Look Outside Your Window is an upcoming studio album recorded by four members of the American band Slipknot. The material was written and recorded concurrently with the sessions for the band's fourth studio album All Hope Is Gone (2008). However, its emphasis on experimentation and a more melodic rock style kept it classified as a separate body of work from Slipknot's aggressive heavy metal sound. The album was scheduled for release during the latter half of the band's We Are Not Your Kind touring cycle, which was delayed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After a three-year delay, vocalist Corey Taylor announced in August 2023 the album will likely be released in 2024. ^[2]

Background and recording

The album originates with the recording sessions for Slipknot's fourth studio album All Hope Is Gone (2008). ^[3] Two separate recording sessions in two separate studios occurred concurrently; the All Hope Is Gone sessions, which included the entirety of the nine-piece band, and the Look Outside Your Window sessions, which only included four band members; Corey Taylor (vocals), Jim Root (guitar), Shawn Crahan (percussion), and Sid Wilson (turntables). ^[3] Crahan noted that the sessions began with himself and Root initially, with Taylor and Wilson coming in shortly later, and it became a group project shared among the four of them, separate from Slipknot, in his eyes. ^{[4] [5]} Taylor noted that, while the band pursued their regular heavy metal sound in the All Hope Is Gone sessions, the members who took part in the Look Outside Your Window sessions took a more experimental approach to the music. ^[3] He described the material as far more melodic than typical Slipknot material, with more of a rock music-vibe, with some more artistic qualities akin to the work of Radiohead. ^[3] Root recalled unconventional approaches in the sessions, including recording the song of a frog croaking, and then building a song around that recording, and having Taylor sing a track from the bottom of a well, making it sound like he was singing in a cavern. ^[5]

Eleven songs were recorded in the sessions. ^{[6] [7]} At one point, Taylor, who loved the music from both sessions, attempted to combine the material from both projects into one collective album, creating what he described as an alternate tracklist/sequencing of All Hope Is Gone containing Look Outside Your Window material intermixed. ^[3] However, due to turmoil within the band at the time, Taylor was unable to find support from any other band members on the endeavor, and he subsequently dropped the idea. ^[3] Only one song from the Look Outside Your Window sessions ended up making it onto All Hope Is Gone; the track "Til We Die" originated from the Look Outside Your Window sessions, and was placed on the All Hope Is Gone special edition as a bonus track. ^[8] Despite the association, Crahan maintains that the album is a "very unique art piece on its own". ^[4]

Root noted the track "My Pain" had originated in the Look Outside Your Windows as well, and was later revisited and reworked onto the Slipknot album We Are Not Your Kind in 2019. ^[9] Additionally, in the 2016 action thriller film Officer Downe, directed by Crahan, in the movie's credits, a song titled "Juliette" is said to be performed by "Look Outside Your Window" and written by Crahan, Taylor, Wilson and Root. ^[10]

Other known song titles are "In Reverse", ^[11] "Dirge" and "Chapter One, the Eleventh March", as well as the working title "Moth". ^[12]

Release and promotion

Crahan and Taylor have mentioned various plans for releasing the material over the years. Crahan noted that they had wanted to release it ever since its creation in 2008, but has had difficulty with figuring out how to time the release without it interfering with other albums or band downtime. ^[4] However, the album is owned by the four, not the label, so they are in charge of its release. ^[4] Plans to release it early in the touring cycle for their We Are Not Your Kind (2019) album arose, though the plans were delayed as to not take away the momentum of said album, which ended up topping the album chart in the US much to Taylor's surprise. ^{[13] [14]} In January 2020, Crahan revealed the album, at one point had an unannounced surprise Christmas 2019 release date, ^[15] but it was delayed again, for undisclosed reasons. ^[16] Crahan noted that there are still plans for it to be released during the latter half of the We Are Not Your Kind touring cycle, ^[17] though the COVID-19 pandemic forced the band to cancel much of their 2020 touring or reschedule for 2021. ^[18] No concrete release date has been given, though publications had predicted a release in 2020 ^[19] or 2021, ^[6] though the album remained unreleased throughout 2022. On January 2, 2023, Crahan spoke about the possibility of the album being released later in 2023. ^[20] Specifically, he noted that they aimed to release it after April 1, 2023, the date that Slipknot would no longer be signed to Roadrunner Records. ^[21] In March of the same year, Taylor, while promoting the upcoming release of his second solo album CMF2, distanced himself from the record, calling it "[Crahan]'s baby" and referring to himself as "guest star" on the album. ^[22] He also noted that he didn't know the track list, didn't have the master tracks, and hoped that the album didn't ever release publicly, fearing that the hype behind the album had created hyped expectations that could never be matched by listeners. ^[22] In December 2023, it was announced that the album was mixed, mastered, with album artwork, and ready for release in 2024. ^[23]

Personnel

• Corey Taylor – vocals
• Jim Root – guitars
• Shawn Crahan – percussion
• Sid Wilson – turntables

References