Slipknot - Iowa: Rated

IOWA (2001): 8.1/10

I think all men desperately need to go to therapy. 

No, seriously. I loved this. I didn’t expect to, but I really did. I needed this when I was 17 and whilst I knew Slipknot existed I didn't think I'd relate to them so much: especially at the time. It really helped me tap into my inner teenager who feels nothing but rage and fear and dread all the time and can’t exactly make peace with the whole concept of being a functioning person yet. I think if I had this at the time I would have been an entirely different person and maybe I would have understood myself a bit more. 

The least fave tracks surprised me: I expected that out of an extremely heavy metal album I would prefer the ones with the most melody, but I actually felt that it cheapened the sound of My Plague and the verses in Left Behind. The ascend was absolutely glorious on Gently, which is probably something similar to what I would have preferred to have heard on My Plague. 

The lyrics were good. Very simple and direct to the point: no beating around the bush here - brilliant. 

The quote from Alternative Press that said “It is like having a plastic bag taped over your head for an hour while Satan uses your scrotum as a speedbag” is untrue. I didn't find that to be the case at all. I thought that even though this has quite a bit of religious imagery, it stayed very clear of what I pictured Satan would play on your scrotum. I think this comes from a very deep place of scrutiny and defiance: and giving this feeling to a deity discounts some very real and serious feelings and excuses them to unreliable credulities.