SLIPKNOT | We Are Not Your Kind | Album Review

To many, Slipknot is not just one of the flagship names in the current metal scene and one of the longer lasting bands from the nu-metal scene, they are a spectacle. It's not just the hardcore fanbase that holds Slipknot to this high standard. Most music fans with even the slightest appreciation for heavy music are extremely passionate for the band. It's safe to say that what might have been considered an act using the mask gimmick to get attention from the media has transcended into being one of the most prominent and respected bands of all time. "We Are Not Your Kind", the band's sixth album, comes after a five-year gap of time between the band's previous project ".5: The Gray Chapter", which in turn came years after its predecessor. So, that's definitely one of the big reasons as to why this band gets so much attention. While in my opinion each Slipknot album varies in quality with the self-titled disc being their high point, their ambition is still there proven with quotes from the band themselves. Guitarist Jim Root stated that "We Are Not Your Kind" is an attempt at making an album experience in a musical landscape where singles are taking over, as well as mentioning that this album had the most effort put behind it. Modern metal bands and even rock bands nowadays shift towards writing marketable hits for radio but often times don't have the album effort to back it up. It's desirable for a band as big as Slipknot to create an album that is not solely a singles affair but has an actual progression from beginning to end, and they're keeping that trend going as previous discs have had a similar feel to it. 

One funny thing about the singles teasing this album is that the title comes from the stand-alone single "All Out Life". This song was released back in late 2018 and does not appear on the official album track listing, instead being a bonus track on an import press of the album. Tracks such as "Unsainted" and "Birth Of The Cruel" were among the first released material that actually appears on the album. After the introductory track "Insert Coin" which sets the tone for the entire album, you are given the leadoff single of the project, "Unsainted". This track is enough to make any Slipknot fan happy and includes shades of their earlier material interwoven in its overall style. The song gradually builds in its opening act with some choir inclusions and frontman Corey Taylor singing the chorus which comes in a much heavier fashion later on in the song. Lyrically, this has some religious resentment showcased throughout, but it isn't executed in a lame or repugnant way and part of the reasoning is Corey Taylor's delivery especially in the verses where you get a good dose of his screamed vocals. It's a status-quo style that Slipknot sells well and with real bite. "Birth Of The Cruel" is a similar situation, containing some of the same breed of lyrical content but with sections that do differ from the heavy parts. It's not one of the highlighted cuts for me but it does work overall with what they're doing throughout this song and it sets up the more varied style of the album. 

Going into the previously alluded variations in the tone of the album, there is a lot to talk about. Even though the album has the ability to get heavy and soft, sometimes in the same song, each track on the album feels like it connects seamlessly, especially considering some tracks work better than others on this album. "We Are Not Your Kind" also builds up to a high point in the form of the album closer "Solway Firth" which was one of the three pre-released singles from the album, and it's easily one of Slipknot's best accomplishments and among one of the best album closers of the year. This song is the embodiment of the entire album, with heavy moments that are perfectly calculated and an absolutely maniacal performance from Corey Taylor. It doesn't feel boring, and that's the feeling you get as you listen to other tracks on the album as well. Tracks like "Orphan" and "Critical Darling" are tracks that show the band at the top of their game, the latter of which combining the nu-metal style of the early albums with calmer moments and "Orphan" being intensely energized with the double-kick drumming in the verses and that awesome chorus. Every element that is introduced in this song adds to its impact, including the lyricism. Slower tracks on the album like "A Liar's Funeral" and the atmospheric "My Pain" successfully showcase that "We Are Not Your Kind" isn't just a metalfest from start to finish and add depth to the project. The higher points on this album are worth listening to regardless of your opinion of this band. 

Every album experience has a couple of parts that take you out of said experience before being thrown back in. Undoubtedly, there are tracks that I simply come back to a lot more than others. For example, there is more appeal in a track like "Orphan" than a song like "Nero Forte" or "Red Flag". I realize this is something I bring up in every review I do but it really stands true on this album as some tracks don't live up to others. Probably the least appealing track on the album is "Spiders". While this could get some attention during Halloween time due to its creepy nature, "Spiders" features a 7/8 rhythm that I've simply heard too much in this genre of music and the rhythm isn't presented in any kind of creative way. Getting those detrimental statements out of the way, the rest of the album works well as another solid entry in Slipknot's catalogue, and it's perhaps one of their best albums to date. Though not everything is a home run, the tracks that do hit home runs absolutely land. Overall, Slipknot's sixth studio album holds true to the claims of it being a disc that should be taken in as a whole as opposed to an album where you're only choosing three or four songs as highlights. This is a rare commodity in mainstream music nowadays, and anyone even slightly interested will have a good time with this album. "We Are Not Your Kind" is not the kind of album that should be left frayed and withered. 

RATING: 8/10 

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