SLIPKNOT's JIM ROOT On Next Album: 'It's A Work In Progress'

U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine conducted an interview with SLIPKNOT guitarist Jim Root at this year's Rock On The Range, which is being held May 15-17 at MAPFRE Stadium (formerly Crew Stadium) in Columbus. You can now watch the chat below.

Speaking about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the follow-up to SLIPKNOT's latest album, 2014's ".5: The Gray Chapter", Root said: "We've been just kind of jamming a little bit, doing a little bit of riff mining and stuff like that. But I think, you know, it's really hard to write while you're on the road; there's a lot of distractions and it's just hard to sink into a vibe with it. I think the more we continue to jam, we can probably get some riffs and ideas for things, but as far as full arrangements and things like that, that's gonna have to come once the touring settles down a little bit. But it's, you know… It's a work in progress."

Asked what musical direction the next SLIPKNOT album might take, Root said: "Man, that's really tough. I mean, there's a couple of different ways to approach it. We could approach it like we did, say, [2001's] 'Iowa' compared to the first release. Or we could approach it like kind of picking up where [2004's] 'Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)' or where 'The Gray Chapter' left off. Do we go more aggro and more heavy and more death metal, or do we go more cerebral or more PINK FLOYD, more kind of experimental? It's hard to say. And I think because we never know what we're gonna do is why we end up just doing what we do. And it comes off as being very organic and not contrived, and that's the case. Don't overthink what it's gotta be or what it should be or shouldn't be."

It was six years between 2008's "All Hope Is Gone" and last year's ".5: The Gray Chapter", during which SLIPKNOT dealt with the death of bassist Paul Gray in 2010 and the dismissal of drummer Joey Jordison in 2013.

SLIPKNOT's "Summer's Last Stand" tour kicks off on July 24 in West Palm Beach, Florida, wrapping up six weeks later on September 5 in Dallas. Joining SLIPKNOT on the road trip will be LAMB OF GOD, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE and MOTIONLESS IN WHITE.

The summer jaunt follows a brief spring run that SLIPKNOT launched on April 25 at the Fort Rock festival in Fort Myers, Florida, ending on May 16 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.