SLIPKNOT's COREY TAYLOR: 'The Less I Say About CHRIS FEHN, The Better'

In a brand new interview with Vulture, SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor was asked what kind of work goes into keeping friendships and business partnerships alive that long when there are nine bandmembers involved. He responded: "The great thing about the business part of it is that because we're from Iowa, it all makes sense. You do the work, you get paid. That's straight-up it. We split merch equally. We split live equally. We do everything equally. And if we're all working toward the same thing, then it just all makes sense. We're always taking care of each other. Even though we're older now, our reasons for making music and continuing to do this are still the same. It's one of those things that, if our reasoning for doing this had changed, the band probably wouldn't have lasted as long as it did. But — and obviously I can't speak for everybody in the band — I know the OGs that are here are all still trying to just make the best music that we can. So we take care of each other."

Asked how much changing players has affected the balance of the music, Corey said: "It's not like we changed a baseball team. Obviously, losing Paul [Gray, bass], we had to have somebody step in there. Parting ways with Joey [Jordison, drums] was tough, but Jay [Weinberg] more than adequately has fucking done that. The less I say about [former percussionist] Chris [Fehn], the better, let's put it that way. But the creative core of the band is still there. You get two of the best guitar players in the world, Jim [Root] and Mick [Thomson]. And one of the most creative minds ever with Clown. So it was never a matter of this wasn't gonna happen. And honestly, it came down to whether or not we wanted to do it, and once we realized we did, the fucking gloves were off."

Fehn sued SLIPKNOT 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.

Fehn sued SLIPKNOT's leaders, Taylor and percussionist Michael Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown); SLIPKNOT's business manager Robert Shore; and six businesses, accusing Shore's New York City company, Rob Shore & Associates, Inc., of managing the band to enrich Crahan and Taylor "out of proportion to the efforts and undivided interests of the other general partners."

Fehn claimed in his lawsuit that he had been told that all the band's income was being funneled through one company that split the profits between the group members. But he alleged that he recently discovered the existence of several other SLIPKNOT-related business entities through which other members were collecting more money.

Fehn specifically accused Crahan and Taylor of shady business dealings and demanded a full forensic accounting done on SLIPKNOT's companies and assets, so that he could collect the damages and profits he believes he is owed.

Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, SLIPKNOT dismissed Fehn in a statement posted to the band's web site, saying, "Chris knows why he is no longer a part of SLIPKNOT. We are disappointed that he chose to point fingers and manufacture claims, rather than doing what was necessary to continue to be a part of SLIPKNOT."

Taylor also addressed the accusations via Twitter, saying: "Try being wrongfully accused of stealing money from someone you cared about, and having a lot of your fans believe it."

Fehn, known for wearing a Pinocchio-style mask, participated in all the band's albums through 2014's ".5: The Gray Chapter".

Chris was replaced in SLIPKNOT's touring lineup by a 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.

"We Are Not Your Kind" was released today (Friday, August 9) via Roadrunner Records.