Sulfur (song)
Encyclopedia
"Sulfur" is a song by American heavy metal
band Slipknot
, and is the fourth single from the band's fourth album All Hope Is Gone. The single was released on June 15, 2009, a music video for the single was released on April 18, 2009. It was the last Slipknot music video to feature bassist Paul Gray, who was found dead on May 24, 2010.
The song, along with "Duality
" and "Psychosocial
", was available for DLC in Rock Band
on December 8, 2009.
area. It was co-directed by percussionist Shawn Crahan and P. R. Brown
making it the third time he has worked with Slipknot on a music video. On April 14, 2009 Slipknot released a thirty-second preview of the video through MTV
and announced that the music video would be premiered on Headbangers Ball
on April 18, 2009.
The video depicts the nine members of Slipknot playing in groups of three as well as footage of each individual member submerged underwater. Percussionist and co-director Crahan explained that when he tries to write treatments for their music videos he always thinks, "What has Slipknot not done? What can we embark upon that will be fun and knowledge-enhancing instead of the same old song and dance?", saying that the members themselves are the treatment for this video. This further shows that they always try to give their fans as much of themselves as they can even although they are tired of live performances, revealing that in order to change things up they shot the members performing in groups of three. The concept of the band members appearing individually underwater was modeled after a video installation entitled "Ascension" by video art
ist Bill Viola
. Crahan explained that the smell of sulfur
is "something people either love or hate, and if you hate it, then it can be suffocating", so they incorporated water as a visual representation of this. He also went on to reveal that the members felt more uncomfortable when shooting in an eleven-foot glass tank, explaining, "you had to go up this really weird ladder and the water was dirty and it was a five-foot by five-foot tank and it looked like when you stepped into it you were gonna hit your head on the frame that holds the glass and it would just rip your nose off", but he went on to say that it was his favorite video so far "because it involved that fear." Chris Fehn expressed some anxiety about the jump and Taylor was at one point "impaled" by one of Craig Jones' spikes.
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Slipknot
Slipknot (band)
Slipknot is an American heavy metal band from Des Moines, Iowa. Formed in 1995, the group was founded by percussionist Shawn Crahan and bassist Paul Gray...
, and is the fourth single from the band's fourth album All Hope Is Gone. The single was released on June 15, 2009, a music video for the single was released on April 18, 2009. It was the last Slipknot music video to feature bassist Paul Gray, who was found dead on May 24, 2010.
The song, along with "Duality
Duality (song)
"Duality" is a song by the American heavy metal band Slipknot, the song was released as the first single from their third album Vol. 3: , released in 2004...
" and "Psychosocial
Psychosocial (song)
"Psychosocial" is a song by American heavy metal band Slipknot. It is released as the second single and fourth track from their fourth studio album, All Hope Is Gone. The song entered airplay on June 26, 2008 and was originally planned for release as a digital single on July 1 but was delayed and...
", was available for DLC in Rock Band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
on December 8, 2009.
Music video
The music video for the song was filmed on March 9, 2009 (just two days before the end of their American tour) in the Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
area. It was co-directed by percussionist Shawn Crahan and P. R. Brown
P. R. Brown
Paul R. Brown is a graphic designer, photographer, and music video director.In 1996 he founded Bau-da Design Lab, which currently operates out of Los Angeles and New York. P.R. Brown is well-known for his album designs for musicians such as Mötley Crüe, Korn, Godsmack, and early in his career he...
making it the third time he has worked with Slipknot on a music video. On April 14, 2009 Slipknot released a thirty-second preview of the video through MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and announced that the music video would be premiered on Headbangers Ball
Headbangers Ball
Headbangers Ball is a music television program consisting of heavy metal music videos airing on MTV2, MTV Australia, MTV Two , MTV Adria , MTV Brand New, MTV Portugal, MTV Finland, MTV Arabia, MTV Norway, MTV Sweden, MTV Denmark, MTV Greece, MTV Türkiye, MTV...
on April 18, 2009.
The video depicts the nine members of Slipknot playing in groups of three as well as footage of each individual member submerged underwater. Percussionist and co-director Crahan explained that when he tries to write treatments for their music videos he always thinks, "What has Slipknot not done? What can we embark upon that will be fun and knowledge-enhancing instead of the same old song and dance?", saying that the members themselves are the treatment for this video. This further shows that they always try to give their fans as much of themselves as they can even although they are tired of live performances, revealing that in order to change things up they shot the members performing in groups of three. The concept of the band members appearing individually underwater was modeled after a video installation entitled "Ascension" by video art
Video art
Video art is a type of art which relies on moving pictures and comprises video and/or audio data. . Video art came into existence during the 1960s and 1970s, is still widely practiced and has given rise to the widespread use of video installations...
ist Bill Viola
Bill Viola
Bill Viola is a contemporary video artist. He is considered a leading figure in the generation of artists whose artistic expression depends upon electronic, sound, and image technology in New Media...
. Crahan explained that the smell of sulfur
Sulfur
Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element with atomic number 16. In the periodic table it is represented by the symbol S. It is an abundant, multivalent non-metal. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with chemical formula S8. Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow...
is "something people either love or hate, and if you hate it, then it can be suffocating", so they incorporated water as a visual representation of this. He also went on to reveal that the members felt more uncomfortable when shooting in an eleven-foot glass tank, explaining, "you had to go up this really weird ladder and the water was dirty and it was a five-foot by five-foot tank and it looked like when you stepped into it you were gonna hit your head on the frame that holds the glass and it would just rip your nose off", but he went on to say that it was his favorite video so far "because it involved that fear." Chris Fehn expressed some anxiety about the jump and Taylor was at one point "impaled" by one of Craig Jones' spikes.
Personnel
- (#8) Corey TaylorCorey TaylorCorey Todd Taylor sometimes known by the number 8, is an American musician best known as the lead vocalist and lyricist of Slipknot and Stone Sour. Taylor was raised by his single mother. He developed a fond feeling toward classic rock after his grandmother introduced him to it...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - (#7) Mick Thomson – guitarsElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- (#4) Jim RootJim RootJames Donald "Jim" Root , also known by his number #4, is an American musician known for being the rhythm/lead guitarist of the heavy metal band, Slipknot, and the lead guitarist for rock band, Stone Sour...
– guitars - (#2) Paul GrayPaul Gray (Slipknot)Paul Dedrick Gray also known as The Pig or by his number #2 was an American musician, best known as the bassist, primary songwriter and one of the founding members of the Grammy Award-winning metal band Slipknot....
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - (#1) Joey JordisonJoey JordisonJoey Jordison , is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his work as the drummer for the nu metal band Slipknot. He grew up in Waukee, Iowa with his parents and two sisters, and was given his first drum kit at the age of 8...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - (#6) Shawn Crahan – custom percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, backing vocals, directorMusic video directorA music video director is driven by a given music track. These are called music videos and are then used as promotional tools for popular music singles... - (#3) Chris FehnChris FehnChristopher Michael "Chris" Fehn , or known by his number #3, is an American musician known as one of the two custom percussionists of the Grammy Award winning nu metal band Slipknot and is the current bassist for the band Will Haven.-Personal life and career:Fehn was born and raised in Des Moines,...
– custom percussion, backing vocals - (#0) Sid WilsonSid WilsonSidney George Wilson also known as Ratboy or DJ Sid, #0 , is an American disc jockey known as the turntablist of the Grammy Award winning band Slipknot. He is the youngest member of the band.-Biography:...
– turntablesTurntablismTurntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating music using phonograph turntables and a DJ mixer.The word 'turntablist' was coined in 1995 by DJ Babu to describe the difference between a DJ who just plays records, and one who performs by touching and moving the records, stylus and mixer...
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - (#5) Craig Jones – samplesSampler (musical instrument)A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...
, mediaSampling (music)In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
- Dave FortmanDave FortmanDave Fortman is the guitarist for the band Ugly Kid Joe. He currently is an American music producer. He has worked with bands such as Superjoint Ritual, Watership Down, Eyehategod, Mudvayne, Otep, Slipknot on their new fourth studio album titled All Hope Is Gone, and Simple Plan, as well as on both...
– producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Jeremy Parker – engineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- Colin RichardsonColin RichardsonColin Richardson is a British record producer, mixer and recording engineer. He has worked on over 100 albums, and is most frequently associated with heavy metal and its subgenres such as:*Anathema*As I Lay Dying*Behemoth*Bullet for My Valentine...
– mixerAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may... - Matt Hyde – mix engineering
- Oli Wright – assistant engineering
- Ted JensenTed JensenTed Jensen is an American recording engineer. Jensen is the chief mastering engineer at Sterling Sound. He started his career as a mastering engineer in 1976 and is currently the most active Mastering Engineer in the industry...
– masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced... - P. R. BrownP. R. BrownPaul R. Brown is a graphic designer, photographer, and music video director.In 1996 he founded Bau-da Design Lab, which currently operates out of Los Angeles and New York. P.R. Brown is well-known for his album designs for musicians such as Mötley Crüe, Korn, Godsmack, and early in his career he...
- director