Nero Forte

Album: We Are Not Your Kind (2019)
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Songfacts®:

  • One of the more experimental numbers on We Are Not Your Kind, this percussive song was originally composed by Slipknot drummer Shawn "Clown" Crahan. The band then all dived in.

    Vocalist Corey Taylor's contribution was especially significant for guitarist Jim Root. He told Kerrang: "He came up with this extra melody in the chorus line, very late into the process. That really drew me into this song."
  • We Are Not Your Kind was written while Corey Taylor was battling depression; here, he addresses the despair he was battling, which he felt was bleeding him dry.
  • "Nero" and "Forte" are both Italian words that mean "black" and "strong" respectively. "Forte" can also mean something in which you excel. Though the song title does not appear in the lyrics, it describes the darkness that Taylor sunk into. The depression was like an entity that he didn't feel he had the strength to fight against.
  • The song features Corey Taylor singing falsetto for the first time in Slipknot's two-decade career. Crahan told Apple Music: "Talk about evolution and still taking chances, and just loving music. It's like hitting the beach running for your life."
  • The song's music video was filmed in late October 2019 and directed by Clown. The brightly colorful visual features the band delivering an intense performance on a small MGM soundstage wearing their signature masks.
  • Slipknot debuted live both this song and "Birth of the Cruel" when they kicked off their European tour in Dublin, Ireland on January 14, 2020.
  • Pollution is a surreal short film directed by Clown, which centers round the music video for "Nero Forte." The 20-minute flick sees the Slipknot percussionist presenting a series of various random nightmare-ish images, which eventually segue into the "Nero Forte" performance clip.

    Said Clown: "I set out to make a short film that makes you question your own existence, here in this reality. When you lay down in your bed, next to the one you love, do you ever ask yourself - is it possible that this person could slit my throat while I'm sleeping? Enjoy. Pollution is everywhere."

Comments: 2

  • Paul from New York Nero, as in the roman emperor. Forte, a thing which someone excels at. Nero Forte = Madness is your thing. :D
  • Ian Thain from Brighton Uk Oh my arse is upside down,
    All my farts won't help me now.
see more comments

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