photo by Jon Wiederhorn

Following a week long hiatus, the Clown is back. Slipknot percussionist and artist Shawn Crahan has dusted off his picture boxes and combed through his gnarled memory to bring us some of his most striking images to date. We begin this week with "After the Show," a shot of a girl with a cigarette that's aglow with color and life. What blows us away isn't her bright blue hair, it's that rough, weatherbeaten hand with chipped black nail polish that makes us wonder if she's been working in a machine shop -- or worse. Click "more" to see the pic and read Clown's comments. Read more...

Here's the second of three batches of photos we've posted over the past six months from Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) for his weekly "The Eye of a Clown" guest photo blog. Click "more" to see all of the photos and read Clown's revealing commentary. Read more...

photo by Jon Wiederhorn

In magic, it's important that the hand be quicker than the eye. The opposite often applies in photography, a medium in which the mind need to anticipate what's coming up before the finger clicks on the the trigger. It's kind of like being a good athlete or surviving on the battlefield. What you see isn't enough, and can often be deceptive. To thrive, it's essential to rely on instinct, experience and an indefinable sixth sense.

In his latest submission to "The Eye of a Clown," Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan chooses a grisly photo to explains how a good shot sometimes comes when you least expect it, and only if you're ready when the image reveals itself. Click "more" to see "Clownhead" and read Crahan's comments. Read more...

photo by Jon Wiederhorn

If you love the experimental inclinations of Slipknot and their affinity for surprising listeners, you should really be familiar with Nashville, Tennessee's Today is the Day. Fronted by eccentric, individualist Steve Austin, the band has been releasing creative, jarring, acrobatic, spiritual, dissonant, disturbing and beautiful music since 1992. At one point, the group featured Mastodon drummer Brann Dailor and guitarist Bill Kelliher (on bass) and, over time, its chaotic constructions have influenced countless groups including The Dillinger Escape Plan, HORSE the Band and Between the Buried and Me.

In many ways, Austin and Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) are kindred spirits, which is why when Crahan sat Austin down for a quick photo, he was able to capture a side of Austin that others often don't see, but which is an integral part of his being. Click "more" to see the picture and hear Clown explain more about the shot. Read more...

What, no dead goat, monstrous face or nightmarish scenario? Has Slipknot percussionist and photographer Shawn Crahan gone soft? Hardly. He's just learning to appreciate the world around him, good and bad, beautiful and hideous. Here, he strays a bit from his normal apocalyptic vision to deliver a gorgeous statue in Australia using a very narrow depth of field. Click more to see "Timeless" and read Clown's comments. Read more...

photo by Jon Wiederhorn

Minneapolis metal band American Head Charge are driven by chaos, destruction and degradation, so it made sense that when the band wanted to schedule a photo session they contacted Slipknot percussionist and photographer Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) to capture their eternal state of disrepair. And in doing so, Crahan was able to figure out what unites them and symbolically represent it in a haunting photo. Click "more" to see the pic and read Clown's comments. Read more...

Maybe looking at new photos by Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) every week has twisted our brains. This week's submission to "The Eye of a Clown" is abstract and creepy. It kind of looks to us like an extreme close-up of an elderly woman burned to death in a fire. Cheery thought. Click "more" to see the image and read Clown's analysis. Read more...

Before we dive into this week's photo entry by Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown), we have a public service announcement for our readers. The debut EP by Crahan's other group, Dirty Little Rabbits, Simon, can be pre-ordered alone for $5.99 or with a band t-shirt for $10.99 by clicking here. The link also contains streaming snippets of all six songs on the EP, which comes out January 27. We now return to our regularly scheduled blog.

Crahan new pic, "All of Life and Death," is abstract and kinda sinister. The image in the center is in the shape of an apple, which may be one reason why the artist refers to the shot as his rendition of "the Garden of Eden." But there's more... Much more. Click "more" to see the pic and read Clown's comments. Read more...

This week, Slipknot percussionist and resident visual artist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) talks about sex, uses the words "vagina" and "nudes" and delivers a photo for "The Eye of a Clown" that's totally rated "G," but sizzles with sensuality -- especially if you're one of those freaks who gets turned on at the playground. Click more to see "Uterus" and read Crahan's revealing comments. Read more...

After weeks of photos featuring dead birds, creepy clowns, scary tattooed dudes and a BMX biker who seems destined to meet his maker, we were a bit surprised when Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) sent us a pretty tame looking shot of something shiny and silver atop a popping pink background. As always, there's more to Clown's pics than meets the eye. Click "more" to see "Pink" and read Crahan's commentary. Read more...