JOEY JORDISON: 'SLIPKNOT Will Never Die'

U.K.'s Kerrang! magazine recently conducted an interview with SLIPKNOT drummer Joey Jordison. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Kerrang!: How did you find out that Paul [Gray, SLIPKNOT bassist] had died?

Joey: "This actually is very… this is really bad. How I found is, I landed in Des Moines from a plane ride back from the ROB ZOMBIE tour. I was, like, 'Okay, cool, I'm home. I can finally get some rest.' Once I landed, I turned my phone on, and my managed rang and I'm, like, 'Oh, what?' He said, 'Paul Gray just died.' I'm, like, 'What?' I'm on the fucking plane next to fucking people, trying to hold my fucking composure, literally wanting to just fucking destroy everything. I'm trying to talk calmly, and I'm, like, 'Why the fuck are you telling me this right now? Can't this wait until I get home? I'll be home in 30 fucking minutes.' Then I realized they told me because they didn't want me to hear it from anyone else. I just went into a blank shock. I was trying to calm myself down. Then my phone lit up like a goddamn Christmas tree. And I'm there trying not to fall into tears, and I just break my fucking phone. Right there on the plane."

Kerrang!: After Paul passed away, did it ever cross your mind that it was the end for SLIPKNOT?

Joey: "No. I didn't think about that whatsoever. We never thought about throwing in the towel, at all. We knew we had to forge ahead. I mean, my friend died, but what would he want us to do? Quit? No fucking way! SLIPKNOT's not about who's in the band. It's a lifeblood, it's a force, it's about a connection between a bunch of people."

Kerrang!: Did Paul's death bring SLIPKNOT closer together?

Joey: "Yeah, man, it did. Why the fuck did it have to take my best friend fucking dying for the rest of us to fucking talk to each other like human beings? But that's the thing — as soon as something's not right with any of us, we all come running. Unfortunately, it was too late."

Kerrang!: What made SLIPKNOT want to play Sonisphere [festivals] this year?

Joey: "They approached us. Initially we were still grieving over Paul — which we always will — and our initial reaction was 'no.' Because the whole situation was still really, really new, and it was still in the air, and we just didn't know. But then we thought about it, and thought about the amount of time involved. I talked to Shawn [Crahan, SLIPKNOT percussionist] and said, 'We have to do this for Paul, to have closure and give tribute to our friend.' So, people are gonna see the most emotional SLIPKNOT shows of all time. I'm not gonna let the cat out of the bag and say what we've got planned, but don't miss it. It's gonna be absolutely insane."

Kerrang!: You used the word "closure." Do you think this is going to be a big part of your grieving process?

Joey: "We'll never have complete closure. He was my best friend ever. He was my musical soulmate; we did everything together. But, I mean, Paul, no matter what… it's almost a disgrace to not do it. SLIPKNOT will never die. As long as we're together, it just won't. When it's time for us to end, we'll know when it's time. SLIPKNOT is my baby. It is my life. It means everything. Everything I do means the world to me, but when it comes down to it, SLIPKNOT… that's my blood. [These shows] will be the ultiamte triumph. Trust me, it'll be well worth the wait, man."

Kerrang!: It'll be very weird walking onto that stage, though, won't it?

Joey: "It's going to be bizarre. I think, honestly, Paul's with us in spirit. He's with me every day. It's going to be a really, really explosive show. It's gonna be good for all of us. There's no negativity, we're not pissed off at anyone. But I have to do this. I haven't put [my mask] on since everything happened. Nobody's put their mask back on. But when I do, and when all of us do, it's gonna be… we're waiting with bated breath for it."