COREY TAYLOR Meets WES CRAVEN

STONE SOUR and SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor and legendary filmmaker Wes Craven took part in a "Rogue on Rogue" feature by Rick Florino for the ARTISTdirect.com web site. An excerpt from the discussion follow below.

ARTISTdirect.com: When did you both discover horror?

Wes Craven: I discovered it very late. My upbringing was in a subculture that did not allow movie going, believe it or not. I have no history of having watched movies as a kid, pretty much at all. It was when I was in New York after quitting teaching that I was taken to see "Night Of The Living Dead" by a friend. Before that, I had no concept that there were such kinds of films. I was amazed by how it could be funny and scary. The audience was just going nuts, and I had never seen that kind of energy in a theater before [Laughs]. That was my introduction to it.

Corey Taylor: My mom had taken me to see the Buck Rogers movie with Gil Gerard when I was about five-years-old. The trailer for the original "Halloween" came on and, for a five-year-old, you'd think I would've ran screaming, but I was mesmerized by it. I didn't even want to see the Buck Rogers movie after that [Laughs]. I was like, "I want to see 'Halloween'!" That's when I really got turned on to the horror genre. Growing up, I got to see so many of those movies that I became an addict from there, especially your movies, Wes. Being raised on them, I loved the fact that you weave your stories into so many different types of horror, from "The Last House On The Left" to the "Nightmare On Elm Street" movies. It's been one my favorite genres since I was very young.

ARTISTdirect.com: Corey, what was the first Wes Craven movie that you saw?

Corey Taylor: The first Wes Craven film that I actually saw was "The Hills Have Eyes", but the first one I saw in theaters was obviously "A Nightmare On Elm Street". "The Hills Have Eyes" was so cool, not only because of how bizarre the characters are, but because of how crazy it was. I was hooked! [Laughs] I was really intrigued by how far out it was. I got into "Nightmare". Being a kid from the suburbs, you had to be into "A Nightmare On Elm Street". Then, I saw "The Last House On The Left" which, to me, is still one of the most disturbing flicks I've ever seen [Laughs].

Wes Craven: Even to me it is [Laughs].

Corey Taylor: That's what makes it work! It's so intense.

Wes Craven: It's extremely intense. I think that's the most real and intense I've been in a horror film.

ARTISTdirect.com: That intensity is as crucial in SLIPKNOT and STONE SOUR as it is in "My Soul To Take" and "The Last House On The Left". How important is exorcising demons and creating a catharsis in both of your respective art forms?

Wes Craven: I have a Master's Degree in Philosophy, and it's interesting that this stuff goes back so far. You can actually trace it back to the earliest stories of this sort. Because the culture can be so over-civilized, the image of America becomes sort of Ozzie and Harriet, and the concept of "Mainstream America" is so out of touch with reality. These kinds of films go into those areas of uncontrolled, uncivilized behavior and potential that has to be recognized somehow. I think horror and rock 'n' roll are very similar in that sense. They've gone into the areas that were not considered polite and were initially banned. I've been doing this for 40 years, and I think it's taken almost that long for them to become legitimate at all, in a sense. Still, the goal is not to be outrageous for the sake of being outrageous but just to get the energy released from the civilization part. That's how I feel at least.

Corey Taylor: I definitely agree. There's almost a renaissance of that. You see people pining for the Eisenhower days where everything was hunky-dory. Well, it really wasn't. Like you said, the great thing about horror is it lances all of that. Horror pulls it back and shows the underbelly. It puts people in that uncomfortable position. Whether the good guy wins or not, you have to show that juxtaposition because nothing is as peachy-keen as it seems.

Wes Craven: That's right!

Corey Taylor: Also from an emotional standpoint, making the music that I've made with SLIPKNOT over the years, the release is so huge. You don't even realize the things that you're holding, bottling up or trying to keep control of, until you either let them out, or it's too late and they explode in a very negative way. There are so many positive aspects to the horror genre and music in general that allow you to let go of the things that you've been sitting on for a long time. It allows you to be a little more alive. One of the lessons that the horror genre teaches is you never know what's going to happen, so live for today. Live in that moment and really embrace life.

Wes Craven: It's true. It teaches self-reliance as well. No matter what you're up against, you have tools very deep inside you, and you can confront the worst things imaginable.

Corey Taylor: Exactly!

Wes Craven: It's very interesting in a strange way.

Corey Taylor: People are stronger than they know. If they can overcome the fear, then they come basically do anything that they want. That's one of the things that I've tried to say in my music. It's honestly one of the things that I've tried to teach a lot of the younger listeners who have grown up with my music. A lot of our fans grow up in these brutal situations, whether it's a terrible childhood or dealing with bullying in school and whatnot. It's very much like those uncomfortable circumstances you were talking about. I try to teach them if they can hold on and get through it, they've got their whole lives to live. If they can stay strong, be positive and look towards the future, they can have everything they ever wanted.

Wes Craven: That's right. I think one of the best things about this kind of music and film is the audience is at that transactional stage between innocence and whatever the hell adulthood is going to be [Laughs].

Corey Taylor: Yeah, that's definitely true!

Wes Craven: It's hard to know you're going to integrate yourself into that world. There's a way you can get through it and a way that you're in tact at the back end. Then, life will settle down a lot. The teen years are pretty wild and ungoverned in many ways. I think kids are probably going through a rougher world physically than they'll ever have to enter, unless they go into combat. You can get through it, but you do have to know that you can face the worst and get through it.

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