Drummer and songwriter with the heavy metal band Slipknot whose thunderous playing was enhanced by a sense of theatre
Notorious for their ghoulish horror-movie masks and their super-aggressive form of heavy metal, the band Slipknot emerged from Des Moines, Iowa, in 1995. The drummer Joey Jordison, who has died aged 46, had joined the group when it was still known as the Pale Ones, after being invited to attend rehearsals by the bass player Paul Gray. It was Jordison’s suggestion to rename the band Slipknot, after their song of that name.
Jordison remained with Slipknot as they established themselves as one of the pre-eminent exponents of what was dubbed nu-metal, through four platinum-selling studio albums and the in-concert recording 9.0: Live (2005). However, their fanbase was stunned to learn from the band’s website in December 2013 that Jordison had left for personal reasons.