If you were to listen to M. Shawn Crahan a.k.a. Clown tell it, Slipknot are very far along in the songwriting process and maybe even almost done? Clown has said he and Jim Root are actively working on Slipknot songs and sending them to Taylor via email. In past interviews, Clown noted there are 27 new song ideas floating and as of the the beginning of November, Clown claims the band have seven or eight songs completed.
This is all news to Corey Taylor. Taylor was interviewed by Full Metal Jackie, who asked if Corey has an update on the songs and he said he hasn't even heard anything:
“I have no idea. I haven’t even heard any of this stuff. In true Slipknot fashion, I’m being told through the press that this is all going on. So it is what it is. I can guarantee you that it’s very creative, I can guarantee you that it’s dark. I can guarantee you that it’s going to be unlike anything I’ve ever heard before. I know [Clown‘s] mind, I know Jim [Root]’s mind. I just am really looking forward to hearing it when I’m allowed to hear it.”
Things are only getting busier for Taylor with his other project, Stone Sour, as he is still committed to at least another year and a half of touring with that band:
“It’s not as difficult as you’d think. By the time that I’m done with one I’m kind of starting to get into the mindset of the other. We still got another year and a half of touring with Stone Sour to do before I even start to feel the twinge of Slipknot but by the time I’m done doing that, I know that I’ll be in the mood to really focus on something a little more – less rock ‘n’ roll and a little more brutal.
I think that’s one of the reasons why I’m so glad that Stone Sour started to go in that hard rock direction, so it really becomes even easier to differentiate between the two. We’ve got a really great rock ‘n’ roll style going on with Stone Sour right now and it allows Slipknot to have that lethal bent — that kind of melodic murder that we kind of do, you know?”
So if he's still got 18 months of touring with Stone Sour, that means it would be AT LEAST two, two and a half years until we get any new Slipknot. Not that we mind the wait, the last thing we would want is the band to rush anything. Art takes time.
UPDATE: Shortly after this story went live, Taylor took to Twitter to complain about "clickbait" news, implying that sites such as ours took his quotes out of context – although, I'm not exactly sure how we did that.
Everybody do me a favor and take these ‘Slipknot’ clickbait ‘news stories’ with a grain of salt. I JUST spoke to the SK guys and I’ll be hearing new music soon.
Fuck these damn sites…— Corey Taylor (@CoreyTaylorRock) November 13, 2017
