Slipknot guitarist Jim Root has offered an extensive update on the band’s next studio album, revealing that the group already has roughly 50 song arrangements in development and is working with veteran producer Matt Wallace on the project.
During a recent appearance on the RIDE BYND podcast, Root discussed the creative process behind Slipknot’s highly anticipated follow-up to 2022’s The End, So Far, which will mark the band’s first full-length release featuring drummer Eloy Casagrande.
According to Root, the band has adopted a far more organic approach to songwriting this time around, relying heavily on live jam sessions rather than building songs around programmed demos.
“This new album we’re working on, that’s what we’re doing, we’re just jamming and Clown’s arranging,” Root explained. “We’ll jam for like an hour and a half, two hours, and we might get four song ideas out of that and then we just spend time arranging, and it’s so organic and it’s so real.”
Root described the experience as one of the most creatively rewarding periods of his career, adding that the material is coming closer than ever to the music he hears in his head.
The guitarist also confirmed that acclaimed producer Matt Wallace—known for his work with Faith No More, Mushroomhead, and others—has joined the project.
Discussing the sessions, Root said the band and Wallace have frequently found themselves surprised by the direction the new material is taking.
“We’re working with Matt Wallace right now to write this stuff,” Root revealed. “There’s times where we just kind of sit back and we’re listening to what I just worked on and it’s just like, ‘Wow, this is wild.’ This sounds like nothing I’ve ever heard before. Yet there’s a familiarity to it that feels like I’ve been listening to it my whole life.”
Root also praised Casagrande’s impact on the writing process, describing the former Sepultura drummer as a driving force behind the band’s renewed creativity.
“Having Eloy in the band is like such an honor to be able to jam with that guy,” Root said. “He lives, eats and breathes his drums.”
The guitarist noted that Casagrande’s broad range of influences and technical abilities have pushed the band into new territory while helping keep the songwriting fresh.
While Slipknot recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of their self-titled debut album, Root made it clear that the upcoming record will not be an attempt to recreate that era.
“The new shit we’re writing does not sound like that at all,” Root stated. “We’re not de-evolving into that sort of thing.”
He continued:
“You’re not going to hear, for lack of a better term, a ‘nu-metal record’ out of us. I don’t know that we’ve ever been nu-metal. I think we just came out at a time when nu-metal was happening.”
Instead, Root suggested the material spans a wide range of styles, from blistering speed and extreme aggression to melodic passages, clean interludes, and experimental textures.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the interview was the sheer amount of material already being developed.
“We have so much material. Probably at least 50 arrangements,” Root revealed. “I’m not saying they’re all full songs and they all need work.”
The band is reportedly revisiting a process similar to the one used during the creation of We Are Not Your Kind, allowing songs to evolve over time before deciding which ideas ultimately make the final album.
While no release date or timeline has been announced, the project still appears to be in its formative stages. Given the amount of material being refined and the band’s current writing approach, a release sometime in 2027 appears more likely than a near-term arrival.
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