“I thought for sure that I broke the hell out of it, but my tech just retuned it and I finished the show with the same guitar”
(Image credit: Future)
With the sheer level of energy present at Slipknot's live shows, it's no surprise the band have, on occasion, taken the stage antics to the extremes. Hell, DJ Sid Wilson launching himself off drum risers has become a regular part of the band's routine.
And now, to add to the catalog of the Iowa troupe's WTF stage moments, guitarist Jim Root has recalled the time he threw a Fender Telecaster at ex-drummer Joey Jordison like a spear.
In a new interview with Total Guitar, Root explains: “We were shooting a video for Disasterpiece, and for some reason I was mad at Joey Jordison and heaved my Tele at him like a spear. I threw it probably 20 feet.
“I thought for sure that I broke the hell out of it, but the only thing wrong was an imprint of his drum riser at the very end of the headstock. My tech just retuned it and I finished the show with the same guitar.”
Of course, Teles have long been known for their hardiness, but if they can survive a hurl from a Slipknot axe-slinger, we'd wager there's not much they can't withstand.
(Image credit: Katja Ogrin/Redferns)
Root also explains how a punk-rock mindset led him to adopt a Tele in Slipknot.
“Growing up in the '80s I was really enamored by the imagery of Fender-style guitars. On the cover of Long After Dark, Tom Petty is holding a Tele, and it’s just such an iconic image to me.
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“In the early days of Slipknot, everything was like ‘molten metal god’ and big pointy guitars – BC Rich Warlocks and Ironbirds. I wanted to do the absolute opposite. Maybe it’s a bit of an indignant punk-rock attitude, like, ‘Screw you and your metal guitars – I’m going to play this Tele!’”
Total Guitar's April 2021 issue dives deep into the world of the Fender Telecaster, and features all-new interviews with the likes of Johnny Marr, Francis Rossi, and Jason Isbell, to name a few.
Sam was Staff Writer at GuitarWorld.com from 2019 to 2023, and also created content for Total Guitar, Guitarist and Guitar Player. He has well over 15 years of guitar playing under his belt, as well as a degree in Music Technology (Mixing and Mastering). He's a metalhead through and through, but has a thorough appreciation for all genres of music. In his spare time, Sam creates point-of-view guitar lesson videos on YouTube under the name Sightline Guitar.
