Corey Taylor: Slipknot wanted to make amends with Joey Jordison before his death

6 October 2022, 11:24

Corey Taylor and former Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison — Corey Taylor has talked about the death of former Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison. Picture: 1. Scott Dudelson/Getty Images 2. Ben Pruchnie/FilmMagic/Getty

By Jenny Mensah

The Slipknot frontman has talked about the tragic death of his former bandmate and revealed it "woke" the band up.

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Slipknot wanted to "mend fences" with Joey Jordison before his tragic death.

The Wait and Bleed rocker has talked about the loss of the band's founding drummer, who sadly died on 26 July, aged 46 due to transverse myelitis.

Talking about Jordison - who the band's The End So Far album is dedicated to - the frontman told The Fader: "We dedicated the album to him. We hoped it wouldn’t happen, and when it did it was a sad resolve that… for somebody that creative and explosive... I just wish we hadn’t lost him this soon."

He added: “We were hoping to mend fences with him, and it’s one of those things that tells you: whatever you need to do, do it now, because you never know when you’re gonna lose somebody.”

Jordison's death came 11 years after Slipknot's bassist Paul Gray died, and Corey admitted both deaths were a wakeup call for the band.

"They definitely woke us up a little bit, made us realise we’re on the other side of youth," he mused. “There’s gonna come a time when we start losing each other again, and we should take advantage of the time we have right now with each other.

"I’ve tried to let these guys know how I feel about them and the music we’ve made together."

The Devil In I singer added: "We’re all such different people, and the fact that after all these years we’re still doing it together — and still doing it at this pace — you have to embrace each other after that."

Jordison's family broke the news last year that the drummer died peacefully in his sleep on Monday 26th July.

"We are heartbroken to share the news that Joey Jordison, prolific drummer, musician and artist passed away peacefully in his sleep on July 26th, 2021," a statement from his loved ones read.

"Joey’s death has left us with empty hearts and feelings of indescribable sorrow. To those that knew Joey, understood his quick wit, his gentle personality, giant heart and his love for all things family and music.

"The family of Joey have asked that friends, fans and media understandably respect our need for privacy and peace at this incredibly difficult time," the statement adds. "The family will hold a private funeral service and asks the media and public to respect their wishes."

Jordison stayed with Slipknot until December 2013 when he left the band for what he described at the time as "personal reasons."

A few years later, he revealed that the reason he exited the band was a neurological disease.

"I got really, really sick with a horrible disease called transverse myelitis, I lost my legs,” he announced at the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards in 2016. "I couldn’t play anymore. It was a form of multiple sclerosis, which I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy."

"I had to be carried to the stage," he said of the last Slipknot shows he played. "The pain was something I'd never experienced in my life before."