There’s one term, I think, that’s run its course for far too long- “sellout.” You hear it all the time. It doesn’t matter the medium in which the word is used. To me, this term is as irksome as nails on a chalkboard.

I bring this term up because fanbases from all over have been uttering the word “sellout” across various platforms of Slipknot’s “The End, So Far.”

Sure, you have to give this album a listen or two to it let it sink in and possibly grow on you, but they’re far from selling out. Although this is their final studio album under the Roadrunner Records banner, they leave their label with a bang.

Let’s begin with the opener of their seventh studio album, “Adderall.” This song strips down their nu-metal sound and creates a more ear-pleasant delight.

It reminds me of some of David Bowie’s earliest discography. It’s raw, and it’s nice to hear Corey Taylor sing in that lullaby style similar to his other side project/band, Stone Sour.

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the guttural growls and mid-range screams Taylor is known for, which you hear a lot of in “The End, So Far,” but it’s a nice gesture to be introduced to his serene singing as you first hear this album.

Then, on the opposite end of “Adderall,” you have “The Chapeltown Rag,” which goes back to the fundamental roots of Slipknot. It felt like they were revisiting the heaviness they once generated off their second studio album, “Iowa.”

“The Chapeltown Rag” was the first song off this record the band released to the public back in February.

Other tracks off this album include “Yen,” which starts with Taylor showcasing his 5-and-a-half octave range before the guitars and turntables come to blows to intensify the antithetical velvet richness of Taylor’s voice.

“Hivemind” charts the renowned thumpadumpa skills of percussionist Shawn “Clown” Crahan. Additionally, “Medicine For The Dead” projects the spooky yet uneasy vibes bands like Tool have made millions off doing.

It seems they were sandwiching genres of nu-metal, heavy metal, grunge, jazz, and prog into this mystical recording. Indeed, there’s something for everyone off this 12-song list.

Sure, Slipknot’s preceding album “We Are Not Your Kind” in 2019 felt like the band never lost their beat, especially since “5: The Gray Chapter” came out five years prior. But, if truth be told,

Slipknot never lost their nu metal footing in the first place. After 27 years of headbanging anthems, Slipknot’s essence and origins haven’t changed.

They’re allowing for experimentation, which is necessary to evolve with the times. There’s no such thing as stagnant composition in music. Slipknot encaptures all their capabilities and then some with their final record under Roadrunner with “The End, So Far.”

Brie Coder is a graduate student in communication and leadership. She can be reached at [email protected] or 217-581-2812.