarena [TICKETS]
Feb. 06 – Lodz, Poland @ Atlas Arena [TICKETS]
Feb. 08 – Stuttgart, Germany @ Hanns Martin Schleyer Halle [TICKETS]
Feb. 09 – Munich, Germany @ Olympiahalle [TICKETS]
Feb. 11 – Milan, Italy @ Mediolanum Forum [TICKETS]
Feb. 12 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Hallenstadion [TICKETS]
Feb. 14 – Vienna, Austria @ Stadthalle [TICKETS]
Feb. 16 – Hamburg, Germany @ Barclaycard Arena [TICKETS]
Feb. 17 – Berlin, Germany @ Mercedes-Benz Arena [TICKETS]
Feb. 18 – Dortmund, Germany @ Westfalenhalle [TICKETS]
Feb. 20 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Royal Arena [TICKETS]
Feb. 21 – Stockholm, Sweden @ Ericsson Globe [TICKETS]
Feb. 22 – Oslo, Norway @ Telenor Arena [TICKETS]
Feb. 24 – Helsinki, Finland @ Hartwall Arena [TICKETS]
March 20 – Tokyo, Japan – Knotfest
March 21 – Tokyo, Japan – Knotfest
March 24 – Singapore – Singapore Rock Fest
March 27 – Jakarta, Indonesia – Hammersonic Festival
March 29 – Manila, Philippines – Amoranto Stadium
[via Kerrang!]
