SLIPKNOT Frontman: 'This Band Doesn't Do Anything Without A Reason, Without A Purpose'

SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor recently spoke to the Toronto Star about the band's plans to enter the studio to begin recording the long-awaited follow-up to 2008's "All Hope Is Gone". The forthcoming effort will mark SLIPKNOT's first release since the May 2010 death of bassist and key songwriting contributor Paul Gray.

"It was difficult [to get back out on the road without Gray], man," he said. "I'm not gonna lie, there was a part of me that was, like: 'What does it mean without him? How do we do this without him?'

"We are all such key pieces to this puzzle. And that's where some of the trepidation comes at all these people wanting us to just rush right back into the studio . . . This band doesn't do anything without a reason, without a purpose. If we'd run right back in just to prove something to ourselves, we would have released an album that would not have been us.

"For me, there's still that 'What's it gonna be like trying to make an album without Paul?' thing. He was the glue. He was the guy that just made ideas better. He was the guy that helped us create such great music because he had such a great ear for it and such a great instinct for it. He and Joey [Jordison, SLIPKNOT's drummer] came up with some of the best music that we've ever had. Part of the process has been getting back onstage and coming together as a family, but in the next couple of years we're gonna have to figure out what the future represents and that's something we don't take lightly. There's a lot of thought going into it. It's weird."

SLIPKNOT's latest album, "All Hope is Gone", debuted at #1 on The Billboard 200 chart — the first time in their history. SLIPKNOT embarked on a two-year touring trek that was globally successful, playing to packed houses across continents, including their headlining stint at New York City's legendary Madison Square Garden, which was stacked to the rafters and chronicled by Rolling Stone.

"You wanna talk about the dark horse? You wanna talk about betting on the horse with the longest odds?" Taylor told the Toronto Star. "We sit around all the time and kind of pinch ourselves about how lucky we are. Obviously there's talent here and there's creativity and there's a passion for what we do, but with no fans you're just the most passionate dudes in your basement.

"That's just the way it is and that's the way it's always been. Just the fact that we've had the opportunities that we've had and the success that we've had, we're extremely lucky. When you walk out onstage and you see all those people losing their fucking minds, it's insane. I'm always, like: 'Really? You're shitting me.' I'm really, really happy that we have this, and that we had it when Paul was with us."