Thursday 29 September 2011

Delight in the 10th anniversary re-release of Iowa

 I awoke this morning to discover that an album I have loved this the moment I heard any song from it is to be re-released to celebrate it's 10th anniversary. I am of course talking about Iowa, the intense, psychologically and emotionally demanding second album from Iowan legends Slipknot. To hear this news is wonderful, as Iowa is probably the least recognised of all of Slipknot's albums and over my long course of listening to the band has gradually evolved into my favourite. Really, a good way to think of Iowa is that in terms of just how into Slipknot you are, this is the album that really separates the men from the boys.
 Iowa is very much the darkest of Slipknot albums and puts the greatest of emphasis on a lot of the slower gentler moments of Slipknot's music. The type of moments I've reffered to in the past as the "suffering moments". These moments generally give off a real sense of despair and tragedy and gives the greatest viewe into the twisted and tortured lyrics of Corey Taylor. Of course as well as this Iowa is also the angriest Slipknot album by far with tracks like I Am Hated and New Abortion wild in intense rapid tear through of bold and intense fury. And of course there's the magnificent People = Shit, the official song I go to whenever feeling pissed off.
 It's the slow suffering songs that really seperates the men from the boys though. When I first heard this album, I could not tolerate the bleak dwindling Gently and of course the horrific fifteen minute epic that is the album's title track. Now I tend to listen with a greater sense of appreciation of the raw emotion thaqt they pack into these slower and bleaker moments. One can really feel the sense of tragedy that the music tries to convey. So it's cool that it's being identified and velebrated like this. Iowa probably shows Slipknot in their truest form.
 The 10th anniversary re-release is also going to contain a remix of My Plague and an extra DVD featuring concert footage and a film directed by percussionist Shawn Crahan filled with unseen footage of the band during the time of Iowa's release. This is awesome. I really appreciate Chrahn's directing of films like these. He can really identify moments that are amusing, serious and shows the kind of journey that the band has had to go through in throughout their musical career.
 So I'm ecstatic and overjoyed that my favourite Slipknot album is being celebrated like this. I think I'm gonna buy it as well.

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