Slipknot is well known for its attention-grabbing image, aggressive style of music, and energetic and chaotic live shows. The band rapidly rose to fame following the release of their eponymous debut album in 1999. The 2001 follow-up album, Iowa, although darker in tone, made the band more popular. After a brief hiatus, Slipknot returned in 2004 with Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses, before going on another hiatus and returning in 2008 with its fourth album, All Hope Is Gone, which debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. After another long hiatus, Slipknot released its fifth studio album, .5: The Gray Chapter, in 2014. Their sixth studio album, We Are Not Your Kind, was released on August 9, 2019. Their seventh studio album, The End, So Far, was released on September 30, 2022. The band has released two live albums titled 9.0: Live and Day of the Gusano: Live in Mexico, a compilation album titled Antennas to Hell, and five live DVDs. The band has sold 30 million records worldwide.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slipknot_(band)
Studio albums
Slipknot (1999)
Iowa (2001)
Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses (2004)
All Hope Is Gone (2008)
.5: The Gray Chapter (2014)
We Are Not Your Kind (2019)
The End, So Far (2022)
07_Slipknot_-_Vol._3__The_Subliminal_Verses_-_Welcome
Slipknot Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I am the product of your conduct
The uncontrollable urges that made me
Have made us all—Are you proud? Do you even care?
You taught us all to lie; that's how we made it here
You should've buried the truth with your secrets
Now, as far as I know, I don't know anything
'Cause you made damn sure I wasn't anything
Distractions, reactions
The only way to go is to go away
Discarded, retarded
Before I let you go, you have to let me
Clawed away from human clay
We are the broken shards; the art disarray
Before you condemn, you rape them
(Feed us meconium)
Stunt our growth from our souls to our throats—Cut!
You shouldn't wall us up with your apathy
But you did; now you're only growing enemies
This is the catalyst, the alpha, the first breed
'Cause you made damn sure
Now we're everything
Distractions, reactions
The only way to go is to go away
Discarded, retarded
Before I let you go, you have to let me
Much to my surprise, I will wake up
And follow the path of the ones I am made of
But this time, I won't give in
I will save you from my sins
(What is wrong with this manipulation, violence, chaotic?)
Ensconced in all that's wrong
I slam you shut; I can only take so much
How many times do I have to mistreat you?
Constantly biting my hand as I feed you
Maybe now you'll understand severity
I'll sum it up with the best amount of brevity
Welcome to the transformation
Welcome to annihilation
Welcome to the man that wanted
Everything, but couldn't have it
In "Welcome" by Slipknot, the singer voices their long-standing frustration towards a society that is flawed, covering it with a facade of pretense. The singer lays blame on those in power for the artificiality of their world. They aptly identify themselves as a product of society's conduct, highlighting the inevitable influence such an environment creates; however, they go on to question if those in power, the ones who created this world, even care about the broken people inhabiting it. They were taught to lie, and so they did what they had to do to survive.
The lyrics in the second verse reflect on how by perpetuating these lies, the powerful maintain control over those beneath them, resulting in even more disarray. The line "Before you condemn, you rape them" mirrors how those in power take advantage of these broken individuals, using them until there's nothing left. The chorus that follows talks about how the only way forward is to leave this behind and to grow. The singer recognizes their faults but is hellbent on not giving into them ever again. They see themselves as irrevocably destined to follow in the footsteps of those who came before them, yet they vow not to repeat their mistakes. In the final verse, the singer takes on a more aggressive tone, stating that they will institute lasting changes and make sure others understand the severity of the situation that created these circumstances in the first place.
Line by Line Meaning
I am the product of your conduct
I am a result of your actions
The uncontrollable urges that made me
The urges that you couldn't control are the reason for my existence
Have made us all—Are you proud? Do you even care?
Your actions have affected all of us. Are you happy about it? Do you even care?
You taught us all to lie; that's how we made it here
You taught us to lie in order to succeed
You should've buried the truth with your secrets
You should have kept the truth hidden by keeping your secrets to yourself
But you were far too impressed with your pretense
But you were too focused on pretending to be something you're not
Now, as far as I know, I don't know anything
Now, I'm not sure about what I know
'Cause you made damn sure I wasn't anything
Because of you, I feel like I'm nothing
Distractions, reactions
Distractions and reactions are the only way to move forward
The only way to go is to go away
The best way to move on is to move away
Discarded, retarded
We've been abandoned and left behind
Before I let you go, you have to let me
I won't let you go until you let me go
Clawed away from human clay
We have been removed from the norm
We are the broken shards; the art disarray
We are the result of the chaos and destruction caused by others
Before you condemn, you rape them
Before you judge others, you take advantage of them
(Feed us meconium)
Feed us shit and expect us to grow from it
Stunt our growth from our souls to our throats—Cut!
You've hindered our growth not only mentally, but physically as well
You shouldn't wall us up with your apathy
You shouldn't shut us out with your indifference
But you did; now you're only growing enemies
But you did, and now we resent you
This is the catalyst, the alpha, the first breed
This is the starting point, the beginning
'Cause you made damn sure
Because of you
Now we're everything
We are now everything you didn't want us to be
Much to my surprise, I will wake up
Surprisingly, I will awaken
And follow the path of the ones I am made of
And follow the path of those who made me
But this time, I won't give in
But this time, I won't succumb
I will save you from my sins
I will save you from the consequences of my actions
(What is wrong with this manipulation, violence, chaotic?)
What is the problem with manipulation, violence, and chaos?
Ensconced in all that's wrong
Trapped in everything that's bad
I slam you shut; I can only take so much
I'm at my limit, and I'm closing myself off to you
How many times do I have to mistreat you?
How many times do I have to hurt you?
Constantly biting my hand as I feed you
You're ungrateful no matter how much I give you
Maybe now you'll understand severity
Perhaps now you'll realize the gravity of the situation
I'll sum it up with the best amount of brevity
I'll explain it in the most concise way possible
Welcome to the transformation
Welcome to the process of changing
Welcome to annihilation
Welcome to total destruction
Welcome to the man that wanted
Welcome to the man who desired
Everything, but couldn't have it
Everything that he couldn't attain
Contributed by Tristan A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
James Smith
on Snuff
This song helped me cope with a heartbreak and it was not until then that I felt the same pain as Corey Taylor