Band : Slipknot
Album Title : All Hope Is Gone
Label : Roadrunner Records
Distribution : CNR Records – Concreteweb Promotion Office.
Release date : 27/08/2008
Review : CD

“All Hope Is Gone” is the long-awaited fourth studio album from the metal band Slipknot.
It follows four years after the previous studio album “Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)” and it’s the first musical output from the band since Corey Taylor and Jim Root's mainstream success with Stone Sour; Joey Jordison's stints with Korn, Ministry and 3 Inches Of Blood; Shawn Crahan's side project Dirty Little Rabbits; and Sid Wilson's solo project.
The nine members of the band that was formed in 1995 in Des Moines, Iowa, present a more experimental side of Slipknot, with more melodic passages and more elaborated  percussion elements. Even a ballad, like the track “Snuff”, is now part of this renewed Slipknot sound.
Another statement one might utter, is that there are more Stone Sour influences, the other band of singer Corey Taylor and guitar player Jim Root, to be recognized in the Slipknot sound.
Don’t let me be misunderstood: Slipknot isn’t mellow; they achieve to maintain a balance between soft and hard; a diversity that doesn’t affect their intensity and extremity.
And still with a lot of success, because the album “All Hope Is Gone” immediately took the number 1 position in the American charts, and that for the first time in their career.
But rumours are that even though all nine band members were involved in the writing process of the album, the recording sessions didn’t take place without conflict and there was also dissatisfaction with producer Dave Fortman. Apparently, the nine individuals of Slipknot aren’t really a cohesive band anymore and a break-up might be possible after the tour obligations. Wait and see what the future will tell…
But for the time being, we content ourselves with “All Hope Is Gone”, whichcontains 12 songs with a playing time of almost 58 minutes.
Highlights are the ultra-brutal track “Gematria (The Killing Name)”, the second single “Psychosocial”, the third single "Dead Memories", "Butcher’s Hook", the experimental “Gehenna” and the title track and first single “All Hope Is Gone”.
A special edition of the album contains three bonus tracks, and is packaged in a six-fold digipack with a 40-page deluxe booklet and bonus DVD containing a documentary of the album's conception.
Slipknot will play live on stage at the Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam (the Netherlands) on November 20th 2008 and at the Lotto Arena, Antwerp (Belgium) on December 14th 2008. Special guests on that tour are Machine Head and Children Of Bodom.

80/100

Erik.