“We’ve been through this before and as always, we appreciate the love and support,” percussionist says. “See all of you very soon”
Slipknot’s apocalyptic thunder will be slightly less deafening on their European tour after founding member, percussionist Shawn “Clown” Crahan, announced that he won’t join them. He will instead stay home to take care of his ailing wife.
“I would like to take a moment to tell everyone that I’m back home supporting my wife through some health issues, and I’ll be back on the road as soon as I can,” he wrote in an Instagram post Wednesday. “We’ve been through this before, and as always, we appreciate the love and support. See all of you very soon.”
The band is kicking off the trek in support of last year’s The End, So Far album (one of Rolling Stone’s best metal albums of 2022) on Wednesday in Nickelsdorf, Austria. They have dates scheduled throughout June, ending in Viveiro, Spain, on the 30th. The band did not announce a replacement for Crahan.
Although it’s unclear what the percussionist’s wife’s health issues are, he has previously talked about her ongoing battle with Crohn’s disease, which has forced him to miss dates in the past. “Health is the most important thing you have on this planet if you’re gonna have a successful life,” he said in a 2005 Des Moines Register interview (via Blabbermouth). At the time, he said, “Right now has definitely been the hardest time in my life.”
Slipknot released a surprise new single, “Bone Church,” a few months back that did not appear on The End, So Far. Crahan directed the accompanying music video, “Yen – Director’s Cut (Bone Church).” “‘Bone Church’ started life in a jam room on the .5: The Gray Chapter tour,” Crahan said at the time. “We’ve been bringing it closer and closer to life ever since, and finally, here it is. This one is for the fans – a further vision deeper into Slipknot’s history, which is still being written.”