How did you all find each other when you were growing up?

We were all in different bands, playing this one club on Sundays at all ages shows. All of those individual bands started breaking up and we started this one. We were all friends already.

Are the masks always on in the public eye?

Yeah, always. We don’t do pictures without the masks. We’re not really worried about people knowing our identities, but it should be about the music, not our faces.

Is it ever a pain in the ass to write separate parts for nine people?

Actually, it’s easy most of the time since there’s always a lot of ideas. Everyone brings their thoughts to the table and they eventually get put together. It’s nine different ways of thinking of one song. It’s natural for us.

You’ve been quoted on saying that you don’t want to send out any positive message, or tell anyone how to act. What kind of message do you want to send out?

Well, we’re not some super-political group. It’s just about doing your own thing. We’re not preaching anything to our fans.

What was high school like for you?

High school was pretty lame. I got kicked out of regular high school and had to go to continuation school. It was pretty easy because I got to leave at around noon and if I didn’t feel like doing anything, I didn’t do it.

Were you into music back then?

Actually yeah, I had a guitar that I started playing in high school.

Your video for “Spit It Out” has lots of scenes in it that were obviously copied straight from Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining.” Have his dark films influenced your music?

Not him specifically, but the movie has always been important. We all grew up watching it. When we came to an idea for doing a video, it felt like the natural thing. What other band would be able to play everyone in the friggin’ movie? We’ve got nine people! We loved the movie so much, we decided it would be the right thing for us to do.

You’ve said that you believe that popular music has taken a turn for the worse lately. What do you feel would be “success” for Slipknot?

I don’t know. We have new goals everyday. We’re just playing, meeting kids, and doing our thing. Eventually, we’ll have world domination, but for now, we’re just taking it one step at a time.