To My Surprise

One of the gang of Slipknot side tasks that appeared within the wake from the band’s breakthrough success and alleged dissolution, possibly the most curious was To My Shock. Percussionist Shawn Crahan, aka Clown, started focus on the task in June 2003 with Des Moines homies Brandon Darner (vocals, electric guitar) and Steven Robinson (bass, electric guitar), and finally arrived at an audio totally opposing to his full-time gig, and quite difficult to classify in any way. Needless to say, Rick Rubin was floored with the demos. The famously bearded figurehead offered as executive manufacturer for To My Surprise’s eponymous and eclectic debut, that was released by Roadrunner in Oct 2003. Cross-pollinating psychedelia, introspective pop, and arty, metal-influenced experimentation, it had been clear that there is even more to Crahan than his clown-mask alter ego.