Asking a band to choose between its albums, as Loudwire accurately describes, is like asking members to choose between their children. That said, Corey Taylor of Slipknot came through when asked by Noisey to rank his primary band's records. It's also a tough question from a PR-position, because a group has to weigh what critics say against trying to promote its newest work. That said, you might be surprised where albums such as Slipknot and .5: The Gray Chapter ended up in his rankings.
First thing's first: Taylor still pulled for the band's first album, Slipknot, as the best. That might seem like he's suggesting the band has only gotten worse over the past 15 years, but most of his reasoning seems to stem from sentimental anecdotes versus commentary on lyrics or instrumentals.
"There's so many crazy stories from that first album, I can look back and smile that it's happened to us, and the subsequent years," he said before providing some anecdotes. "It all started from the first album and all the crazy sh*t. Living off 20 bucks a week, having to hide your ramen because your a*shole bandmates were trying to steal it. Having to come up with 30 ways to make Ramen so you don't lose your mind, that's how we lived. It was so insane, but it was so awesome because we were in it. All the talk, dreaming was over. It was time to do the work. And we did, the rest is f*cking history man."
He deftly placed the band's most recent release, The Gray Chapter, as the group's no. 2 release, citing the triumphant feeling of coming back after the death of a member and a six-year hiatus to top the Billboard 200. That said, he also pointed out that it couldn't be the best, not featuring deceased bassist Paul Gray and departed drummer Joey Jordison.
The rest of his "children" were ranked as such: Iowa at no. 3, Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses at no. 4 and All Hope Is Gone at no. 5.
