Joey Jordison

“I'm lucky to have had the opportunity to perform with bands that have influenced me as a musician over the years.”

“I have a ton of Slipknot demos that I have at home. Maybe some day they'll surface; maybe they'll never be heard, but I don't translate them to any other band: they still stay in the Slipknot safe. I won't use them for anyone else besides Slipknot, if that ever happens again.”

“I love listening to old records. Stuff from the '70s, even disco and funk records and a lot of early rock albums - what's great about those recordings is that you can actually hear the true tones of the drums themselves.”

“There was a time when I was beat down, and I lost my way.”

“I'm just as much into Emperor as I am Alice Cooper.”

“I was in band all the way through high school, and I played in jazz competitions all across Iowa.”

“What better to get all the anger and stuff out for what I do in Slipknot than to play the drums? You're punching everything, really fast, concentrated.”

“That's where I learned, basically, all my skills from the drumming that I do - most of my style comes straight from death metal.”

“The heart bleeds music no matter what, and it bleeds different types of music.”

“I'm writing music that people can grasp and hold on to... something that resonates. If you don't have that, then you have nothing.”

“Without Slipknot, I would not necessarily be where I am today.”

“I don't pay attention to critics.”

“On the records that I grew up with and loved, every song was unique - it's almost as if you had a different journey every time - and the drums were big part of that story.”

“Playing drums, for me, is like breathing. It's like thinking. It's like eating. It's like walking.”

“You meet people, and you realize that you can never judge a book by its cover.”

“Slipknot's music is very technical and intense, and it's not easy to play, but that's what makes it special. What's so gratifying about playing a show that is that intense is when you get off the stage, and you know you really delivered at the top of your ability and performance; that is what makes it all worthwhile.”

“There is nothing whatsoever friendly about Slipknot. Corey may have a singing voice, but it's always been done with so much passion that it's always been brutal.”

“I got really, really sick with a horrible disease called transverse myelitis; I lost my legs. I couldn't play anymore. It was a form of multiple sclerosis, which I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.”

“Slipknot is my baby. It is my life. It means everything. Everything I do means the world to me, but when it comes down to it, Slipknot... that's my blood.”

“Always try and play with as many people as possible, even if it's not your style of music, because you will learn a lot.”