After a seven month hiatus from my website, I am not sure how to pick-up where I left off. The reason for this post is because last Monday brought sad news to the music world, the Midwest and myself. Paul Gray has passed away, for reasons unknown at this time. Paul was one of the original founders of Slipknot. He had been Slipknot’s only bass player since their inception in 1995. On Monday morning, Paul was found dead in his hotel room in Urbandale, IA. He is survived by his wife Brenna who was expecting their first child at the time of his death. I realize their music is not for everyone, but that doesn’t take away from their talent. Many consider Slipknot the pioneers for new age heavy metal (or nu metal). Really, there is not many other bands that have a 9 person member list, which makes their sound pretty unique. On top of that, their lyrics are powerful, full of emotion and touch on the darker side of some topics that can effect us all. Slipknot’s stage presence is amazing and extremely energetic. Although they have received negative press as using their masks and image to sell records, their intention is actually to draw attention away from themselves so listeners can focus on the music. Everyone deals with life’s difficult times in different ways and Slipknot’s music has been like medication for some of those tough times in my life. Paul will be greatly missed.