In a new interview with The Art And Span Show, SLIPKNOT guitarist Jim Root has shared some more details about the band’s mysterious new member, nicknamed “Tortilla Man.”
“He’s a character. I didn’t really know him very well before he started playing with us. But he’s a hell of a musician.
“The guy is a world-class pianist,” Root adds. “He’s a great percussionist, he’s schooled in music. He’s not just a garage musician who came up and learned on his own. He obviously had natural ability, but he took it to another level and actually got a degree in music.
“So the guy is next level. Plus he’s just out of his mind! I didn’t think it was possible for anybody to match us.
“I’ll be standing there playing and all of a sudden I’ll hear this thump next to me, and he’ll have jumped down from his drum set. He’s next to me and I’m like, ‘You’re insane, dude. Your knees are going to f*cking just be done.’”
Earlier this month, Root said that he is amazed that SLIPKNOT‘s newest member has managed to remain anonymous for this long.
He said: “I’m actually surprised that nobody has sussed out who it is yet, but nobody has. And in this day and age of social media, with phones and cameras everywhere, that’s kinda interesting. I’ve seen the Tortilla Guy hashtag when I’m going through my Instagram and all of that and I think it’s pretty funny.
“It’s weird because I’ve met this guy before, I know who he is, but he’s really kind of elusive, even around our camp. I’ve had some people tell me, ‘Don’t tell us who he is. We’re having fun trying to figure it out!’ So I’m gonna keep my mouth shut about all of that and see what happens. Eventually someday someone’s going to figure it out…”
SLIPKNOT released their sixth studio album, We Are Not Your Kind, on August 9 via Roadrunner Records. Album was once again recorded at a Los Angeles studio with producer Greg Fidelman, who engineered and mixed SLIPKNOT‘s 2004 album “Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)” and helmed 2014’s “.5: The Gray Chapter.”
In March, SLIPKNOT announced the departure with the percussionist Chris Fehn after he filed a lawsuit against his band members over unpaid loyalties.
In his lawsuit, Fehn claims to have always been told that the money from merchandise and touring is funneled through one sole company that splits profits and pays the members of the band. However, Fehn claims he recently discovered that his bandmates have set up several other SLIPKNOT-affiliated business entities in different states that appear to be collecting money from the band.
SLIPKNOT have refused to reveal the identity of the new member, who is replacing Fehn, but some fans on Slipknot Reddit had speculated that Zach Hill is the new percussionist, and said they saw him at Jimmy Kimmel Live.
