Slipknot percussionist M. Shawn "Clown" Crahan has opened up about the departure of drummer Jay Weinberg for the first time.
In an interview with NME, Clown says, "As far as Jay goes, what people need to know is Jay did not leave the band, and what I want to say is that we're moving on."
Slipknot announced in November that they'd made a "creative decision" to part ways with Weinberg, who'd been the band's drummer for the last decade. Weinberg later shared that he was "blindsided" and "heartbroken" to receive the news.
"Like the statement said, we’re choosing to do something different," Clown now says. "This space that we're at right now is a very, very special space, thought about and generated mostly by the OGs."
Indeed, Slipknot recently announced a 2024 tour to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their 1999 self-titled debut album, which they will be playing in full during each show.
Elsewhere in the interview, Clown says that the long-teased lost Slipknot album Look Outside Your Window will finally be released in 2024.
"It's definitely arriving next year," he says. "You have my word. The art's been done. It's been mixed. It's been mastered. It is definitely coming out in 2024 and it's such a great album."