Corey described it as "Vol 3 but heavier" and it is indeed exactly that, which doesn't work well for me because I don't like Vol 3 very much. Though if this album has much going for it I still prefer it to Vol 3.
The experimentation on this album is the same thing they did on We Are Not Your Kind but possibly in the opposite direction, and they make the best songs; Adderall and Yen are both pretty nice, Acidic is very good with how it leans into sludge metal, and the songs from H377 onwards are definitely enjoyable. Though when they're just doing what they usually do it doesn't come out as well. Songs like The Dying Song, The Chapeltown Rag and basically all of the middle section just come across as "song we did before but not as good", and if it's just an inferior copy and I can listen to the better songs instead, why bother?
Heirloom is one of the exceptions to this rule, with the lyrics especially making it a great listen. It's my favourite from the album along with Acidic and while the second half of the album is fairly formulaic it's better than the first. A number of songs in the first half are nearly good, but have something holding them back, like Medicine for the Dead having a high-energy chorus but weak verses, or The Chapeltown Rag's already-kind-of-corny anti-internet lyrics being cheapened further by the fact that NFTs were used to promote it, negating its own advice.
Overall the album is essentially middling to me. Some good stuff, some bad stuff, some decent stuff. Maybe next time they shouldn't rush into the studio and come up with everything there, as guitarist Jim Root reported a few days prior to the release. That being said, some of their best work did come from them doing insane things in the studio, so who knows.
The End, So Far (originally titled as The End For Now…) is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Slipknot. It was released on September 30, 2022 through Roadrunner Records. The album is the band's first to feature percussionist Michael Pfaff, who joined the band in 2019, and is the band's final album to be released through Roadrunner, whom the band signed with in 1998.
Available on: Limited Edition Neon Yellow Vinyl.
1. "Adderall" 5:40
2. "The Dying Song (Time to Sing)" 3:23
3. "The Chapeltown Rag" 4:51
4. "Yen" 4:45
5. "Hive Mind" 5:15
6. "Warranty" 3:51
7. "Medicine for the Dead" 6:16
8. "Acidic" 4:50
9. "Heirloom" 3:31
10. "H377" 4:23
11. "De Sade" 5:39
12. "Finale"
"The End For Now..." printed on cover and LPs. Amended title "The End, So Far" written on sticker that was put over the old title.
Printed on Limited Edition Neon Yellow Vinyl.
Tracks are numbered sequentially on release.
Barcode: 0075678637889
Label Code: 075678637834
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side A): 246429M1 / D 10-96162 / 075678637834 - A
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side B): 246429M2 / C 10-96162 / 075678637834 - B
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side C): 246429M3 / C 10-96162 / 075678637834 - C
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side D): 246429M4 / A 10-96162 / 075678637834 - D