Slipknot guitarist Jim Root says the band's upcoming studio album will not be a return to nu metal, despite the genre's recent resurgence among younger audiences. Speaking on the Ride Bynd podcast, Root also shared new details about the songwriting process behind the follow-up to The End, So Far, explaining how the arrival of Eloy Casagrande has reshaped the band's creative approach.
Reflecting on nu metal's renewed popularity through platforms such as TikTok and the broader Y2K revival, Root acknowledged that musical trends naturally move in cycles, but emphasized that Slipknot's new material is heading in a different direction.
"That happens. It's like fashion or movies—everything has a cycle. The new stuff we're writing doesn't sound like that at all. There are elements of it because we write the way we write, but you're not going to hear a nu metal record from Slipknot."
Root also questioned the label that has followed the band throughout much of its career.
"I don't know that we've ever been nu metal. We just came out at a time when nu metal was happening, so we got lumped into that category. Later people put us in the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. To me, we're just Slipknot."
According to the guitarist, the band's music draws from so many different influences that it has developed an identity beyond conventional genre classifications.
Root also confirmed that Slipknot is currently working with producer Matt Wallace, revealing that the new material is unlike anything the band has previously written.
"Sometimes we sit back and listen to what we've just created and think, 'This sounds like nothing I've ever heard before, yet it feels strangely familiar.' It's incredibly organic. It just sounds like Slipknot."
One of the biggest creative changes has come from the addition of drummer Eloy Casagrande. Instead of building songs from programmed demos, the band is spending hours improvising together in rehearsal, allowing ideas to develop naturally.
Root explained that while the band jams, percussionist Shawn "Clown" Crahan listens alongside producer Matt Wallace, identifying key sections that later become verses, choruses, or bridges before arranging the songs.
