May was certainly a bad month for metal, with 3 big names passing away in the form of legendary front man Ronnie James Dio, and on the same day veteran band manager Debbie Abono who managed the likes of Sepultura, Cynic, Obituary, Exodux, as well as Rob Flyn and Phill Demmel's previous band Vio-lence (both are currently in Machine Head), among many others.

Then, a couple of weeks later... Paul Gray from Slipknot was found dead in a motel room in his hometown, Des Moines, Iowa (U.S.). Which was a complete shocker for me, as I found out the news late that night, and I thought for a second I needed to get sleep fast before I started seeing flying monkeys, but it was 100% legit, and it really sucked, being a Slipknot fan and specially being a die hard fan of their 1999 self titled masterpiece.

Right after the news broke out about Paul passing away, speculations started boiling up everywhere as to whether this is the end for the band or what would be the next logical step.

Any Slipknot diehard would know that Paul was a key element for the band, being one of the founders and main song writers for the masked metal heavyweights, writing some of their heaviest riffs, which makes the bands next step a very sensitive and important one for their future as a leading modern metal band.

Well the silence has been shattered by drummer Joey Jordison who is currently on tour with Rob Zombie.

Joey told Pulse of The Radio:

"There will be no other bass players besides Jim (Root, guitars), Mick (Thomson, guitars) and me, more than likely,"

"Everyone actually kind of plays guitar in the band, so I think we're all gonna play bass on the record. We're not gonna have anyone come in.

But live, we'll deal with that when it comes."

Other members of the band such as Corey Taylor, and Jim Root have only mentioned that it is too early to tell the band's future plans, as the next Slipknot album was originally planned for a 2012 release.

On May 24th, Slipknot's Paul Gray was found dead in a hotel room in his hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. Reason's for his passing have not been determined yet, although a hypodermic needle and pills were found near the 38-year-old bassist.

The rest of the 8 members of the band held a press conference on May 28th to address Paul's passing.

A couple of days ago the band released a tribute video for Gray. Which is a 10 minute interview with the unmasked bassist where he talks about his fellow band members, and how close they were.

The video can be streamed below:

A couple of days ago, SLIPKNOT bassist Paul Gray was found dead, in a local hotel in his hometown of Des Moines, Iowa.

Paul was only 38, and his death came as a surprise to everyone in the metal scene. Even though Paul, had a long history with drug abuse, and that it has in fact blurred him gradually over the years. Many Slipknot fans know that Paul was a key element in the bands line up, and being one of the main song writers/founders in the band, his contributions were vital for Slipknot's sound.

The band held a press conference regarding Paul's passing, which you can stream below:



Many are speculating, that this could be the curtain call for Slipknot, and that the band might ultimately go their separate ways, due to Paul being one of the founders of the band, and while that will make a lot of sense, since Slipknot have not been extremely active since Vol. 3, I still wouldn't throw all the chances of the line up being balanced to suite the situation, maybe shuffle around the members, and have some one else handle bass duties, time will tell, or maybe Corey could be the next Tom Araya? Nah. Too much "Sour" for him to do so.

This month has been a really tough one for Metal, and 2010 has brought us 3 loads of heavy hitters, first it was Peter Steele's passing, then one of the god fathers of heavy metal, Ronnie James Dio, and then one of the leaders in the new age heavy metal scene, Slipknot's Paul Gray.

R.I.P. Paul, your music and legacy will live on.

What the hell!! I can't really write up a long post right now, but this is just too shocking!

It appears that Slipknot bassist Paul Gray (full name Paul Dedrick Gray) was found dead at a local hotel in his hometown of Des Moines, Iowa.

Blabbermouth reports:

"According to the Des Moines Register, Urbandale, Iowa police are investigating the death of SLIPKNOT's bass guitarist at a local hotel. Paul Dedrick Gray, 38, of Johnston was found dead at approximately 10:50 a.m. today by an employee at TownePlace Suites (pictured below), 8800 Northpark Drive, police said.

There was no evidence of foul play, police said. According to KCCI.com, the Polk County Medical Examiner's Office is assisting in the death investigation and will perform an autopsy on Tuesday. Toxicology testing will be completed to determine if there were any contributing factors in the death of Gray, police said. Witnesses reported that items from the hotel room were carried out of the hotel around 2 p.m."

This is seriously a bad month for metal.
R.I.P Paul

(April 8, 1972 – May 24, 2010)

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