August 27, 2002 - Stone Sour and Stone Sour

On the same day as my last release a new band joins my library when Stone Sour released their debut album "Stone Sour" on August 27, 2002. But who is Stone Sour? They are a five-piece hard rock/metal band from Des Moines, Iowa and it's two founding members are drummer Joel Ekman and lead singer Corey Taylor! We know Corey as the lead singer for Slipknot, but he was actually in Stone Sour long before he joined Slipknot, as was lead guitarist Jim Root! They are joined by rhythm guitarist Josh Rand and bassist Shawn Economaki and Stone Sour do sometimes play a very heavy style similar to Slipknot. But unlike Slipknot, Stone Sour also has a lighter side to them and Corey Taylor doesn't scream very often on this whole album; he sticks to singing for the large majority. Let's see what Stone Sour is all about!

The album kicks off with it's lead single "Get Inside" and after a super fast and heavy opening they settle into a slower but still plenty heavy main riff with some nice guitars. Taylor sings the verse and sounds pretty solid, but he screams the chorus and he sounds fantastic screaming " motherfucker get inside!" After another solid round Root delivers a short guitar solo that is pretty cool, then it's back to the nice heavy chorus. They end things as they began with a return to the speedy opening riff and this was a pretty cool and pretty apt way to be introduced to Stone Sour! Up next is "Orchids" and Economaki starts us off with a cool bass riff before some heavy guitars join in for a stop-and-start main riff with Taylor singing nicely between the gaps. The chorus riff is pretty bland honestly, but Taylor sounds great mixing in a scream here and there amongst a pretty catchy chorus. They don't stray far from the main drag on this one, which makes it a cool song but definitely not as good as the first one. Track 3 is "Cold Reader" and they dive right into a fast-paced and fairly catchy riff with a little bounce to it and some guest turntables by Slipknot's Sid Wilson, which I definitely approve of! Taylor sings a slightly pop-y but still solid verse that matches the mood nicely, and then they slam into a heavy chorus with Taylor screaming and it's a dramatic and emphatic shift that sounds great! They stick to the main drag once again, but this time it's a way cooler vibe and I don't mind it at all! The next track is "Blotter" and it starts with a recording of a real message that one of the guys left on Corey Taylor's phone and it's really funny. We hese the classic phone operator voice say "message erased", then Economaki starts up a low and dirty bass riff that sounds great. The guitars follow suit and also sound pretty sweet as Taylor sings and screams a pretty sweet verse as well! The chorus is a lot simpler and Taylor sings in a pop-y voice that sounds good but very light. It's quite the contrast between the sweet verse and the simple chorus, but the better side wins out in the end as they end the song fantastically with a heavy new riff with some nice screaming by Taylor. Track 5 is "Choose" and Ekman kicks us off with a really cool drum beat, Economaki follows with another nice, super low bass riff, Rand syncs up with him on rhythm guitar to add some power, then Root completes things with a cool lead guitar riff to make a really cool main riff. Taylor sings a very smooth and accessible verse and chorus and I'm surprised this one wasn't a single as I think it would've done well, it's heavy but very smooth. Up next is "Monolith" and after a trippy intro the rhythm section plays a bit of a trippy backdrop and there's some slow but heavy guitars overtop that make this very different than anything we've heard so far. The chorus is more standard with a solid hard rock riff and Taylor singing solidly along. Root whips out a short but really sweet solo out of nowhere that is incredible and then they nicely and loudly jam out the ending. Track 7 is the third single "Inhale" and it's got sole loud but simple guitars leading the way as Taylor sings a slow verse to match the mood. Most of the song is pretty chill, but when Taylor screams a short part it's easily the best part of the song. The next track was the second single, titled "Bother", and Root leads the way with some cool acoustic guitar and Taylor sings an epic verse overtop as it's just the two of them ar first. They're joined eventually by a whole strings section which gives things a very sad yet epic vibe and this is definitely something you'd never hear on a Slipknot album. They are really nailing this sad, epic vibe on this song and I'm not surprised this was chosen as a single. Track 9 is "Blue Study" and they nicely build up one instrument at a time to form a solid main riff. The chorus is pretty catchy with some cool guitars and some nice background screams and although they largely stick to the main drag it's a decent ride. The finale is definitely the best part where they spice things up with some nice screams by Taylor and some cool drums by Ekman. Up next is "Take A Number" and it's got a slow, distorted main riff with Taylor doing some pop-y "oh whoa-ohhhh" singing. Economaki plays some cool bass in the verse, then things snap into metal gear with a loud new chorus riff and Taylor screaming "let's go!" very heavily! It's an interesting mix of pop and metal and they make it work pretty nicely! Root even delivers a solo, even if it is a pretty tame one. Track 11 is "Idle Hands" and they dive right into a pretty sweet main riff that is groovy and heavy with both Root and Rand playing some nice guitar. Taylor almost talks the verse, but in a super low voice that sounds pretty good. It's a great mix of heavy and catchy in the verse, and the chorus is a little pop-y but still solid. The next track is "Tumult" and it's a rager of a main riff that is really heavy and cool, it's like impossible not to headbang along to! Root leads the way with some fantastic guitar and he's backed by a great, very nu-metal rhythm section. Taylor screams for most of this song and mixes in some singing and that's a wonderful mix for me, he sounds great! After a couple awesome rounds things get quiet, Economaki plays some groovy bass and Taylot whispers a great partz then follows it up with some long epic screams in a fantastic ramp up to the finish! My favourite song on the album for sure! Track 13 is the end of the original version, fittingly titled "Omega", and the whole song is just Corey Taylor talking. He speaks rather quickly at times and it's one hell of a near three minute speech that touches on a whole variety of things. I like the line "government is another way of saying "better than you"" and he has all kinds of interesting quotes in here. It's an interesting way to "close out" an album, but I have the deluxe version of this album, which has a whopping five bonus tracks! Up next is "Rules Of Evidence" and Root leads another heavy and pretty cool main riff. Taylor sings a pop-y verse that sounds decent and then there's two Corey's in the chorus as we hear him simultaneously sing and scream for a solid sound. The song ends with some slow, creepy piano and Taylor creepily laughing for an interesting finish. Track 15 is "The Wicked" and it's got a slow, chugging main riff that sounds pretty good and Taylor matches the mood nicely with a slow singing verse. Things lead into a similar chorus which Corey ends with a nice screaming "yeah!" After a couple rounds Taylor does a bit of a boring "oh oh oh" part, but Economaki plays some cool bass behind him, then they return to jam out a final slow verse and chorus. The next track is "Inside The Cynic" and Root plays some nice fast guitar in this speedy and cool main riff. Ekman plays some cool drums as well and Taylor sings a pretty catchy and cool verse. The chorus is heavy and distorted and Taylor mixes screaming and singing and everything sounds pretty sweet! This is a short song but they pack a lot of cool stuff into it! Track 17 is "Kill Everybody" and after along, quiet intro they finally move into a standard main riff that is heavy and pretty catchy. Taylor sings the first half of the verse, and he yells the second half and the latter sounds epic and cool. The chorus is just Corey screaming the name of the song, and while his voice sounds great it is pretty repetitive. The final song on this long debut album is "Road Hogs" and it's got a slow but groovy main riff with some cool guitars and bass. Taylor sings in a dirty voice that's a little Zakk Wylde-esque and this is definitely something new that I can dig! The lyrics are pretty funny on this one about driving four wheelers down the road and in the swamp, and by the end Corey is just laughing as the album fades to a finish. I thought it was a cool way to wrap things up!

That is the end of "Stone Sour" and I thought it was a solid debut album by Stone Sour. It's certainly nowhere near as heavy or frantic as Slipknot, but it's not meant to be and with a standard metal setup Stone Sour still play lots of cool stuff! It's nice for Corey and Jim to have this outlet for some less crazy songs and Iook forward to more Stone Sour (after some more Slipknot of course!)