Nickelback frontman, Chad Kroeger, attempted to crush Corey Taylor‘s two bands, Slipknot and Stone Sour, in a recent interview with Sweden’s Metal Covenant. See the full video interview below.

As you’ve likely heard, Chad was discussing the diversity of Nickelback’s sound (which is a questionable statement) and when he asked the interviewer to name a more diverse band, the interview proposes Stone Sour. That seemed to have flicked a switch in Chad… and let the diatribe of ridiculous comments begin.

Chad challenges Corey to “write a hit song,” which Corey has done more than once with both his bands. Then he starts in on Slipknot and their gimmick of wearing masks, saying that:

They had to put on masks and jump around. How good can your music be if you’ve gotta beat each other up on stage, throw up in your own masks every night…? I mean, music shouldn’t come with a gimmick; music should just be music. None of my favorite music comes with a gimmick…

OK, let’s stop right there for a moment. None of your favorite music comes with a gimmick? Give me a break. You can’t tell me that the formulaic sound of Nickelback and/or Chad Kroeger doesn’t have any roots in Def Leppard or AC/DC. Def Leppard may not have a gimmick, other than a one-armed drummer (and that’s more tragic than gimmick), but AC/DC certainly has a gimmick (schoolboy Angus anyone?). Plus, there’s no way you can tell me that a “rocker” at age 42 hasn’t been influenced by the likes of KISS, Alice Cooper, Iron Maiden, Motley Crue, and countless others. Hell, even The Beatles had a gimmick in their time.

Let’s continue, Chad:

And he got tired of sitting behind a mask — he wanted people to know what he looks like — so he started Stone Sour.

Stop, stop, stop. Everybody knows that Stone Sour was formed in 1992, which was five years before Corey Taylor joined Slipknot, which had formed in 1995. Just put that foot in your mouth, Chad.

Speaking of feet, Taylor has since responded, stating that “[Chad] has got a face like a foot. Am I wrong?” Well, that’s not the extent to Taylor’s response, starting with:

You know what? I’ve never said it was easy to write a hit song. I don’t know what the hell planet he’s living on. Apparently it’s Planet Kroeger, and there must be good weed there, ’cause he’s an idiot.

Taylor also said that he went online and started reading all the comments about Chad’s comments and determined that “I don’t have to say a damn thing — he is not a liked person.”

Taylor basically concluded his response with:

Dude, curl up in bed with your Hello Kitty pillow and shut up.

So, what’s your take on this feud between frontmen? Seems to me that Chad is attempting to drum up attention for Nickelback’s newly released album, Feed the Machine, because who knew they had a new album out? Although this feud between Chad and Taylor has been going on for a while, it does seem like a desperate grasp for relevance on Chad’s part.

Rock Hard \m/

Infectious alt-electro-rock band, The ReAktion – who were recently discovered by veteran producers GGGarth and Bob Ezrin, and managed by Slipknot’s Sid Wilson – will release the physical version of their brand new album Selknam next Friday, October 21, 2015, via Mainia Recordings.

Shortly after the album’s release, The ReAktion will perform their blistering set at Knotfest – taking place next weekend at San Manuel Amphitheater in San Bernardino, California. The ReAktion will perform on Sunday, October 25th (set time – 12:55pm), and are set to play several new songs off of their upcoming album, including their two previously released singles “10 Steps to Success” and “Synchro.” Learn more about Knotfest and get your tickets at www.knotfest.com.

Slipknot’s Sid states:

The ReAktion are a perfect marriage of the metal/hard rock sound to the EDM family! This is a new approach on the sound everyone’s been trying to capture! Don’t miss out on this break-thru band!

Pre-orders for Selknam can be made here.

Rock Hard \m/

The ReAktion’s Simon states:

Synchro is about how we are all connected, we are all one. We need to find one path, one way, one love. Love is all you need to find yourself. And everybody on earth is pure energy, we are all the same, no races, no countries. No more sick societies. If we could really love and respect each other, then we will find the end of wars, competitions, all fighting or dying for. I am Because we are one.

Be sure to catch The ReAktion at this year’s KnotFest on October 25th, in San Bernardino, California.

About The ReAktion:

The ReAktion is a South American, alternative rock/electronica band from Santiago, Chile. Formed in 2010, the band developed a unique sound based on elements of rock, heavy metal, and electronic music. Conceptually, The ReAktion deals with subjects such as social movements, environmental awareness, and unity, in an attempt to bring a message of consciousness revolution to the world.

The band recorded its first demo LP, Be(lie)ve in R(evol)ution, independently in 2011. During 2012 the band promoted their work through live shows and social media. Later, in June of 2012, the band settled for a year and a half in Vancouver, Canada, where they met Gggarth and Futcher, who would take the guys under their wing to start production on their new album. The production and recording of the album took place in the Nimbus School of Recording and Fader Mountain Studios, where Gggarth would invite the mastermind behind Pink Floyd’s The Wall, Bob Ezrin, to contribute on the pre-production of “10 Steps to Success”. Later, in 2013, the guys met Sid Wilson (#0, Slipknot), who visited them back in Chile after his show with Slipknot headlining Rock in Rio. On this visit, Sid would contribute with additional production on the song “Ten Steps to Success” and would begin conversations to finally sign the band to his management company M2P8Ent in 2015.

Rock Hard \m/

And so, it was eight years between All Hope Is Gone and .5: The Gray Chapter, the latter of which was released on 17 October 2014. Produced by Greg Fidelman, the new album was released to critical praise and record sales accompanied by tremendous chart placements signified a triumphant return for the band.

Order .5: The Gray Chapter here.

.5: The Gray Chapter was also the first album since the death of bassist Paul Gray and the departure of drummer Joey Jordison. Honestly, with longtime member Shawn “Clown” Crahan sitting behind the skins and with all the other instrumentation going on, Jordison’s absence is negligible. The drumming is still frantic and intense where needed.

Obviously, with an album title that includes his name, much of this album is dedicated to Paul Gray. I would have, however, expected a heavier, angrier album. Instead, we got some of that, but like the stages of mourning, there are a number of tracks here that are somber and pensive, and I think a lot of that has to do with the amount of time that passed between Gray’s death and when the band actually went into the studio. As well, Corey Taylor’s work outside the band may have seeped its way into the sound.

Opening track, “XIX,” acts like an incantation and definitely serves as an intro to the album. The opening lyrics also tell us that the song is likely dedicated to Gray: “This song is not for the living/This song is for the dead.”

From there, “Sarcastrophe” and “AOV” hit hard and are, as the critics said, the return to old-school Slipknot form and melody. If we’re reaching as far back as 1999’s debut, I don’t really hear it.

“The Devil In I” feels like it takes things down a notch. The chorus is still delivers a kick to the teeth, but overall it’s a tempered track with what some might call a Stone Sour vibe running through it.

“Killpop” definitely brings the pace way down, allowing listeners to breath and Taylor a chance to sing with clean vocals. The track is heavy on melody and borders on ballad territory, or as close to it as Slipknot ever comes… until you get to “Goodbye,” which, if you have ever lost anyone, might bring you to tears.

“Skeptic” brings the violent assault into focus, and it’s a track that has no shame in its anger at the loss of Gray. Obviously, the chorus (The world will never see another crazy motherfucker like you/The world will never know another man as amazing as you) directly references the late bassist, but hidden lyrical gems like “You had a gift, you were a gift” and “I won’t let you disappear/I will keep your soul alive if I can’t have you here” really speak to the anguish of their loss and their anger.

Aside from the filler “Be Prepared for Hell,” “Lech” might be the evilest sounding track on the album with its spoken word segments and unrelenting pounding. As a side note, this might be the track that tells everyone that, yeah, we can do this incredible drumming thing without Jordison.

And, essentially, that’s the flow of the album.

With that said, the folks over at Sock Puppet Parody are at it again to bring a ray of sunshine into your otherwise miserable existence. This time around they’re parodying Slipknot’s “Wait and Bleed” with a new band called Socknot and a song called “Wait in Bleach.” Yes, it’s as ridiculously funny as it sounds. Check it out and let us know what you think.

Sock Puppet Parody has previously had some fun with Metallica’s “Master of Puppets,” Slayer’s “Raining Blood,” and Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name Of.”

Rock Hard \m/

Well, well, well. The masked metallers from Des Moines, Iowa are coming back to Montreal this year. Slipknot is officially booked to headline a night at Heavy Montreal, formerly known as Heavy MTL, in August this summer. Don’t believe us? Then just hit up the festivals website for the freagin confirmation, and trust us, you won’t miss the announcement because it’s plastered over the bloody homepage.

To bring you up to speed on the top charting band, Slipknot is currently on tour for their fifth major label studio album, .5: The Gray Chapter, which launched in October 2014. So expect most of the set list to revolve around that album throughout the night. Songs such as “Custer” and “The Negative One” are bound to be crowd pleasers this year in Montreal. Expect classics such as “Duality”, “Surfacing”, and “Wait and Bleed” to be played at one point at Heavy Montreal too.

There’s no word on which day Slipknot will perform since the lineup isn’t set in stone yet. But our best bet they will hit the stage on Saturday night because Saturday’s are regularly slotted for the cream of the crop. Doesn’t Metallica ring a bell?

We’ll make sure to keep Yellers in the loop when the exact day is announced, so stay tuned on Yell! Magazine. We rule the world!

Here’s the thing. The album is a story — not in a certain order; it jumps around — but it’s a story of this band for the last four years, from the moment Paul died to the moment we stepped out of the studio. So there are certain songs that deal with, not Joey in particular, but about the tension and trying to deal with the ugliness that we all have in us.

‘The Negative One’ was about me, not about Joey, and that’s why the song says, ‘Your choices are the negative one and me,’ which is the two kinda colliding together. ‘The Devil In I’ is the same, which you’d think would be fucking apparent. – Slipknot‘s Corey Taylor addressing the rumor that “The Negative One” was about Joey Jordison

I can’t talk too much about it because we’re going through the legalities of everything right now and settling everything, but it’s when a relationship hits that T-section and one person’s going one way and you’re going the other. And try as you might to either get them to go your way or try and go their way, at some point you’ve got to go in the direction that works for you. This is me speaking in the broadest terms, with respect to Joey. I guess to sum it up, it was one of the hardest decisions we ever made. – Corey Taylor on Joey Jordison‘s departure from Slipknot in the October 2014 issue of Metal Hammer

Jordison’s sudden departure comes shortly after the news that a new Slipknot album is in the making, which was finally some good news about the band. After the death of founding member and bassist Paul Gray, the future of the band was uncertain. Fans were happy to know that the band would continue, but there was no news of an album at the time.

For me, that’s an issue I have with Slipknot; their productivity just isn’t there — despite lots of touring. Forming in 1995, and releasing their self-titled debut album in 1999, they’ve only released a total of 4 albums. Understandably, Slipknot hasn’t had the smoothest ride in recent years, and members are heavily involved in various other projects (my preferred is Corey Taylor’s Stone Sour followed closely by Jordison’s Murderdolls), but given the popularity and demand for Slipknot, one would think that this band would take priority. As it is, however, it’s like a well-maintained car that never dies.

Nonetheless, the band most easily recognized for its masks, costumes, elaborate performances, and outrageous number of band members, has had a meteoric rise. Most bands producing just 4 albums in a 15-year existence would have been forgotten, but their huge success and massive following have allowed them to take their time as if they were a much older band. Perhaps their slow pace has also kept them interested in maintaining the band. Who knows?

The concert filmed at Australia’s 2005 Big Day Out certainly displays the intensity at which Slipknot performs. Having seen them in the summer of 2012, I’d say that their stage show has gotten more elaborate than back in 2005, but the intensity has always been there. It takes a certain amount of insanity or genius to put on a show like this.

Slipknot: Big Day Out 2005 setlist:

1. (Sic)
2. The Blister Exists
3. Disasterpiece
4. Eyeless
5. Pulse of the Maggots
6. The Heretic Anthem
7. Duality
8. Spit it out
9. People=Shit
10. Surfaсing

Rock Hard \m/

After releasing two songs from the fifth studio album, Slipknot has finally decided to let the canon loose on the title of their new album and cover art. Oh yeah! A release date for the hotly anticipated album is also set in stone now.

The latest single, “The Devil In I” dropped on Sunday, less than 12 hours later Slipknot unveiled the cover art to the album, which is officially titled .5: The Gray Chapter. This album appears to be a prequel to all of Slipknot’s previous albums, according to MetalSucks. I’m not really sure how they concluded on that since I’m not a diehard Slipknot fan, but maybe someone with a bit more insight can let us know in the comments section below.

Lastly, Roadrunner unleashes the .5: The Gray Chapter on October 21, 2014.

.5: The Gray Chapter Track Listing:

1. XIX
2. Sarcastrophe
3. Aov
4. The Devil In I
5. Killpop
6. Skeptic
7. Lech
8. Goodbye
9. Nomadic
10. The One That Kills the Least
11. Custer
12. Be Prepared For Hell
13. The Negative One
14. If Rain Is What You Want