Slipknot have released Arsenal, their first new song in more than three years, alongside a video directed by the band’s percussionist and co-founder M. Shawn “Clown” Crahan.
The video stars actor Jackson White, known for his role in Tell Me Lies. It arrives as Slipknot approach three decades since forming in Iowa and offers the first indication of where the band may be heading after a relatively quiet stretch for new material.
Arsenal runs on tightly compressed riffs, churning electronics and abrupt shifts in pace. Corey Taylor moves between clipped, rhythmic verses and the full-throated vocals that have defined much of Slipknot’s catalogue. The track pulls from metal, punk and hip-hop without softening the band’s attack.
“I fought a fucking god and the god lost,” Taylor declares early in the song. Later, he takes aim at the pressure to keep pace with whatever is current: “I know I’m a hack and a has-been, but motherfucker I’m a .45 and not a Mach 10.”
The performance briefly breaks character when Taylor appears to stop the song and shout at his bandmates before the arrangement crashes back into place. It is a small moment of humour inside an otherwise blunt, heavy track, and it keeps Arsenal from feeling too carefully controlled.
The release follows a period of change within the band. Slipknot parted ways with longtime sampler and keyboardist Craig Jones in 2023, while drummer Jay Weinberg left later that year. Former Sepultura drummer Eloy Casagrande joined the group in 2024.
No album or further release details have been announced. For now, Arsenal stands alone as Slipknot’s first new music since 2023.
Photo by Jonathan Weiner.
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