Photos and Review By Ryan Renger
It was a hardcore homecoming for Corey Taylor last night as he rocked the Horizon Events Center in Des Moines, Iowa. A collection of Slipknot, Stone Sour, and CMFT fans showed up to blow the roof off. This was the final, and best stop, on his Spring tour. The show opened with flames and fury from the circus-style Cherry Bombs. From silhouette masks to firey headdresses, the Bombs gave a performance that was worth the price of admission alone. The audience was captivated by the skill and looks of the group, as well as their musical choices. While getting to watch the show, people sang and headbanged to hits like Rammstein's Du Hast, Mötley Crüe's Live Wire, Godsmack's Bad Religion, and so many more. It truly was a sight to see, and no wonder that Taylor chose to have them open this tour because there is nothing like starting a show with acrobatic acts and intriguing cinematic moments.
As soon as Taylor took the stage, every person inside the venue screamed their heads off. Everyone from babies to boomers were excited to see the patron saint of the Iowa Metal Scene. Before jumping into his opening song, Taylor promised the hometown crowd an amazing show complete with three, yes three, surprises for the night. This brought the anticipation for the night to its head and contributed to the copious amounts of high energy present as Taylor and company ran through the opening track from Taylor's debut solo album, HWY 666. It seems that all of the people that know Taylor from Slipknot and Stone Sour are just as much fans of his solo work because every person knew the lyrics and sang in echo. The band continued to play more tracks from CMFT, along with some B-sides, with renditions of On The Dark Side, Samantha's Gone, and Black Eyes Blue rounding out a fantastic opening to the set. It was at this point that the audience was treated to the first
surprise of the night; Taylor announced to the crowd that he would be releasing the first single from his forthcoming album CMF2. He then played Beyond to an interested crowd, who seemed to enjoy the new material. It is no doubt that Beyond will be a hit when it is released on May 16th. Taylor continued to play another song off the new album, We Are The Rest, which was met with the same great response. Surprise two of the night came in the form of Slipknot, well, Slipknot songs, that is. Taylor discussed that one of the complaints from previous tours was the lack of Slipknot, so to combat that, he put his signature scream on display as the band played Before I Forget. After cleaning house with the headbanging, a stool, and acoustic guitar were brought out. Also brought out was the childish side of the audience as they screamed for the theme from Spongebob. With middle fingers in the air, Taylor obliged and sang the first verse before jumping into an emotional playing of Snuff. Stone Sour infected the next four tracks from the set, including crowd favorites Bother and Through Glass. Finally, it was time for surprise number three. After the conclusion of Duality, Taylor announced a three-song encore that finished the night strong! No matter what band you know Taylor from, his voice is unmistakable, and his performances are always top-notch! He will have a busy year as festival appearances with Slipknot and the release of his second album are on the horizon. Be sure to check Taylor out if he is in a city near you, and check out Beyond, which releases May 16th!
Check out more photos from the night here!
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