Clean Singing

A six-minute synth-driven track featuring all clean singing amidst primal screams and blastbeats.

Clean singing in Slipknot's discography is most prominently featured on their sixth studio album, The End, So Far. Released on September 30, 2022, via Roadrunner Records, the record marks a specific sonic pivot within the band's history. This shift is anchored by the opening track, "Adderall," a six-minute, synth-driven composition that relies entirely on clean vocals from frontman Corey Taylor. While the album retains the group's trademark heaviness through primal screams and blastbeats in other sections, this track stands out as a deliberate moment of melodic clarity. It serves as a stark contrast to the industrial noise and dissonance typical of their sound, showcasing a versatility that critics noted alongside the band's evolution.

Quick Facts

Primary vocalist: Corey Taylor
Notable era: The End, So Far (2022)

Lore & Background

The inclusion of all-clean vocals on "Adderall" represents a calculated artistic choice within The End, So Far, a record described by Corey Taylor as a "heavier version" of their 2004 album Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses. This stylistic decision occurred during the band's final era with Roadrunner Records, following their signing in 1998. The track emerged from sessions that concluded in February 2022, after Shawn Crahan had previously described the material as "god music" in May 2021. The contrast between the clean singing and the surrounding chaos of the album was noted by Luke Morton of Kerrang!, who highlighted how the song's melodic approach coexists with the band's return to scratching wizardry from Sid Wilson and aggressive drumming. This duality allows the album to explore a wider emotional range, balancing the "skull-rattling heaviness" found in singles like "The Dying Song (Time to Sing)" with moments of pure vocal clarity.

Reader's Guide

For fans analyzing Slipknot's vocal evolution, focus on The End, So Far and specifically the track "Adderall." This song is the definitive example of the band utilizing clean singing as a structural element rather than an anomaly. When listening, note how Corey Taylor's voice remains entirely unburdened by distortion or screaming for the full six-minute runtime, set against a synth-driven backdrop. Critics like those at Blabbermouth.net pointed to this track alongside "Medicine for the Dead" as evidence of Taylor's versatility and the band's ability to evolve without losing their core sound. To understand the context, remember that this album was mixed in early 2022 after a period of teasing material on thechapeltownrag.com starting in late 2021. The clean vocals here are not a departure but a refinement, sitting comfortably next to tracks like "Hivemind" and "Heirloom," which provide the heavier comfort for long-time fans.

Did You Know?

The album's original vinyl editions were misprinted with the title 'The End, So Far' on some copies.
At 63 minutes and 29 seconds, We Are Not Your Kind is not Slipknot's shortest studio album; their shortest is 'Slipknot' (1999) at approximately 60 minutes.
The band planned nine special editions of the album, each featuring one specific band member's mask on the cover.

Album Origins and Production Timeline

Production began with Shawn Crahan stating in May 2021 that the band was making "god music" and hoping for a 2021 release. By December 2021, Taylor revealed mixing was planned for January with an April 2022 target. In February 2022, recording was confirmed finished, with Taylor calling it a "heavier version" of Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses. Singles "The Chapeltown Rag" (Nov 2021), "The Dying Song (Time to Sing)" (July 2022), and "Yen" (Aug 2022) preceded the full album release on September 30, 2022.

Personnel Changes and Lineup Significance

This is the first studio album for percussionist Michael Pfaff (joined 2019) and the last for sampler Craig Jones and drummer Jay Weinberg before their June and November 2023 departures. The album, dedicated to Joey Jordison (died July 2021), is the band's shortest at 57 minutes and 31 seconds. It was also the final release via Roadrunner Records.

Critical Reception and Musical Evolution

Metacritic scored the album an 80/100 based on 10 reviews. Luke Morton (Kerrang!) praised "Adderall" as a six-minute, synth-driven track with all clean singing, contrasting it with primal screams elsewhere. Andrew Trendell (NME) compared the style to Bowie and Tool but noted heavier tracks like "Hivemind" comforted old fans. Blabbermouth.net highlighted how "Adderall" showed Taylor's versatility against the backdrop of heavy singles.

Commercial Performance and Global Impact

The album debuted at number one in Australia, Germany, Greece, Mexico, Switzerland, and the UK. In the US, it hit number two on the Billboard 200 with 59,000 first-week sales (50,500 pure), their first non-number-one debut since 2004's Vol. 3. In the UK, it sold 14,068 copies to secure a third number one, beating George Michael's Older reissue by 340 units.