hibnb: Slipknot Co-Founder Clown Bares His Name for the Soul of Cannabis
He's not the most visible member of the nine-piece multi-platinum metal band, Slipknot. Vocalist Corey Taylor and the band's two guitarists Mick Thomson and Jim Root have a greater presence in concert. And, Shawn "Clown" Crahan isn't even the main drummer. That would be Jay Weinberg, son of Bruce Springsteen's long-time drummer Max Weinberg. On paper, Crahan is one of several songwriters and one of two maniacal percussionists that intensify Slipknot's highly percussive assault.
Yet, when it comes to shot-calling, Crahan is no less important than any of his bandmates. Behind the scenes, he's Slipknot's creative director, a major voice for the group's crazed look and out-of-the-box presentations. For the past 23 years, Crahan has been a key contributor to Slipknot's art designs, photos, and videos, 12 of which he has directed or co-directed. And he's the sole surviving original co-founder (bassist Paul Gray died in 2010 and drummer Joey Jordison passed in 2021).
Since at least the early aughts, Crahan has smoked cannabis to lower his inhibitions and enhance his creative focus. While his band can always be counted on the bring the noise, the plant has helped him shut some out some of the excess stimuli. A little flower, and the all-consuming thoughts that swarm his head like bees around honeycomb slow down a bit, enabling Clown to grasp a concept out of thin air and follow it through to completion. The way the tangents branch and the ideas fork resemble a multi-line subway guide instead of the kind of huge, foldable state highway map you used to be able to buy at local gas stations.
"In my position, I have so many voices, I have artistic schizophrenia," says Clown over a Zoom conference from his home in Palm Springs, California. "I'm constantly developing shapes. As I'm talking to you on Zoom, I’m looking at a reflection on my monitor of palm trees and a mountain through a window. I’m taking it all in, man, multitasking, putting things together. It gave me an idea of doing a Polaroid in reverse here."
That's all well and good. Inspiration and aspiration can yield great art. But sometimes, the creative voice screams too loud. "It's not even the music that's always the problem," he says. "I need my brain silenced from taxes and bills, and I got to have the fucking toilet pumped out or the dryer's broke or the plane leaves at 2 p.m. Or, 'Hey, did you call so and so?' No way, I’m out, man. In order to do what I do, I have to shut the world off and pay attention the way that works for me. And I think that's what everybody requires of me because if I change who I am you're not going to get what I can offer, and I think we're still offering something that is needed, which is a blessing for us in Slipknot, but it’s good for everyone."
So transformed and inspired has Crahan been by cannabis -- musically, mentally, and spiritually -- that he was compelled to enter the marijuana market ten years ago, long before weed was legalized. While he conducted research during this time, he held back from taking any concrete steps since he didn't want to jeopardize the band by becoming a marijuana maverick. But now that weed is almost as legal -- at least in California -- as a good Merlot, Crahan has entered the marketplace with Clown Cannabis, a box of pre-rolls that signal his first toe-dip into a glowing pool he hopes will enlighten and edify fans of the Knot and the flower, alike.