Slipknot turntablist Sid Wilson recently opened up about the profound loss of founding drummer Joey Jordison. During an appearance on the “Get On The Bus” podcast, he reflected on their lasting personal connection and offered massive praise for his former bandmate’s unmatched musical abilities.
Jordison passed away in July 2021. Wilson emphasized that despite the drummer’s abrupt exit from the band in late 2013, their friendship remained fully intact until the end.
“He wasn’t in the band anymore at that time… [But] I was still friends with Joey. I always maintained a friendship with Joey, man. I love that guy,” Wilson said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).
Wilson continued: “Yeah, people just choose different lifestyles sometimes, and sometimes that lifestyle’s more important than hanging out with your buds. It sucks. Did it stop us from hanging out? No.”
Addressing the emotional toll of the loss, the musician spoke candidly about the difficulty of understanding another person’s internal struggles.
“Yeah, there’s nothing easy about it, dude. Life’s tough, man. And you either got nerves of steel or you don’t. And sometimes even the guys that got nerves of steel, that shit gets beat down after a while, man. No one can understand it. You can’t understand anything about anybody. You’re not inside anyone else’s skin. If we could get a skin ticket to anybody’s life, then maybe we would understand, but it’s not for me to understand or try to figure it out or whatever. I just have to accept it and know that he was my buddy.”
Shifting to his drumming legacy, Wilson highlighted how industry peers instantly recognized his talent. He recalled a specific endorsement from The Police drummer Stewart Copeland and referenced Jordison‘s legendary fill-in performance for Lars Ulrich during a 2004 Metallica festival gig in the U.K.
“I’ll say this: Joey was the best that ever did it. Hands down. The greatest drummers would come to our shows to watch this guy play. [The Police drummer] Stewart Copeland came and saw us play and said, ‘He’s the one.’ And he was. He was. That dude would hear anybody’s music once and could play it. [Metallica drummer] Lars [Ulrich] didn’t make it to a [Metallica] show once [at a 2004 festival in the U.K.]. We were playing with Metallica. Joey got up there and played the set for him. He could hear anyone’s music once and know how to play it without playing it. He was like that. He was amazing. And he was such a little dude. All that power. It’s ’cause he was so little. He was, like, ‘I’m gonna f**king show you, man. Don’t think I ain’t got it. Don’t think I’m just some little dude, ’cause I’ll f**king tear your face off.’ He was like that. He had something to prove, man. Yeah, he was the best.”
Wilson also took a moment to briefly praise the band’s current percussionist, Eloy Casagrande, who officially joined the roster in 2024.
“And then I’ll say [current Slipknot drummer] Eloy [Casagrande] is a fresh breath of air for us. It hasn’t felt like the beginning until he came along. And I’ll leave it at that.”
Slipknot officially parted ways with Jordison in December 2013, though the drummer later issued a statement clarifying he did not voluntarily quit the group. Prior to his tragic passing, he battled acute transverse myelitis, a severe neurological condition causing spinal cord inflammation that temporarily cost him the use of his legs.
