A mystery member joined the metal band Slipknot shortly after they announced Craig Jones’ departure from the band after 27 years. The new member whose masked identity isn’t revealed- debuted with the metal band at the Nova Rock Festival in Austria on Wednesday as they began their European tour.
On June 7, Slipknot announced they are parting ways with their spikey-headed sampler and keyboard player Craig Jones, who joined them in 1996. The Instagram announcement post didn’t reveal the reasons behind the Jones departure and was almost immediately removed confusing the fans.
Mystery member joins Slipknot after the sudden departure of Craig Jones
Slipknot posted on their Instagram saying that Craig Jones has left Slipknot
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Metal band Slipknot announced the abrupt departure of Craig Jones with a now-deleted Instagram post stating “To our fans, Slipknot is announcing that we’ve parted ways with Craig Jones. We wish Craig Jones all the best for the future,” as per ABC Audio.
- The announcement shocked their fans due to the long-running rapport of Jones with the metal band. Craig joined Slipknot in 1996 as a guitarist replacing Donnie Steele. He later switched to keyboard and even sampled for a popular band.
- The metal spiked-hair member #5 shared the legacy of the band a year after their debut. He has also featured in all of their albums covers apart from the early full-length demo Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat. Due to this fans couldn’t help but feel shocked about the announcement without any explanation regarding the sudden departure.
The matters became more mysterious after a new member joined the metal band on stage during the Nova Rock Festival in Austria. The band also shared an image through Instagram with a close-up of the masked keyboardist with no caption.
- Shortly thereafter, Slipknot reposted the same image with the caption “Following the announcement of Craig Jones’s departure, Slipknot has shared an image of a new masked person.” Although the band hasn’t confirmed the identity and the position of the person fans are suspecting it is a member who might continue to play with them throughout their ongoing European tour.
Slipknot faced many changes in their member lineup over the past decade
The news of long-time member Craig Jones’ departure from the metal band came on the first day of their European tour and when they are already down a member. Shawn Crahan, popularly known as Clown is setting out on this tour to assist his wife with her health.
- Another longtime member, Chris Fehn, also parted ways with Slipknot in 2019 due to financial disputes. Due to this Michael Pfaff (Whose identity they didn’t reveal until 2022) stepped in as percussionist to fill the space of Fehn. Additionally, the band has gone through many changes in their lineup over the past decade.
- Alessandro Venturella shouldered bass duties after the death of Paul Gray in 2010. Drummer Joey Jordison also parted ways with the Iowa band in 2013 before he passed away in 2021. Following this, Jay Weinberg shouldered the drumming duties.
It will be interesting to see who is the mysterious masked man replacing Craig Jones and what was the reason behind the Jones departure just a day before Slipknot began their European tour. Their next stop is at Rock For People in the Czech Republic.
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