Slipknot Albums Ranked

Slipknot is a nine piece extreme metal band from Des Moines, Iowa. Founded in 1995, the band is one of the most popular bands in metal, having sold 30 million albums worldwide and having 2 consecutive albums top the Billboard 200 chart. The band’s unique musical style is a blend of thrash, death, industrial, groove, nu, and traditional metal.

6. – Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat. (1996)

The first release by the Iowan maniacs, Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat. is more or less a demo album. 5 out of the 8 songs on the album were later reworked [and two renamed] for subsequent releases. These songs are “Slipknot” (later titled [sic] for the band’s self-titled album), “Gently” (later included on ‘Iowa’), Only One (later included on the band’s self-titled album), Tattered And Torn (later included on the band’s self-titled album), and Killers Are Quiet (later titled ‘Iowa’ on ‘Iowa’). Overall, the album has a very raw sound due to being self-produced and released by the band on a budget of approximately $40,000. At this time, the band had a different line up, with six members as opposed to the nine members the band has today. The band’s original vocalist, Anders Colsefni, had very good growls and screams but lacked melody when it came to singing. Because of this, record labels turned the band down which caused them to hire local Stone Sour singer, Corey Taylor, who was far better at melodic singing. This album is my least favorite because I feel that the revisions of the 5 previously mentioned songs are far better than their original versions, and the 3 songs that were not revisited were a bit weak. This album as a whole is somewhat underwhelming, but it is interesting to hear where the band started. Final Verdict: 7/10

5. – All Hope Is Gone (2008)

Slipknot’s fourth major label release, All Hope Is Gone, feels disconnected and uninspired when compared to their other works. During the recording of the album, the band was under label pressure to release the album and this caused tensions among the band members, causing most of them to record their tracks separately. Most of the band has voiced their dissatisfaction with All Hope Is Gone, stating that they were not on the same page and the making of the album felt rushed. However, drummer Joey Jordison considers it to be the band’s best work. This is the final album to feature bassist Paul Gray before his death in 2010 and Jordison before his firing from Slipknot in 2013. Despite all of this, the album contains a few of the band’s best known songs, such as Psychosocial, Dead Memories, and Snuff. It was also the band’s first release to top the Billboard 200 chart. Musically, the album bridges the gap in between brutality and melody. To the album’s detriment, a few of the songs feel rushed and uninspired. Butcher’s Hook is the biggest example of this as Corey Taylor sounds bored and tired on this track. Alternatively, the album contains some of the band’s best amd heaviest tracks such as Gematria (The Killing Name) and the title track. Final Verdict: 7.5/10

4. – Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses (2004)

The third major label effort from Slipknot is a controversial one. After two very heavy albums, Slipknot and Iowa, the band decided to make a more melodic and experimental album. Recording Iowa almost caused the band to break up due to major conflicts among the members and industry pressure. While recording Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses, the band was starting to resolve their conflicts and started working together again. Where the album caused some controversy was with its musical direction. While still a heavy album, it has very soft and melancholic moments such as a straight up acoustic ballad titled ‘Vermilion Pt. 2’. The band has always had some melody, but it seems to be the main focus of this album. Which is not exactly a bad thing as the band paints with different colors and conveys a different emotion on each album and they don’t care what people say. The album is perhaps the band’s most “mainstream” album with extremely successful singles such as ‘Duality’ and ‘Before I Forget’. Overall, this album is very good and a bit underrated as it seems like people focus on the singles and not the rest of the album. Some songs on the album such as ‘Three Nil’, ‘Circle’, and ‘Welcome’ are very underrated tracks that don’t seem to get enough attention. Final Verdict: 8.5/10

3. – Slipknot (1999)

Slipknot’s self-titled major label debut album is a force to be reckoned with. An absolute sonic assault, the album contains some of the bands most well known songs such as [sic], Eyeless, Wait And Bleed, and Spit It Out. The album’s launched the band into fame and made them one of the most recognized forces within metal. The album has an industrial and experimental edge, with heavy use of scratching and sampling from DJ Sid Wilson and sampler Craig Jones. The instrumentation on the album is fairly raw, with a heavily distorted guitar tone, booming bass, crushing drums and Corey Taylor’s signature scream is the cherry on top. A classic through and through, it contains some very underrated tracks such as ‘Purity’, ‘Liberate’, and ‘Diluted’. Final Verdict: 9/10

2. – .5: The Gray Chapter

After the death of bassist Paul Gray in 2010, it was uncertain if Slipknot would continue. When the band was at their darkest times, Paul was the one who wanted everyone to get along and he was the glue that held the nine together. In the words of percussionist Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan, “Paul Gray was the essence of Slipknot”. The Gray Chapter is a tribute to Paul, hence his last name in the title. Musically, it mixes melody and heaviness. You have very brutal tracks such as ‘Sarcastrophe’, ‘AOV’, ‘Lech’, ‘Custer, ‘The Negative One’, and ‘The Burden’. Tracks such as ‘The Devil In I’, ‘Killpop’, display a melodic edge. It also contains two songs that directly pay tribute to Gray, ‘Skeptic, an angry and frustrated tribute addressing the survivor’s guilt the band felt and ‘Goodbye’, a lighter swan-song-esque tribute. There is also an atmospheric sound on the deep cuts ‘The One That Kills The Least’ and ‘If Rain Is What You Want’. Overall, this album is an absolute masterpiece. It has the power to make your neck sore from headbanging with it’s sonic attack and the power to bring you to tears with it’s sentimental melody. Final Verdict: 9.5/10

1. – Iowa (2001)

The second major label album from the nine, ‘Iowa’, is my personal favorite Slipknot album of all time. Lead singer Corey Taylor said about the album in the ‘GOAT’ documentary, “It’s the darkest f***ing album I’ve ever heard. It’s gross, it’s thick, it’s brutal, it’s heavy, as s***. It’s the only album I’ve ever heard where you can wear it like a skin.” The band was pressured by Roadrunner Records to start making another album without a break, just months after their self-titled released. After said album launched the nine Iowa natives into fame, they had become every rock and roll cliche that they trash talked in interviews. Most of the band members were addicted to drugs and the band as a whole would agree that the ‘Iowa’ cycle was the darkest time of their lives. The band has said that they hated each other during the recording of ‘Iowa’. Surprisingly, Slipknot was able to channel all the hatred, animosity, and misanthropy into their sophomore effort. In doing so, they created one of the heaviest, most visceral metal albums ever released. It features crushing ragers such as ‘People = S**t’, ‘Disasterpiece’, ‘The Heretic Anthem’, and ‘Metabolic’. The album also features some melody on songs such as ‘My Plague’, and ‘Left Behind’ and others like ‘Gently’, ‘Skin Ticket’, and the title track envelop the listener in a creepy, suffocating atmosphere. Musically, the album is far heavier than their debut, considered by many fans to be their heaviest album. Doing away with the hip-hop influence of the debut album, ‘Iowa’ shows thrash and death metal influence. Final Verdict: 10/10