Stone Sour Biography – 2010
When we last saw Stone Sour, the triple-Grammy nominated group was playing sold-out shows around the planet in support of 2006’s critically acclaimed Come What(ever) May, a sonic blockbuster that entered Billboard’s Top 200 Album Chart at No. 4 and went on to sell more than a half-million copies on the strength of three radio hits, including the No. 1 smash single, “Through Glass.” Billboard hailed the record as “an intense, taut piece of work,” Alternative Press called the group “masters of ass-kicking,” adding,” In a better America, Stone Sour would be the face of American rock,” and Revolver magazine gave the disc four stars and praised the quintet for “demonstrating a dynamic range equaled by few of their peers.”
Four years later, the quintet (vocalist Corey Taylor, guitarists James Root and Josh Rand, bassist Shawn Economaki and drummer Roy Mayorga) have returned with a broadened range, a deepened perspective and the determination to make new album AUDIO SECRECY a multi-layered record free of stylistic limitations. “It’s everything I’ve ever wanted to do on one album,” says Taylor. “It’s heavy, it’s melodic, it’s dark, it’s slow, it’s light and it’s beautiful. You’ll hear something different with each listen.”
The group recorded AUDIO SECRECY with Come What(ever) May producer Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Alice In Chains, Deftones) at Nashville’s Blackbird Studios. When they weren’t working on the album, they spent their free time living in a spook-filled crashpad. “That house put us through hell,” laughs Taylor. “It was really old, so everything was broken down and leaking and infested with wasps and spiders. I’d get lost because there were so many damn rooms. It was like living in the Haunted Mansion at Disney World. It did keep us in the right mood, though, so maybe we should thank it in the liner notes.”
Stone Sour Biography – 2006
“The intensity. The drama. The emotion. The colors. The darkness. The melodies. The anger. The honesty. The drive. The new. All of the above and more.” According to Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor, those are the things that define Stone Sour’s passionately pulsing second album, Come What(ever) May (Roadrunner). Stone Sour’s first album in four years finds the band firing on all cylinders, and primed to capture the attention and the hearts of the rock ‘n roll masses.
Stone Sour’s self-titled debut was twice Grammy-nominated and RIAA Certified Gold. It was an eclectic album, propelled by the band’s busy tour schedule, the contemplative smash single “Bother,” and a series of groovy, melodic metal numbers. In 2002 and 2003, Stone Sour established itself as a multi-faceted hard rock force of nature.
While Taylor is one of the most recognized figures in rock music, thanks to his role as the frontman for Slipknot, a Grammy winning, multi-platinum act, Stone Sour is anything but a side project. It’s a full-time band that all members are fiercely dedicated to. Taylor spent much of 2004 and 2005 supporting his other band, but will spend 2006 and 2007 focusing on Stone Sour and Come What(ever) May. Also comprised by guitarist James Root, who does double duty in Slipknot, bassist Shawn Economaki, guitarist Josh Rand and new drummer Roy Mayorga, Stone Sour is armed with an album that expands beyond the palette of its predecessor. The band was afforded more time to craft songs, and it shows. The album, produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver), is tight, crisp, and full of rowdy rockers and melodic numbers.
Stone Sour Biography – 2002
As intoxicating as the libation it was named after (1 part whiskey and a splash of orange juice and sour mix), Stone Sour is a Molotov cocktail of an album – 1 part pure rock adrenaline with a splash of melody. “We are melodic hard-rock with content and initiative,” explains Stone Sour vocalist Corey Taylor. “Stone Sour allows me to execute the writing style that I love and can’t necessarily do with Slipknot.” While still embracing the heaviness true to the fundamentals of Taylor and Root’s other band, Stone Sour offers a more introspective and intimate take on music, thus the absence of their masks while performing with Stone Sour.
Originally formed in 1992 by Taylor and drummer Joel Ekman, Stone Sour is the product of ten years’ worth of determination, patience and creative expression. Longtime friend of Taylor’s, bassist Shawn Economaki, joined the fold soon after the band’s inception. With no real predetermined sonic direction other than writing good songs, Stone Sour played clubs with a multitude of different guitarists, sometimes having someone fill the spot for just one show. The turning point came in 1995 when guitarist Jim Root – who later joined Slipknot with Corey Taylor – found his way to a practice. This was a defining moment in that it signified the completion of a band as a unit. For five years, Stone Sour generated music for the sheer passion of it not concerning themselves with any particular genre, rather maintaining a sound based upon good hard rock, killer melody and emotional peaks and valleys.
