Slipknot performs during Aftershock Festival at Discovery Park in Sacramento, Calif. on Oct. 11, 2024. Photos courtesy Aftershock Festival. AFTERSHOCK 2024: • Slayer reunites for explosive Thursday headlining set SACRAMENTO — Aftershock Festival’s second day featured a variety of punk icons and modern rock heavyweights. The crowds felt bigger…

Corey Taylor, “CMF2.” The new solo record from Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor solidifies his status as one of the standard-bearers of hard rock and metal. The singer has taken on a number of musical endeavors over the years, from the unrelenting heaviness of Slipknot to the aggressive melodic grunge…

Slipknot performs at Aftershock Fest in Sacramento on Oct. 6, 2022. Photos by Steve Thrasher and Nathan Zucker. SACRAMENTO — Aftershock, Northern California’s heaviest rock and roll festival, returned in all its metal glory to Discovery Park Thursday for its 10th year. With a lineup led by Slipknot, the…

Slipknot, “The End, So Far.” Way back in 2003, Slipknot was praised for the members’ development as musicians on their third album, Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses). Even through the lens of history, it remains justified. The band kept what made its first two albums classics but added a level of…

Janis Joplin in 1970, courtesy Wikicommons. This is, somehow, inexplicably, the weekend before Thanksgiving. I was pretty sure it was an unusually cold August but I triple-checked the calendar and it’s definitely late November. Time is weird. Since my column runs on Saturday, that means this is also my…

Corey Taylor, “CMFT.” Corey Taylor has become one of hard rock’s standard bearers. Taylor speaks his mind on the state of the genre, while also serving as one of its primary champions. His prolific career has spanned work with Slipknot and Stone Sour, as well as acting and writing…

Grandpa Metal is Brian Posehn’s first metal album. It’s not his first album. The actor, writer and comedian has released numerous comedy albums. He’s also released a few metal songs by himself, though for this album, Posehn didn’t go it alone. Grandpa Metal Brian Posehn Megaforce Records, Feb. 13…

When a hardcore band claims influence from System of a Down and Slipknot, it’s hard not to fear for the worst. But the nu-metalcore hybrid of Orthodox works, which explains the band’s fast growth in the underground scene. For its latest LP, the Nashville quartet focuses on sharpening its edges and…

Tool performs at the Aftershock Festival on Oct. 13, 2019. Courtesy of Aftershock. SACRAMENTO — Northern California’s annual hard rock festival, Aftershock, continued its upward trajectory as one of the premiere national events for heavy music. What began back in 2012 as a one-day and one-stage event has ballooned…

 Everyone manages stress differently. Some people use guided meditation, some people go with binge drinking and an underground fight club. There are as many coping strategies as there are people. Similarly, some people go for some mellow, soothing music. Most people really. But that’s not how I roll.…