Corey Taylor – CMFB-Sides: Album Review

More fun stuff from Corey Taylor that he doesn’t get to indulge in with Slipknot.

Release Date: 25th February 2022

Label: Roadrunner Records

Format: CD / Digital

Our mate Corey Taylor suddenly pops up with a companion piece to 2020’s CMFT solo album,. CMFB-Sides is a 9 song collection of B-Sides, covers, live tracks, although essentially a continuation of him having a bit of fun with his friends. A vehicle for his vast-ranging musical taste that he doesn’t get to indulge in via Slipknot.

CMFB shows an obvious penchant for the covers – going back to how he and many others, probably started by gathering in the basement and cutting a rug on the toones that they got off on. It’s always enlightening to see an established musician pay tribute to someones else’s songs and there’s an obvious element of fun that goes with simply having a blast with your musical buddies and not having to play a part and live up to expectation.

So we head straight into the Black Album with Metallica’s Holier than Thou – doing a sterling job – it could almost be James and the lads the way Corey doe shis best to sound uncannily like Papa Het. Dead Boys’ All Of This And More has the guys doing their best Sex Pistols organic rock and roll before going all AOR with Eddie Money’s Shakin’. By the time they entertain Kiss’ Got To Choose, you get the impression that Corey and his band could easily throw their gear in the back of the car and head out on an incognito club tour knocking out a low key set of rock covers.

The acoustic guitars come out for a take on Kansas from the CMFT album with some plunky and percussive banjo on the back of a country romp. Red Riders’ Lunatic Fringe is perhaps the pick of the bunch being stripped right back to a raw, bluesy and very lo-fi version and hey – another thought comes to mind with Corey leading off on a new remastered version of unplugged. He would have been prime for a slot on the show back in the day with the potential oozing from this set.

Bringing up the rear is a joyful rendition of John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band’s 1983 On The Dark Side that’s definitely not on the dark side. You’d never guess that this was the guy normally bellowing “People equals shit!” etc, in front of massed thousands. Or even dedicating songs to his wife as he does in the tenderly touching nine minute take on Home (seguing into Stone Sour’s Zzyzx), caressing the piano while adding a soulful vocal. One you may have spotted on YouTube around Valentine’s Day; the one with the comment “this dude is the king of vocal.” Which to be honest, CMFB-Sides confirms that CMFT may well be.

Here’s On The Dark Side:

Corey Taylor: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / YouTube

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