Slipknot is back. Three years after “Bone Church,” the Des Moines-based band has just surprised fans with “Arsenal,” accompanied by a music video directed by M. Shawn “Clown” Crahan and featuring actor Jackson White. The track marks, above all, a new milestone for the group as it is their first release with Eloy Casagrande behind the drums!
Since The End, So Far released in 2022, Slipknot has undergone several major changes. After the departure of drummer Jay Weinberg, Casagrande joined the group in 2024, before Craig Jones and, more recently, Sid Wilson left the lineup as well. “Arsenal” is thus the first real musical preview of this fresh configuration, even though the presence of the masked percussionist who has accompanied the group on tour since 2023 remains uncertain.
Musically, Slipknot is not aiming for half measures. “Arsenal” concentrates a substantial portion of the sonic arsenal that has built their reputation: massive riffs, dynamic shifts, sharp keyboards, and a particularly aggressive performance by Corey Taylor. The track opens with a brief spoken sequence – “I hope no bad people show up” – before plunging into a rhythmic onslaught where Taylor alternates between shouted sections, punk- and hip-hop-esque bursts, and screams. In the middle of the track, the band brutally halts its momentum before gradually rebuilding tension to a devastating finale.
The singer also displays a certain self-deprecation when he quips: “I fought a
f*cking god and the god lost” (“I fought a fucking god and the god lost”), before mocking his own image by declaring: “I know I’m a hack and a has-been, but motherf*cker I’m a .45 and not a Mach 10” (“I know I’m a hack and a has-been, but damn, I’m a .45, not a Mach 10“). A reminder that, despite nearly three decades of career, Slipknot has apparently not lost any of its bite.
And “Arsenal” could be only the beginning. Jim Root recently revealed that the band has started to seriously work on its next album, with producer Matt Wallace. The guitarist already references “at least 50 arrangements” in development and describes a working method that is particularly spontaneous, based on long improvisational sessions with Casagrande, Michael Pfaff and Clown.
“There’s a new life in all of this. And having Eloy helps a lot,” explained Root, visibly excited about his new partner. He stresses the breadth of the Brazilian drummer’s influences, capable of exploring very technical approaches as well as more experimental territories. “I’m discovering things myself thanks to him. It’s really amazing,” he added.
Root also describes the new compositions as the closest they have ever come to the music he has in mind, mentioning very fast grindcore riffs, heavy doom sections, acoustic or melodic interludes and even experiments that border the world of Pink Floyd. “It doesn’t resemble anything I’ve heard before. And yet there’s something familiar, as if I’ve been listening to this music forever. It’s simply Slipknot,” he summed up.
With “Arsenal,” Slipknot offers far more than a mere new single: the track marks the first real signal of a new era for the band. More compact, brutal and evidently revitalized by the arrival of Casagrande, the group seems to have rediscovered that desire to push its own limits. No title or release date has yet been announced for the next album, but one thing is clear now: Slipknot is once again loading its weapons.
