Has SLIPKNOT's TORTILLA MAN Finally Been Unmasked?

August 21, 2019

Some fans believe that they have finally figured out the identity of SLIPKNOT's newest member — the percussionist nicknamed "Tortilla Man."

Tortilla Man joined SLIPKNOT three months ago, when he was first featured in the video for comeback single "Unsainted". Since then, there has been much speculation about his name, with some SLIPKNOT fans getting quite obsessed with trying to work out the real identity of the band's latest recruit.

After SLIPKNOT guitarist Jim Root gave a recent interview to "The Art And Span Show" in which he described the mystery man as "a world-class pianist" and "a great percussionist" who is "schooled in music," Reddit user Les Connelly did some digging and has now gone public with his findings.

According to Connelly, Tortilla Man is none other than the multi-instrumentalist Michael Pfaff, who played keyboards with SLIPKNOT's Shawn "Clown" Crahan in the band DIRTY LITTLE RABBITS. Pfaff is also a member of the Iowa-based duo THE SNACKS, although he has reportedly been replaced by another keyboardist since February of this year.

Pfaff was apparently introduced to Crahan years ago by SLIPKNOT's resident DJ Sid Wilson, which may explain why Tortilla Man has such good onstage chemistry with Sid and Clown. In addition, Pfaff has a similar build and height as Tortilla Man, and Redditors have found that Pfaff's family members are following "#tortillaman" and other hashtags on social media related to the newest member of SLIPKNOT.

Crahan recently refused to reveal the identity of the band's mysterious new ninth member in an interview with Kerrang! magazine, saying it was "nobody's fucking business."

SLIPKNOT's previous percussionist, Chris Fehn, sued the band in March, claiming he hadn't been properly compensated for his years of touring and recording with the group. Fehn, a member since 1998, was officially dismissed from the band earlier this year.

In an interview with Zane Lowe on Beats 1, SLIPKNOT singer Corey Taylor said Tortilla Man had won the respect of bands and fans. "He's doing great and is a great dude," he said. "He's killing it, man."

Asked how anyone becomes an official member of SLIPKNOT, Taylor said: "First of all, you've got to wear the tortilla on your face. And the audience has to figure out who you are. With Tortilla Man, it's kinda cool. It's brought this whole new energy to everybody as well, so it's a lot of fun to watch him as well."

SLIPKNOT's sixth studio album, "We Are Not Your Kind", arrived on August 9. The band kicked off its North American headlining tour on July 26 in Mountain View, California.

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