Stone Sour don't play it safe on their fourth offering, House of Gold & Bones — Parts 1 & 2. It is a collection of 23 tracks that follow an immersive, linear storyline. Part 1 – the first 11 songs – was released on October 23, 2012. Part 2 will be released this year, completing the story. The songs set the tone and follow the action, but House of Gold & Bones is a multimedia experience. Videos, an online presence, album packaging, the live show and even a graphic novel will all follow and expand on the story. It's a lofty undertaking, but Stone Sour have never shied away from a challenge. With them, it's par for the course.
The gold-selling Iowa hard rock outfit has sold over four million albums worldwide over the course of three full-length releases. Their self-titled debut and sophomore effort Come What(ever) May both exceeded Gold status, while 2010's Audio Secrecy debuted at #6 on the Billboard Top 200. Their arsenal includes number one singles such as "Through Glass," "Say You'll Haunt Me" and "Bother," and three Grammy Award nominations. Given those accomplishments, it'd be easy for the band—Corey Taylor [Vocals], James Root [Guitar], Josh Rand [Guitar], and Roy Mayorga [Drums]—to tread the same ground with very successful results. But they completely flip the globe on its axis this time around.
The band began pushing boundaries as soon as they entered Soundfarm Studios in Jamaica, Iowa with producer David Bottrill [Tool, Muse, Staind] in early 2012. After he and Root finished up on the road with Slipknot, Taylor holed himself up at home and recorded 15 demos, also penning the story of House of Gold & Bones during an extremely creative spell. The musicians worked out a skeleton for the songs so they could collectively begin the recording process with a clear and direct vision.
Rand leaves off, "There's a thrill in doing something completely unpredictable. This is our next evolution." "It's not just another level," concludes Taylor. "It's a different level. We're looking at everything from a three-dimensional standpoint. House of Gold & Bones feels ready to explode."
