Album Review: Corey Taylor – CMFT

Album dazzles the mind with signature music

Iowa native Corey Taylor is known as the frontman of Slipknot and Stone Sour. When the pandemic struck the U.S. earlier this year, Taylor went to Hideaway Studios in Las Vegas to create new tunes with fellow Stone Sour guitarist Christian Martucci, guitarist  Zach Throne, drummer Dustin Robert and bass guitarist John Christopher. When the five musicians rocked out together, they created the album CMFT. The instrumentation sizzles with vein-shaking guitar riffs, the drum playing smacks the atmosphere with thunderous beats and the vocals fill each composition with a loud and harmonic vocal style. Taylor delivers a successful punch of musical talent on CMFT.

Bluesy “ The Maria Fire” is a tune that consists of deep lyrics. The words “The longer I am away from you, the more I can’t wait/ Just to dance in your ashes and spit on your grave/ The moral of the story is: don’t be surprised/ When you’re burning on the other side” gives an insight of how Taylor is saying goodbye to a previous relationship and he is moving on to better things. Taylor has always been honest with writing and performing music and “The Maria Fire” shows how Taylor is leaving the past behind him because he wants to do something better for himself.

Delicate “Home” displays how talented Taylor is as a musician. At the beginning of this track, the sound of Taylor playing the piano lightens the atmosphere with soft chords that bring a sentimental feeling of wanting to go back home. Also Taylor’s vocals are beautiful because his vocal style serenades the composition with the emotional feeling of seeing your loved ones. “Home” is a well played piece and Taylor shines like a star on this track.

Jamming “Everyone Dies On My Birthday” has great guitar playing by Martucci, Throne and Christopher because each riff shakes the speaker with ear-bleeding noise. Christopher’s bass guitar playing rumbles in the background with vibrating sound and both Martucci and Throne do a great job playing surging guitar notes that can shake the veins of those who are listening.”Everyone Dies On My Birthday” is a great example of how metal and rock music can clash into each other to create amazing sound.

Rockabilly “HWY 666” is one of the creative tunes on CMFT because the style of music constantly changes throughout the song. The musical structure is basic, but the rhythm and tempo is outrageous because the sounds from the instrumentation become faster and bolder through each verse. Another thing that is noticeably pleasing about this track is how there is a different style of rockabilly. The original rockabilly style can be heard at the start of the tune, but as the music progresses, a hard kick of rockabilly shakes the air with a wicked sound. “HWY 666” is an enjoyable piece and people can find themselves tapping their feet to the beat.

Driving “Halfway Down” guitar playing is phenomenal because each note Martucci and Thorne play adds more depth and volume on this piece. In some ways, the guitar playing is the spectacle on the whole composition by how each note intensely sends electricity into the background and the guitar solo toward the end of the tune is filled with extreme talent from Martucci. “Halfway Down” is a blazing piece that shows how strong the band is while performing.

Catchy “Kansas” is a tune that has incredible meaning behind it. The word is referenced to going home and seeing your loved ones. While listening to the song, it does feel like Taylor is stating that he wants to go back to a place where family is everything and love won’t fade away. This piece can influence people to find their “Kansas” because that is where love can be found. This piece is a pleasant tune that can hit the hearts of those who are listening.

Headbanging “CMFT Must Be Stopped” is the funnest song on CMFT by how Taylor wants the world to know that he is not going away anytime soon. The absolutely best part of this tune is when Taylor speaks out the lyrics at a rapid pace. When Taylor speaking the words, his presence can be felt through the speakers while he displays his attitude through his vocal style. “CMFT Must Be Stopped” is a well-played tune that displays how Taylor is not going to slow down anytime soon.

Taylor is a talented musician and CMFT is a great record by how Taylor impacts each track with his strong and authoritative vocals. Fans are in for a treat because Taylor delivers the music they are yearning for.