Review SLIPKNOT ‘The End, So Far’

Iowa’s most famous mask men, Slipknot, are back with a new album. After the band has already unveiled a first new song with ‘The Chapeltown Rag’ last fall, the entire album now follows. It is called ‘The End, So Far’ and it features twelve new songs.

Slipknot was on tour through Europe this summer and played an impressive show at the legendary Wacken Open Air. At that time, another new song was already performed. It was ‘The Dying Song (Time to Song)’, a piece which unfolds its full effect live and also blasts out of the speakers with full power on record. The song contains the wild escapades as well as melodic moments in which Corey Taylor can present the whole range of his vocal abilities.

‘The Dying Song (Time to Sing)’ follows the opener ‘Adderall’ which is a calm start to the record. Melodic and with peaceful vocals, the song presents an aspect of Slipknot that makes the louder and more intense songs seem even more frenzied.

Via the already mentioned ‘The Chapeltown Rag’, a typical Slipkknot banger, we continue with ‘Yen’. The latter track is dark and ominous. Even if the beginning is kept rather quiet, you can feel the coming evil slowly approaching. In the last third, the song gains power, but relies more on the psychological depth than exclusively on hard riffs.

The good thing about Slipknot is that the guys give full throttle on the one hand and cause a furore with wild song escapades. In addition, a subliminal malice resonates in every song and it is the angry and freaky moments that turn every venue into a madhouse. Slipknot combines all these elements into a unity, a basic musical design, which they have been refining and expanding for years.

The aforementioned is also evident in the second half of the tracklist. There is the tricky and biting ‘Heirloom’ with a typical Slipknot stomping rhythm. Also with ‘H 377’ the guys from Des Moine give all they have and skillfully hit themselves through the 4-minute song.

Staying true to the basic principle, the band gets more atmospheric with ‘De Sade’ and also the great ‘Finale’ shows that Slipknot are much more than just a musical noise combo. Here are experts at work who combine a melancholic and dark depth with aggressive riffs and rhythms. The band has developed these trademarks over all the years and now in 2022 they seem more mature than ever before without losing the elemental brutality of the early days. ‘TheEnd, So Far’ is a more than a well done album and will delight all Maggots.