Review Summary: Slipknot is famous for a reason beyond the masks man. A great album that is dark as it gets.
Look, we've all heard modern Slipknot, and we all know modern Slipknot isn't releasing any modern classics, but damn these guys knew how to make a good album back in the day. Slipknot is an excellent album, with an all around great performance by everyone involved. I wish they had stayed this good, but at least we got one truly great album. Let's give you a track by track analysis.
(sic) 3/5
Not really my favorite but still a good introduction to the album. it starts with that creepy "The whole world I think is sick" intro, and bursts in with a solid track from start to finish, though I found it to be rather bland personally.
Eyeless 4.5/5
God I love this song. Maybe I hold it close because of nostalgia, but I love this song. Good guitar and drums over Taylor's outstanding vocal performance makes for a great song. Wish this was one of the tracks people thought of when they thought about this album.
Wait And Bleed 2.5/5
I never loved this track, I found it boring and it may just be excessive radio play, but it felt bland and boring after the first few times I heard it, it felt like it lost the novelty. It just is a weak track to me.
Surfacing 3.5/5
I have a hard time listening to this because I hate the,"Don't judge me" line so much it makes me sick to my stomach, but at the same time Thot's hadn't started with the widespread cringe yet, so I give it a pass. At the same time, it is still good enough, but this it is filler to me, though such a great album consists of great filler tracks.
Spit it out 2/5
I dislike the rapping on this track, I find lines like,"I'll bury your ass with the chrome, straight to the dome." cringe worthy, and it is the instrumental, chorus and breakdown that salvage this from being an awful track. At the same time it is clearly one of the albums weak points. I give ti a skip, and really, you should too.
Tattered And Torn 4/5
I love this track. It's weird, it's got an awesome atmosphere, and it signals the transition to the portion of the album that makes it a great album. That instrumental is just great, the layering of Taylor's vocals makes a truly freaky track, and when most tracks that attempt to be creepy and hardcore fail miserably, this track excels, a top notch track man.
Me Inside 3.5/5
It starts off well, but in the end it kinda falls flat. I don't really enjoy the verse, though I don't like hate it or something. It picks back up with a melodic part, and it stays strong after, making a good track. I felt this track just felt bland when coming after a great track like it's predecessor.
Liberate 3/5
I lamented that in between the two strongest tracks on the album, are these two tracks, as they are overshadowed by the excellence of the one before and after this section of tracks. I don't really like the vocals but it's breakdown is good, and it is a strong enough track to weather with the two better tracks before it. If such a great track didn't follow it, it may have been better honestly.
Prosthetics 4.5/5
My favorite track, by far. The creepy ass tone it keeps, the weird squealing sound, and one of Taylor's best performances on the album. It really is unsettling, and awesome. It has maybe not the strongest or most subtle lyrics, but they still mange to be the most memorable parts of the album for me. The chorus's,"Damn it man I know it was a mistake." is catchy as hell, and the breakdown is one of my favorite break downs period. A highlight of the entire disk.
No Life 1.5
They couldn't just cut it could they man. That intro, so ***ing cringy, a bass driven verse, it's just not a great track. The chorus is likeable, but it can't make up for how much I dislike this cringe filled dumpster fire lyrical nightmare. It get's better with the melodic bit, but it can't salvage this abysmal track. A block dot on a great album. Maybe others don't hate it as much but I do. Sorry man.
Diluted 3.5/5
And than we return to a strong track, with creepy music and a few memorable lines. I love the chorus, and that,"My heros are dead they died in my head." While edgy is still a good line. It stays solid throughout, and it just a plain good track
Only One 3/5
I know that you would think that with my dislike of these rapish tracks I would give you a rant, but the cringe is minimal, and the,"Only one of us walks away" bit is great, the rest of the song is ok and once the rap bit is over it is fine, and it didn't drag on to long either. A solid enough track, though it is a shame it leads into one of the strongest songs on the album, because it does it a disservice.
Scissors 4.5/5
This song is uncomfortably ***ed up, and is the culmination of the best parts of the album, the creepier bits and the more traditional tracks. I will say that the intro sounds a bit like another song, but it sheds that for the almost silent verse. The lyrics are the best on the album, truly they show more skill than the rest of the album displays. It is dark, and I have to admit that the,"I wanna die." part it not something I care to listen too even with my closest friends. The instrumental is excellent as well, and it provides a great track, if a little bit uncomfortable to listen to for casual listeners.
Get This 2/5
Than we get this(pun intended). A bland,"*** everything" song, wish they had moved this or just replaced no life with this and let scissors be the song that the album leaves you with. It muddies the ***ed up feeling you get from scissors, and I feel it takes away from the effect scissors may has on listeners.
(I didn't mention any of the demos mixes and live versions from the deluxe version, I just wanted to do the vanilla album.)
Overall, it has weak points, and at times can feel boring, or ever dare I say typical, but god the great parts shine through and make it a grand piece of metal history. I would recommend it to a bored metal head, maybe even a metal snob, because it is truly a great album.
Tracks to listen to off of it:
Scissors
Tattered and torn
Prosthetics
Eyeless.
