Wednesday, January 25, 2012

CRAIG JONES
Craig Michael Jones also known as 133 (or 133 mHz), The Silent One, or by his number #5, is an American musician, best known as the sampler andkeyboardist of the band Slipknot.Jones was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He previously played in various local extreme metal bands, including Modifidious, before joining Slipknot in February 1996. He was the replacement for the band's original guitarist, Donnie Steele,[1] who left during the recording of their first songs, put together into a demo called Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat. which the band themselves have stated is not an album, but a demo. Because the band was almost completed with the demo, he did not contribute to it, but he did receive credit for its sleeve concept and graphics in the liner notes. Before the year was over, Jones had been replaced by guitarist Mick Thomson, and he began to assume his role as the band's sampler and keyboardist.[2]
Jones is the only member of the band who is not interviewed completely unmasked on Voliminal: Inside the Nine. While he does not wear a mask during the interview, his face remains pixelated.
He speaks for two seconds at the start of their video Welcome to Our Neighborhood, where he says "133, number 5, sampling". He also speaks during the member introduction on the Ozzfest 1999 documentary called We Sold Our Souls for Rock and Roll, where he says "Craig, number 5, sampling".
Jones once suffered from whiplash after an extended case of powerful headbanging. He gave himself the nickname (133) because at the time 133mHz was the fastest computer around and now the nickname stuck
PAUL GRAY
Paul Dedrick Gray (April 8, 1972 – May 24, 2010) also known as The Pig or by his number #2 was an American musician, best known as the bassist, primary songwriter and one of the founding members of the Grammy Award-winning metal band Slipknot.Gray was born in Los Angeles, California. Later his family relocated to Des Moines, Iowa. In his youth, Gray performed in bands such as Anal Blast, Vexx, Body Pit, and Inveigh Catharsis.
In June 2003, Gray crashed his car into another vehicle. After police were called to the scene and searched his car, Gray was arrested for possession ofcannabiscocainedrug paraphernalia, and failure to obey a traffic signal.[1][2]
At the time of his death, he was one of 3 original members of Slipknot remaining in the band, and the only one who had maintained his original role in the band due to Clown's switch from main drums to custom percussion during the early days. He was one of the two members not born in Iowa (the other isJim Root, who was born in Las Vegas). In 2010 Slipknot released the Download 2009 performance on DVD in memory of Gray.
Besides Slipknot, Gray filled in as bassist for Unida during their 2003 tour, appeared on Drop Dead, GorgeousWorse Than a Fairy Tale, toured briefly withReggie and the Full Effect and appeared on the Roadrunner United project, performing bass on "The Enemy" and "Baptized in the Redemption" from the project's album The All-Star Sessions.
CHRIS FEHN
Christopher Michael "Chris" Fehn (born February 24, 1972), or known by his number #3, is an American musician known as one of the two custompercussionists of the Grammy Award winning nu metal band Slipknot and is the current bassist for the band Will Haven.Fehn was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa. Prior to joining Slipknot, he played as a kicker on the Wayne State University Football team. Fehn joined the band around April 1997, replacing percussionist Greg Welts, who was forced out of Slipknot after the band due to personal conflicts with drummer Joey Jordison which stemmed from Welts dating Jordison's sister.
As well as lending his percussion talents to the band, Fehn has also sung backing vocals on a number of songs Slipknot has both recorded and performedlive. Outside Slipknot, Fehn is a very keen golfer, and evidences this on the band's 2006 DVD, Voliminal: Inside the Nine, where he is interviewed while playing golf. Fehn describes himself as a "big fan of the band" and says of Slipknot, "the world needed something like this."[1] Slipknot bassist Paul Graystated in an interview that Fehn "often brings humor to the band." and that they "definitely need that guy." Prior to joining Slipknot in 1997, Fehn was close friends with Slipknot's percussionist Shawn Crahan. According to Fehn, he had originally asked Crahan if he could be drummer Joey Jordison's drum tech. Shortly after his request was made, Fehn was given an offer to play custom percussion in the band. Fehn was then given a rough demo that contained all of Slipknot's songs. Fehn has said that "Spit It Out" was the song that stood out to him the most. Fehn then tried out on percussion and was subsequently made part of Slipknot.
In the early years of Slipknot before their signing with Roadrunner Records, Fehn was an electrician. In a recent interview with Face Culture, Fehn said that the band members gave him a hard time in his early years with the band. He described that his time during the self-titled album era was his "hazing period" with the band.[2]
SHAWN CRAHAN
Michael Shawn Crahan (born September 24, 1969), also known as Clown, or by his number #6, is an American musician, music producer, and artist. He is best known as one of the two custom percussionists of the Grammy-winning metal band Slipknot, and the drummer of To My Surprise and Dirty Little Rabbits. At 42, Shawn Crahan is the oldest member of Slipknot.Crahan was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He once performed in bands such as Heads on the Wall & One Cup of Fat. He married his wife Chantel in June, 1993, in Des Moines, Iowa. They have four children, Alexandria, Gage, Gabrielle, and Simon.
As well as lending his percussion talents to the band, Crahan has also sung backing vocals on a number of songs Slipknot has both recorded and performed live. He also wrote the original draft of "Tattered & Torn", which appeared on the band's early demo, Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat.. Outside Slipknot, Crahan has founded Big Orange Clown Records, a vanity label within Sanctuary Records, which has so far signed the metalcore band Gizmachi. He also acted as director for, and assembled Slipknot's 2005 DVD, Voliminal: Inside the Nine, while the band engaged a brief hiatus.
He also performed with To My Surprise, recording guitar and vocals for the band's self-titled debut album. The band received little interest due to their album being released amidst the success of Slipknot members Corey TaylorJames Root and Joey Jordison's side projectsStone Sour and the Murderdolls, respectively. To My Surprise was later dropped by Roadrunner Records. In 2007, Crahan began performing as drummer for Dirty Little Rabbits. The band was a supporting act for Stone Sour during their North American tour in Summer 2007,[1] and have released one EP, titled Breeding. They have since signed a deal with The End Records as of November, 2008.[2]
In 2009 he contributed to Bring Me the Horizon's remix album, Suicide Season: Cut Up!, by remixing the track "Sleep With One Eye Open". Also in 2009 Shawn remixed a Suicide Silence track on their Wake Up EP entitled "Wake Up (Clown of Slipknot Remix)". In 2010, he contributed to Escape the Fate'sThis War Is Ours deluxe edition, by remixing the track "This War Is Ours (The Guillotine Part II)" and in 2011 he remixed "Angles of Clarity" for Dead by April on their compilation album "Stronger". Crahan has confirmed the formation of a brand new side project called The Black Dots of Death who released their debut studio album Ever Since We Were Children on March 28, 2011.[3] He is the director of many of Slipknot's music videos, DVDs and other artistic projects.
Crahan, to his nickname, wears clown-style masks while performing with Slipknot. He also wears a death mask made from a cast of his own face when performing the song "Vermilion".
SID WILSON 
Sidney George Wilson (born January 20, 1978) also known as Ratboy or DJ Sid#0 (or 0), is an American disc jockey known as the turntablist of theGrammy Award winning band Slipknot. He is the youngest member of the band.Sid Wilson was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa. He performs in the American band Slipknot, and also tours as DJ Starscream, a name which is derived from the Transformers character of the same name. He is a fan of the Transformers franchise, and has Transformer tattoos. Musically within Slipknot, Wilson contributes scratching and background noises. He is also considered by many to have been the worst behaved member of the band, especially during their early tours (i.e. lighting self on fire, jumping off balconies onto the audience).
Outside Slipknot, Wilson has made a following in Japan as a jungle musician, under the pseudonym DJ Starscream, and is currently signed to the Japanese record label N2O Records.[1] He collaborated with The Mad Capsule Markets vocalist Hiroshi Kyono on a song called "HAKAI (Deathtroy)" released on The Songs for Death Note the movie~the Last name Tribute~, a tribute album dedicated to the live action movie for the second Death Note film.[2] A remix of the track also appeared on the Wagdug Futuristic Unity mini-album Nu Riot and 2008 album Hakai.[3]
As of August 2010, he is touring with his solo band SID. He is the lead vocalist of the band.[4] Wilson went on tour with his solo band, his last tour date was on September 5, 2010 at a music venue called Another Hole In The Wall, located in Steger, Illinois. He stated, "This is the best stop on the tour, I loved the crowd reaction. It really made me feel like I got back to my roots." He also said that he will be touring with his solo project for a year or two. The debut album "SID" will be released on September 13, 2011 for digital download.

JOEY JORDISON

Joey Jordison (born Nathan Jonas Jordison April 26, 1975 in Des Moines, Iowa), is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his work as the drummer for the nu metal band Slipknot. He grew up in Waukee, Iowa with his parents and two sisters, and was given his firstdrum kit at the age of 8. He performed in several bands until joining in the summer of 1995 the group The Pale Ones, which would later change their name to Slipknot.
With Slipknot, Jordison has performed on four studio albums, and produced the live album 9.0: Live. He is also the lead guitarist for the horror punkband Murderdolls. Outside the majority of his projects, Jordison has performed with other heavy metal groups such as Rob ZombieMetallicaKorn,Ministry and Satyricon. Jordison is also known for his session work which includes performances on many albums for many different artists. Jordison uses several drum brands including Pearl and drum.Jordison was born at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines, Iowa on April 26, 1975.[1] He grew up in a rural area outside of Waukee where he used to play basketball on the street in front of his house. He embraced music at an early age, which he attributes to the influence of his parents: "they always sat me down in front of the radio, rather than the TV."[1] He played guitar until receiving his first drum kit as a gift from his parents at age eight, and started his first band while in elementary school.[2] At a young age, Jordison's parents divorced; he and his two younger sisters stayed with their mother.[3] His mother remarried and set up a funeral parlor where Jordison would occasionally help. Jordison has stated he felt a sudden responsibility to be the man of the house, and this responsibility turned him iidious in which he played drums. He later described them as "total speed-metal thrash".[4] The band helped Jordison break new ground, playing for live crowds in support of local bands including Atomic Opera, which featured Jim Root, and Heads On The Wall, which featured Shawn Crahan.[5] After a multitude of line-up changes including the presence of Craig Jones and Josh Brainard—who would later appear in Slipknot—the band released two demos in 1993: Visceral and Mud Fuchia.[5][6]
After leaving school, Jordison was hired by a local music store called Musicland. In March 1994, after a recommendation from his new friend, he got a job at a Sinclair garage in Urbandale. Jordison worked the night shift, which he preferred, as it left his weekends free and allowed him to spend time with his friends and listen to music while working.[7] In early 1995, Modifidious disbanded because of a shift in interest from thrash metal to death metal in America. Following this Jordison joined a local band called The Rejects as a guitarist, with whom he only played a couple of shows. Jordison was also involved in a band with Paul Gray, formed mostly as a joke called Anal Blast.[8] Gray also attempted to recruit him for another band, Body Pit, but he declined the invitation to remain in The Rejects.[9]On November 28, 1995, Mark Anthony Cadavos approached Jordison while he was working, offering him a position in a new project called The Pale Ones.[8] Intrigued and at a point where he was "lost",[10] Jordison attended rehearsals at Anders Colsefini's basement and immediately wanted to be part of this new band. Speaking of this moment he said, "I remember trying so hard not to smile, so I didn't look like I wanted to join, I remained poker-faced, but I thought they ruled."[11] A lot of Slipknot's early development was discussed by band members while Jordison worked night shifts at Sinclair's garage.[12] Slipknot would become pioneers to the New Wave of American Heavy Metal.[13][14] Jordison is accompanied by two custom percussionists,[15] giving their music a feel that Rolling Stone touted as "suffocating".[16]
Each member of Slipknot is assigned a number; Joey was assigned "#1".[17] Joey has produced one album with Slipknot: 2005 live album 9.0: Live.[18] In August, 2008, Jordison broke his ankle and Slipknot had to cancel some of its England tour dates.[19] On August 22, 2009, Jordison was taken to the emergency room for a burst appendix,less than an hour before he was to take the stage for Auburn, Washington's KISW Pain in the Grass concert.[20][21] As a result, Slipknot canceled following shows in August and September, to give Jordison time to recover.[22]
In August 2010 Jordison was voted the best drummer of the past 25 years by readers of Rhythm magazine. Competitors included Mike PortnoyNeil PeartPhil CollinsDave Grohl etc. When asked to comment he stated "I'm at a loss for words. This is beyond unbelievable. Something like this reminds me every day why I continue to do this."[23][24]