SHAWN CRAHAN: 'SLIPKNOT Is A Culture'

Cathy A. Campagna of The Aquarian Weekly recently conducted an interview with SLIPKNOT percussionist Shawn Crahan. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

The Aquarian Weekly: What was it like when you heard [SLIPKNOT's new album] "All Hope Is Gone" went No. 1?

Crahan: Well, for me, not to sound pessimistic or anything, but I really do feel in my heart, in my spirit, that ten years ago, when we set out into the world in search of our dreams, I had to leave my wife and my kids behind, we were No. 1 when we made that decision. We have been No. 1 everyday since then. Every day since we have been kicking in the door and it's just taken the world this long to catch up to our vision. I am not one of those guys who really needs that sort of recognition, because I have been working for so hard for so long, I just feel like we have been winners ever since we stood up for what we believe in, which is SLIPKNOT. Does it make me happy? Sure! But it also has a double-sided sword to it, because now we get a weird thought process where it's like next time are they going to set us up to be No.2? So they can talk about how we are not No. 1 anymore? That's all the crap that I can't stand about this business, I just work hard every single day, and the band works hard every single day, just to do what we do, and that's our art. Yeah, it does feel good, but I think we have been No. 1 for 10 years.

The Aquarian Weekly: I understand that "All Hope Is Gone" has been the most collaborative record the band has written. With that being said, is this the most self-realized record, is this the record that SLIPKNOT was born to make?

Crahan: As far as that statement goes, to be brutally honest with you, I feel just the opposite for this one. I feel like this record is a bridge into the future. I believe that the last record was a lot of rehabilitating our friendship and coming together, and some people realizing that there are all kinds of people in this band with something to say and something to do. We did get into a mindset for this record with everyone being allowed to be themselves. We have a saying that, "The pieces are only as good as a whole." That means that you could be real selfish in this band, but it's really the band that matters. Know your place, know what matters. Don't try to set yourself apart and make yourself more important. Realize that SLIPKNOT is an entity. Its nine guys making up a whole. In this band it's getting more important to allow everyone their ability to bring something musical to the band, and I believe that that's getting better. But I look towards the future where it's going to be even more of allowing everyone what they have to get out and that's the real trick in this band. It's going to take time. We have been together ten years and we have only put out four records, and take a lot of time in between records. But we look at bands that started at the same time as us, and they'll have seven records, and over half of them are crap! They just wanted to get off their whole fundamental idea of what they thought they had to get out, put it on their resume and have control. SLIPKNOT has never been that way, we just want to put out art that we believe in, and if takes three years to do it… well, that's a good problem to have. We have four distinct canvases that we have painted and they all belong to different realms. None of them are derivative or contrived of each other. That speaks a lot to me… that we just have sincerity in our music. The integrity is something that we hold and the art form. So I think that we are getting better in allowing ourselves to trust ourselves more. Everyone in the band is really pushing themselves to be the best that they can be. There were a lot of things with this album that were the worst-case scenario, but every record has its fair share of problems, but you just overcome them and you move to the future.

The Aquarian Weekly: How did you view SLIPKNOT fitting into the musical tapestry today?

Crahan: I listen to everyone bitch and moan, the industry is this or how fans are stealing music off the Internet and how this label let 250 people go. This music company isn't working, and everyone is doing 360 deals, and labels have to get involved with merchandising now when they used to make fun of it. They have to have a part of the band's merch, publishing and touring, labels are getting involved in management, because nobody can figure it the fuck out. What I am saying is that everything might be down and everything might be bad, but the love for rock 'n' roll is bigger than ever. In today's society, and what's going on and how shitty the world is, and all the shit that we have to look at, the need for music is more than ever, and I believe SLIPKNOT is in the top percent. There is not another band, there is not another art form…nothing in this entire world is anything close to us! We are our own thing, we are special. I will be here for many, many years to come hopefully, and I never know when it's going end. I don't know if things will change, because of the obstacles that I am confronted with. One day, I might want to quit just because it's become too surreal and it's hard, but I manage to get a hold of it. So I view us… we are A+, we are in the top one percent. I can say that, because our fans are real, nothing of what we do is a lie, we play extreme music, and we have an extreme show. I mean, I know bands that have three members, and they last two years, and then all of the sudden, they have musical differences. I spit on those bands. I spit on that crap! All these bands that are trying reflect off of THE BEATLES, trying to recreate some melody and trying to recreate THE BEATLES, I spit on that shit, too! We are a culture, SLIPKNOT is a culture. We identify with living humans that have pain, and need to get it out, and look to us to get it out, to get out their passion. So I view us as it, and I don't care who you are or what you have done, come watch a SLIPKNOT show and see what you're not doing. We are the real deal. I see us as something very well needed for this world. I could care less if the business of rock n' roll is failing; it has nothing to do with us, because we are not failing. I go to a show and people are there, because it's true and it's needed. We are going to continue bringing it until we can't do it anymore, we are going to hang it up and we are going to disappear, but I am not going to sit around bellyaching. I am not traditional music, I don't have something out, because it's big right now, and when it's not, I am going to disappear. Like nine out of ten of all the bands that are out. They come out with their tricks and their bullshit, and they are out. Where are they now? Well, I will tell you where we are, we are still doing exactly what we have been doing for 10 years, but we are just getting better. I have no time to play games with anybody anymore about what SLIPKNOT is, we are what we are and that's the real deal.

Read the entire interview from The Aquarian Weekly.