ARTISTdirect.com editor-in-chief Rick Florino recently spoke to STONE SOUR/SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor about the song "Taciturn", which will appear on STONE SOUR's forthcoming fourth album, "House Of Gold And Bones".

"House Of Gold And Bones", a two-part concept effort, was recorded at Sound Farm Studios, just outside STONE SOUR's home base of Des Moines, Iowa, with producer David Bottrill (TOOL, MUSE, STAIND). According to Taylor, part 1 will contain 12 songs and will be released in October via Roadrunner Records, with the second 12-track part to follow next year. Each disc will include one half of the story, the lyrics for which fans will have to visit the band's official web site. Other songtitles set to appear on the album include "Absolute Zero", "RU486" and "A Rumor Of Skin".

At some of his recent solo European festival appearances, Taylor began playing an acoustic version of "Taciturn".

"That song translates so well acoustically," exclaims Taylor.

"When I wrote 'Taciturn', I knew it was something that could go either way. It could be a full band piece or it could be something I could play on my own.

"If I was going to give the people a first taste of what 'House Of Gold And Bones' parts 1 and 2 are going to be, 'Taciturn' is a nice way to give them a cool picture of it even in a stripped-down sense. That song is essentially about trust. It's about trying to find the courage to open up to the people you care about, love, and value, knowing that they're going to be there to catch you when it all comes down. They're going to be there for you when nobody else is. It's about letting go of the anchors that hold you down in life, opening yourself up and saying, 'If you're there for me, I'll be there for you. You've just got to give me a second'."

As previously reported, SKID ROW's Rachel Bolan laid down the bass tracks for the new STONE SOUR CD. He has described the material on the record as "fucking fierce."

Taylor recently told Revolver magazine about STONE SOUR's forthcoming CD, "Picture [PINK FLOYD's] 'The Wall' crossed with ALICE IN CHAINS' 'Dirt' with some good heavy blasts in there," Corey said. "The heaviest song is a total ass-kicker that sounds as if SLAYER and ANTHRAX had a baby. Then, there's a darker bluesy dirge that has the vibe of LED ZEPPELIN's 'In My Time Of Dying'. There's even a little industrial vibe. It's definitely going to blow people's fucking minds.

Taylor added that he came up with a very ambitious concept for the disc.

"The album is a morality play about a man who's standing at the crossroads of his life trying to figure out what to do next," he said. "He's going, 'Do I move foward and evolve? Do I become more responsible or do I run backwards and pilfer the basket of youth?' Sometimes it's romantic to live in the mistakes that you made when you were 20, and condemn yourself to perpetual adolescence."

Guitarist Josh Rand recently said that the CD will be "another progression for the band," adding. "Musically, we have always challenged one another to push things to our limits, and this record is no exception."