Slipknot drummer Eloy Casagrande has shed some light on the origins of the band’s divisive single “Arsenal,” revealing that the track initially came from frontman Corey Taylor before evolving through the group’s studio sessions.
During an appearance on The Downbeat Podcast, hosted by former Stray From The Path drummer Craig Reynolds, Casagrande also confirmed that he had finished recording his drum parts for Slipknot’s upcoming eighth studio album roughly a week and a half before the interview.
“I just finished recording the drums, so all the drums, they are recorded. They are done. I finished, like, 10 days ago or a week ago.”
The forthcoming effort will mark Casagrande’s first full-length studio contribution since joining Slipknot in 2024. He explained that the writing process began toward the end of 2025, initially with him and guitarist Jim Root exchanging ideas before eventually bringing more of the band into the sessions.
Rather than relying entirely on traditional songwriting, the musicians spent extended periods improvising together, recording their jams and revisiting the material to identify ideas worth developing.
Casagrande described how those sessions gradually expanded to include Mick Thomson, Root, V-Man, Clown and Michael “Tortilla Man” Pfaff, with the group building songs from smaller instrumental passages that emerged during their rehearsals.
When asked specifically about “Arsenal,” which arrived as a surprise single in September, Casagrande clarified that it followed a different creative path.
“Oh, that’s a Corey Taylor song. Yeah, that’s a song that he sent me at the beginning of the year. And then Jim wrote the riffs to the song. So that song didn’t come out from a jam. That’s a Corey Taylor song.”
Although Taylor supplied the initial song, Casagrande said the drum arrangement underwent a significant transformation during the recording process. He initially tried to preserve the basic ideas Taylor had sent over, but sessions with Clown and producer Matt Wallace eventually led to a more aggressive approach.
“At the beginning I was trying to respect the song, because he gave me a song. And I was, like, ‘Okay, I’m not gonna change that,’ because it’s ready to go. We can call it a song.”
Casagrande said Clown encouraged him to rethink the drums and make the arrangement more interesting. That opened the door for him to experiment with the kind of unpredictable, aggressive playing he felt was central to Slipknot’s sound.
He ultimately recorded the single in a single full take after an afternoon of jamming with the band.
“We played it for the whole afternoon. And then at the beginning of the evening, I recorded the song. It’s only one take. It’s a full take. That’s what we are trying to do right now.”
That approach reflects a broader philosophy Casagrande said he has brought to the sessions for the new album. Rather than pursuing flawless performances through extensive editing and overdubbing, he wants the recordings to retain the imperfections and spontaneity of musicians playing together.
He also pushed back against the idea that modern metal recordings should necessarily sound mechanically perfect, emphasizing that the upcoming material will reflect real human performances.
“On the future album that’s gonna come out, on the new songs, people are gonna listen to them, they are 100% real. Nowadays it’s very easy to listen to perfect music, perfection, but that’s not what we are trying to achieve here. We are trying to achieve reality, to be honest, to be real for the fans, for the people who are gonna listen to our music.”
Casagrande acknowledged that some editing was occasionally used, including combining sections from different full takes, but said he avoided punch-ins and wanted the performances to maintain a natural feel.
Slipknot have been working on the new album with producer Matt Wallace in recent months, with Root also sharing glimpses of the recording process. The record will follow the band’s renewed partnership with Roadrunner Records and Atlantic Records, alongside the launch of their own label, (sic)est Records.
The upcoming release will also arrive during a period of lineup changes for the group, following the reported firing of DJ Sid Wilson earlier this year and the 2023 departure of longtime sampler Craig “133” Jones.
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