10 Great Rock Albums Recorded In Really Weird Ways

Slipknot’s early years are the stuff of nightmares and to hear their first couple of albums is to really understand what it sounds like to be living on a razor’s edge. With the success of their debut, the band struggled with the fame and the vampiric music industry that threatened to bleed them dry.

Drugs, fighting and depression were common throughout the band’s recording of the 2011 follow-up Iowa. Whilst the rest of Slipknot took breaks after their previous tour, drummer Joey Jordison and bassist Paul Grey began work on writing and by the time the album was in its recording and mixing stages were sick of each other. Percussionist Shawn “Clown” Crahan was suffering with mental issues due to being away from his physically unwell wife. Corey Taylor was so depressed and alcohol-dependent that he was self-harming during vocal takes.

DJ Sid Wilson’s grandfather not only passed during recording but whilst Wilson was rushing him to see him one last time. Upon returning to the studio, Wilson recorded (515) that kicks off the album with the sounds of his very real mental breakdown. And it wasn’t just the band either: producer Ross Robinson was recovering from a broken back and could be heard screaming from pain from the production desk.

One of the most extreme bands to ever hit the mainstream was expected to chill down on Iowa. They did not.