Slipknot Ex-Members

Greg "Cuddles" Welts is the original custom percussionist along with Shawn. He didn't stay that long and left to work on his tattoo parlor at South Dakota called "The Ultimate Prick".



Brandon Darner is the replacement for custom percussionist, Greg Welts. He didn't stay long and was later on replaced by Chris.
Him and Shawn Crahan come together in 2004 to release an album under the band "To My Surprise".



Josh Brainard commonly known as Gnar to his band mates, was one of the original Slipknot guitarists, alongside Donnie Steele. Josh was asked to join the band after playing with Anders, Joey and Paul for several years. Originally Josh was the topping to the music produced, adding back up vocals, a touch of melody and his work on the guitar was placed over what was already there, being mainly noise and wah pedal stuff.
Later on, however, Mick took on the 'noise' role and this caused Josh to take on a more rhythmic guitar role. Josh was present for both MFKR and the self titled album, being in both the recordings. Most people are unaware that Josh recorded all but one of the songs on the self titled album, the song he does not appear on being Purity which contained his replacement Jim Root. The reason Josh left the band is between him and Slipknot, they are still good friends and he didn't leave because of touring and being away from his family, this is simply a rumour.



Anders Colsefini (real name Andy Rouw) was the original lead vocalist of the hard rock group Slipknot. He was replaced by Corey Taylor after their self-released debut Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat. Anders formed Painface and was in the band during On A Pale Horse. Despite leaving Slipknot, he has a very close friendship with DJ Sid Wilson.
After MFKR, Slipknot believed that, in order to find a major label, they needed a more radio friendly voice (they said Anders's grunts were like Max Cavalera's), so they found Corey Taylor. The band still wanted Anders to perform backing vocals and percussion, but got tired of the idea and he quit publicly before Slipknot was signed to Roadrunner Records.
Anders is now in a band with the temporary name "Vice Grip Throttle." They have a demo EP recorded that will remain under wraps for now, as they are recording their first album in December 2005. Three samples can be heard from the band's website , along with a contest to determine the band's new name. Users will submit a band name that they came up with, and the band will use that name. The person will win a bundle of things (See website for more information). "Vice Grip Throttle" recently decided to stick with their temporary name despite the "Rename VGT" contest saying "It just makes too much sense, considering our style and personalities."
Mask
In place of wearing a mask like most Slipknot members, Anders wore electrical tape on his face, paint on his flesh, and a fur skin skirt. The tape was inspired from Dogfish Rising, where Shawn rips tape to make a special noise. The get-up was only worn on special occasions.
Anders's lyrics "Only one of us walks away" were used in "Only One," track 13 of Slipknot.



Donnie Steele was the original guitarist for Slipknot recruited even before Josh Brainard. He played guitar on their independent demo Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat.Before Slipknot, Steele was also in a band with current Slipknot members Mick Thompson, Paul Gray and original Slipknot vocalist Anders Colsefini called Body Pit. Steele left the band supposedly because he "found God", but this is unsubstantiated and is left to individual speculation. He did not wear a mask during his time with Slipknot.
Donnie Steele is currently living in Des Moines, Iowa with his girlfriend and 3 children. His musical endeavors include the death metal band Killpact and teaching guitar at his and his business partner's lesson studio called Central Iowa Music Instruction located down stairs from Dirk's guitars/Tragically Hip Vintage in Des Moines' East Village.
Donnie Steele has been a guitarist for 21 years, studying classical guitar for 20 years, and a guitar instructor for 18 years.


John Green was one of the ex-guitarists for Slipknot.


Quan "Meld" Nong was the first singer, but only sang for the first year(1995). he is more widely known as the former guitarist for Slipknot in 1994 when the project first began under the nickname "Meld". However, sometime during the sixth practice of the band, Quan Nong left due to his following of a more alternative/punk style of music. He did not wear a mask. Though it seems otherwise, his name is actually spelled "Kun".


Patrick M. Neuwirth was the original guitarist from 1989 to 1993 (Slipknot chapter 1). Pat used to help Shawn Crahan's first band, Heads on the Wall, along with ex-guitarist Quan "Meld" Nong . He left the band a few months into spring of '92. Patrick did not wear a mask. Patrick currently makes a living as a metal sculptor and a furniture designer.

Slipknot Biography

Slipknot's mix of grinding, post-Korn alternative metal, Marilyn Manson-esque neo-shock rock, and rap-metal helped make them one of the most popular bands in the so-called nu-metal explosion of the late '90s. But even more helpful was their theatrical, attention-grabbing (some critics said ridiculous) image: the band always performed in identical industrial jump suits and homemade Halloween masks, and added to its mysterious anonymity by adopting the numbers zero through eight as stage aliases. Add to that a lyrical preoccupation with darkness and nihilism, and an affectionately insulting name for their fans ("Maggots"), and Slipknot's blueprint for nu-metal success was set.


Slipknot were formed in late 1995 in the unlikely locale of Des Moines, IA; after some early personnel shifts, the nine-piece lineup settled around (in order from number zero to number eight): DJ Sid Wilson, drummer Joey Jordison, bassist Paul Grey, percussionist Chris Fehn, guitarist James Root, sampler/programmer Craig Jones, percussionist Shawn "Clown" Crahan, guitarist Mick Thompson, and lead vocalist Corey Taylor. The music scene in Des Moines wasn't much to speak of, and the band's big-time ambition was usually met with disbelief and ridicule, which provided the initial spark for its mostly anonymous stage visuals. On Halloween 1996, Slipknot self-released an album called Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat., which began to build a buzz around the group once it found its way to several labels. It was picked up for distribution by the Nebraska-based -ismist label, and also caught the attention of Roadrunner Records, which signed Slipknot in 1997. Working with producer Ross Robinson, Slipknot recorded their official, self-titled debut album, which was released in 1999. They gradually built an audience through near-constant touring, working their way up to the summer Ozzfest package tour, which really expanded their audience. Their live shows were a much-discussed hit with metal fans, and the band performed with such energy that Crahan gashed his head open on his own drum kit twice that summer, requiring stitches both times. The tracks "Wait and Bleed" and "Spit It Out" got the band some airplay, but most of the buzz came from touring and word of mouth. Finally, in the spring of 2000, Slipknot was certified platinum; the first such album in Roadrunner's history.

The anticipation for Slipknot's follow-up was intense, and many industry observers predicted that it would debut at number one; however, faced with some stiff competition that week, the band's sophomore effort, Iowa, bowed at number three upon its release in 2001. More heavy touring followed, including another, more prominent slot on that summer's Ozzfest. After a long spell on the road, Slipknot took a break while the members worked on side projects. The band set up its own label, Maggot Recordings, and signed a band called Downthesun, whose lead singer had served as Crahan's drum technician. Wilson, meanwhile, began DJing solo under the name DJ Starscream, and Root and Thompson both worked on solo material. Drummer Jordison worked with a side group called the Rejects, where he'd actually served for quite some time as guitarist. Taylor, meanwhile, started a side band called Superego, and also contributed a solo song, "Bother," to the soundtrack of the 2002 blockbuster Spider-Man. That May, the band got some amusing press when some of its fans discovered the website of a British crocheting group also called "Slipknot," and flooded the members' in-boxes with excessively rude e-mails. Guitarist Joey Jordison and Static-X guitarist Tripp Eisen teamed that summer for the Murderdolls project, while Taylor reformed his old band Stone Sour and released an album. By the winter, Slipknot had still not reunited and Taylor wrote a commentary on the band's website stating that they had not spoken in months, and that they'd rather break up than become "the next Gwar". The statement sparked a quickly resolved minifeud between Taylor and Gwar frontman Oderus Urungus. but it also sent many of the Maggots into a tailspin. By early 2003, Taylor had retracted his comments, and announced plans for a new Slipknot album. By August, the entire squad had decamped Iowa for LA, where they began work on the new record with famously bearded producer Rick Rubin. "Pulse of the Maggots" appeared in early 2004 as an exclusive download; it was followed by a full track listing for Vol. 3: [The Subliminal Verses], which was slated for a May release. Slipknot then embarked on a brief tour as a warm-up for their dates headlining Ozzfest that summer. The group also debuted a fully-redesigned third generation of their famous masks. On May 25th, the Subliminal Verses finally dropped, to the usual clamor of great fanfare and furious anger. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide.

Slipknot Personal Fact

Birth Date:
1995


Birth Place:
Des Moines, Iowa, USA


Slipknot are a band that you either love or hate - but you can’t deny that they are one of a kind. With frantic stage shows, band member in masks and boiler suits and three drummers playing different beats - they are awesome live and have brought out tons of songs you can always mosh to!

Slipknot are from Des Moines in Iowa and are Nu-metal. They formed in 1995 and started out writing and playing songs in a basement. They were initially known as Pyg System, but decided to name themselves Slipknot, after their one of the first songs they wrote (a couple of years later they ran into trouble with a knitting magazine with the same name!)

They have had many members of the group (one of which became a Christian and decided that he couldn’t be in the band anymore) but the current membership of the group hasn’t changed since 1999: Sid Wilson, Joey Jordison, Paul Gray, Chris Fehn, Jim Root, Craig Jones, Shawn Crahan, Mick Thomson and Corey Taylor. Instead of using their names in the band, each person is known by a number ranging from 0-8 and is recognised by a specific mask that they wear.

In 1999 the band released their debut album Slipknot which was acclaimed for its intensity and brute force. Their second album Iowa was released in 2001. By then the band had built up a strong base of fans - who were known as maggots.

In 2004 the band released Vol 3: (The Subliminal Verses). Their fourth album will be released in August 2008… Other Clothing can’t wait to hear it!!

As there are many members of Slipknot, there are also many side projects. Corey Taylor and Jim Root were in a band called Stone Sour before they joined Slipknot whilst Joey Jordison was in the Murderdolls. Jordison also stood in for Lars Ulrich when Metallica played Download in 2004.

Due to their huge following the band has a lot of merchandise with clothing for Men & Women.