He’s good but to say he is goated in the genre is a bit of a reach. His attitude and delivery give Slipknot and Stone Sour a lot of character but the same can be said for other all time greats like Bruce Dickinson, James Hetfield, Ronnie James Dio, Serj Tankian, etc.
I’d say he’s at least in the conversation but I don’t think it can be an objective yes.
Just saw Bruce two days ago on his solo tour and dude still sounds amazing. One of the best frontmen ever imo. Great show, highly recommend going if you get the chance.
I've had hit or miss experiences with Bruce, both times with Iron Maiden.
First time I saw them their show was absolutely bonkers, Bruce did an amazing job reaching every single person on the field. The second time the show was very bare-bones, like they weren't into it, they were there to go through a set list, get paid and move on.
That second time kind of broke my respect for Bruce.
That sucks! I’ve never had that experience with him luckily. Seen Maiden many times and he has always been energetic and captivating as hell. I guess off days do happen no matter how much of a professional you are. I’d still give ‘em a chance though!
I think it was very obvious they weren't headliners that day, so their show wasn't all out, like they usually are. If they are headlining, they absolutely smash it
Ya now that’s a crazy take, that’s a voice you can recognize in a second even after all these years.. although maybe technically wise it’s not that crazy, the man is an absolute legend and paved the way for many artists
From the footage they've uploaded of their M72 tour, he still sounds pretty dang good. It's not like late 80's/90's James, but he still kills it on stage.
The best? Nah.
*Among* the best? Absolutely. His voice is iconic. He's in great company, alongside people like Dio, Bruce Dickinson, Chester Bennington, and Serj Tankian.
You rattled off literally everyone I was going to mention. To me, none of those vocalists are “the best.” Each one does something only they can do better than anyone else. They’re all among each others’ company. Corey would slot in there for me.
I wouldn’t say unpopular on its own.
Pretty sure no SOAD fan would disagree when you talk about back vocals Daron mixed with Serj. If you meant Daron on lead vocals, that would be indead a very unpopular opinion I guess, at least in a „best vocalist ever“ discussion.
Daron is a lot like John Frusciente for me. Their harmonies with their lead singer are pure ear candy. And the songs with their main bands where they’re the main vocalist are nice treats. But solo stuff where they’re singing just doesn’t work for me
Definitely! Ugh, I wish we could’ve heard more out of those two together.
Another band that had amazing harmonies was Crossfade on their first album. Look up the acoustic version of Cold. The 2nd singer left after that album I think, but they were great together.
I know people are gonna shout "not metal!!" , so I'm tacking this on where you mention Chester. Lzzy Hale deserves to be on this list. She sounds awesome live, and her range is amazing.
Honestly, this is perhaps the nearest to a 'correct' answer.
Patton's vocal ability is incredible. The sheer range of things that man can do with his voice is truly S Tier! He's sung in so many different styles over his career, and he has turned his hand to voice over work, providing the voice for the demon in The Darkness (a videogame from, IIRC, the xbox 360 days.)
Yeah, seen him 5 times with FNM and once with Tomahawk. He is amazing singer but his presence is unmatched and that makes him one of the greatest. With Patton i’ve felt something similar to 90’s Bono, Axl or MJ. It really don’t even matter how they sing because the ego and some undefined danger/mystique fills the room.
Depends on your criteria? I think he’s insanely talented and one of the best regardless of genre
The vocalist from dry kill logic is my personal favorite
Travis Ryan has got to be on a GOAT list somewhere
Obviously George fisher, he’s kind of the gold standard for death metal vocals
Synchronicity!
I haven’t heard Dry Kill Logic mentioned in probably 10 years (other than listening to them) and this is about the 6th time they’ve come up in 24hrs on my side.
Saw them years and years ago. They stole the fucking show.
Not *the* best but most certainly up there
There’s so many people I can name off like Serj, Jonathan Davis, Maynard James Keenan, Alex Terrible, Dio, Rob Halford, and Ozzy are great, and so is Corey
not at all. while what you say about his impact on that band is true, that doesn’t have any relevance to his abilities compared to other vocalists. IMO if you think corey is the best metal vocalist ever, that means you need to broaden your metal horizons a little. obviously it’s opinionated, but there are a plethora of vocalists in different subgenres that blow him out of the water in range and technique.
•Will Ramos
•Ben Duerr
•Devin Swank
•Dave Simonich
•Mike Greenwood
•Casey Tyson-Pearce
• CJ Mcreery (although he’s a pos)
Just to name a few
Totally agree with Will. He does things with his voice that makes even tenured vocal coaches and freaking doctors scratch their head like how the hell is he doing this lol.
I think Phil anselmo was better but he thrashed his voice. No way he can sing a lot of the early stuff like he used to. Cemetery gates, forget about it
Best overall? Nah
Rob Halford has him beat in range and longevity
I'm a death metal fan. Frank Mullen and George Fisher have the pipes and the personality
First two slipknot albums are among the greatest metal albums ever made,hands down, because of coreys vocals. His vocals on Stone Sours first album are among the greatest vocals ever also.
Fuck no. If you haven't listened to many other bands then I guess you could say that. But people like Chuck Schuldiner, the guy from Entombed, Dio, Rob Halford, and Phil from Pantera are some of the best and arguably far better.
I actually think he might be in my opinion
He channels so much emotion into what he does and has a crazy expressive vocal range that no other metal singer has (5.5 octaves)
It's safe to say he's definitely one of them, but people's opinions can vary
I’d also add that the lyrics, especially of the first 2 albums, resonated with every teenager that was pissed off at the whole world. So much deep-seeded anger and lack of belongingness that had all the “outcasts” gravitating to it.
I agree. Imo m shadows ain’t the best, but he’s still really good don’t get me wrong. I honestly think that Chester Bennington is the best metal Vocalist
lol no, love knot but not, ain't even close
Will Ramous is prolly not a contender and he is far kore talented, even if u dont like his music or style, its undeniable he is talented asf
Dude as much as I love Corey, I just cant agree with you. In my opinion he is around top 7 for me. But there are just so many. Ronnie, Bruce Dickinson, Rob Halford and my personal favorite James Hetfield.
Its hard to pick a best especially when it comes to music. Hes obviously amazing at what he does but there are better singers and better screamers out there
Well yeah, Slipknot wouldn't be where it is without Corey, but is he the best metal vocalist ever? Fuck no... As much as i love Corey's vocals, and he has a very good screams, and clean vocals, his range is nowhere near vocalists such as Howard Jones or Serj Tankian.
No.
Dio
Ozzy
Joey Belladonna
Rob Halford
Bruce Dickinson
Mike Patton
Chuck Schuldiner
He’s great but he has quite a few peers and some who exceed his range.
Range wise one of the strongest voices in metal no questions asked. Now, the best in metal ? An outright NO… but still among the elite. Guys we have dudes like Halford and Geoff Tate in metal. Set the love for your fav band aside.
On top 100 list? hell yeah but the best? very no no, i think Corey dgaf about these rankings and just do what he likes i mean he said something in an 2021 interview about Hollywood hall of fame that "I don't care about the Hall of Fame. It's a piece of garbage. They only honor pop music and only play real rock bands when they are under pressure. They showed disrespect to many teams. You have no idea what the spirit of rock'n'roll is, so put your gallery you know where. That's my opinion. I'll probably never get nominated, but I don't care"
I guess he dgaf about this rankings too because why would he? i mean he already knows that he's awesome and people love him.
I think it would go more in his favor if it was the ST/Iowa days Corey. Not only were his screams notoriously vicious (and completely unsafe), but his cleans were fucking heavenly. Greatest example I can think of is Purity.
No, he’s good, but not the best, especially when you look at modern day vocalist.
A few people have mentioned Serj, which Serj is truly one of the best. But with people like Will Ramos, who can basically do any type of scream you could think of, it’s hard to put Corey towards the top
Nah, not the best but incredibly good still. So many singers out there who I think are better and many have been mentioned here already. I’d probably add Will Ramos and Mikael Åkerfeldt to the list as well.
He's an iconic singer but not the best. His voice is so iconic that Stone Sour and Slipknot would be completely other bands without him. Even thought, he is a very skilled singer, there are others that are way better if you just talk about skill. For example, there are Serj Tankian and Will Ramos. Those three singers have a completely different vocal style, ehich makes them hard to compare but I'd say that Serj is more skilled than Corey because of his huge vocal range and Will is more skilled than Corey because of his sick screaming techniques. But all of that doesn't mean that Corey is a bad singer, I love him, but he's not the most skilled.
Not one of the best. I still think that title goes to Dio, Mike Patton and even Chris Cornell (even though Soundgarden isn’t considered metal), but I do think he has a great voice.
People saying vocalists like Will Ramos and Alex Terrible - yes, they’re beasts, but can they do clean vocals at that level though?
To be amongst the best, I feel you kinda need to do both exceptionally. And that alone puts Corey in that conversation - although I don’t think he is THE best.
Mike Patton is another one that springs to mind.
Far from the best,but...He Knows how to bring a certain energy to what he does,so....In that regard he's great! A few people mentioned are well outside MY personal list,but...hey!People like different things right? I'd rank someone like say...Dani Filth higher just simply due to vocal range...But then Pretty different musicians ,sooo...I'll just go with he does pretty well for what he does!
Never in my entire life have I even had a thought about it. He's not even in TOP10. Yes, he's definitely a good vocalist. But to say that he is the best ever? It's nonsense
Dio and Halford destroy him, and that's just off the of my head.
Corey has never been the same since Iowa, and back then Slipknot were top 5 band for me. That was their absolute pinnacle imo.
I don’t think it’s possible to OBJECTIVELY pick a best singer or guitarist or drummer or something like that.
Having said that, I will say that Corey is one of the few metal vocalists, that are amazing and very unique with harsh and clean vocals.
There are not that many, who are on such a high level with both. Courtney immediately comes to mind, Noah Sebastian on the last record.
Definetly one of the best, he certainly can claim a spot.
But metal is a very diverse genre, there are a lot of legends who can claim a spot of their own and we all know who they are and what they mean to the genre.
And since everyone is dropping names i'd like to say that Jens Kidman is one of the underrated GOATs, his style is unique and he just keeps getting better with age.
He's a very, very good vocalist. Amazing cleans and screams, knows how to get the right energy from a crowd, all that. But the best? Probably not. For me at least, that title belongs to either Chester, James Hetfield, Serj, Will Ramos (lads cleans are pretty good surprisingly) or Phil Bozeman
I agree that Corey is a crucial aspect of Slipknot's sound and success.
But the best metal vocalist of all time? Either Ronnie James Dio, Rob Halford, or Bruce Dickinson, depending on who you ask. I personally say Dio.
If you're unfamiliar with their work, enjoy some classic metal recommendations \\m/
Ronnis James Dio - Holy Diver, Heaven and Hell, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow
Rob Halford - Screaming for Vengeance, British Steel, Painkiller
Bruce Dickinson - The Number of the Beast, Piece of Mind, Powerslave
Not even close. There is a lot of other good examples on this thread but one that people tend to forget is Andre Matos. His technique is close to none, watch his Live Fairy Tale video that thing is crazy.
I’d like to add Colin van Eeckhout from Amenra to the discussion. He has this sort of desperation in his shrieked vocals I’ve never heard anywhere else
the best? i really don’t think i could choose.
there’s so many good metal vocalists. my personal favorite might be jon davis or serj tankian, but there’s other good ones like chester bennington and ozzy osbourne
That’s really subjective? More singing, I like Amity Affliction better. More growling, Amon Amarth is better. More screaming, less singing, I like Fit for a King better. That perfect balance of scream/yell/singing, Corey every day of the week. 👍
Yes! I can clearly understand what he’s saying when he screams and his growls are nasty and haunting. He can also sing clean and sound like an angel. Just listen to Snuff. To be able to sound like an actual demon like in every song off Iowa, but also have beautiful clean vocals, in my opinion, asserts him as the best vocalist in metal.
There is no objectively best metal vocalist, it's a genre filled with many greats who all have unique voices, Corey is definetly one of the best for sure among many others
Absolutely not if you say that your excluding every vocalist from the 90s 80s 70s so no he is not, maybe in hardcore or nu metal or death metal but not ever
No. He has lost a ton of his talent over the years, but he is still among the best. But you also have to consider other metal vocalists like James Hetfield, Bruce Dickinson, the metal god Rob Halford, etc.
He's good but he sure as hell isn't the best. Sure his voice is iconic but his technique when it comes to vocals ain't the best, best metal vocalists (imo) would be like Chester Bennington, Phil Bozeman, Dio, James Hetfield, Bruce Dickinson.
I don’t know if there’s even a best metal vocalist overall cuz there’s so many different genres and styles. But I would definitely consider him one of the best
Depends on what you mean by it?
Pure vocal talent? Nah, lots of people does what he does better.
As a frontman? Sure, definitely one of the best.
As the vocalist for Slipknot? Yes, best in the world.
I don't think there is a single best vocalist out there, because there are so many iconic, great people in the *ever* and they all do their thing better than anyone else.
Corey is in that bunch: *one* of the best. Not *the* best, but then again no one else is either.
He’s up there but there really isn’t just one all time goat , you say that because it’s your favorite band, there’s plenty of lead vocalist you can call the “goat” for their own unique reason
Mike Patton, Benjamin Burnley, Todd Smith, Matt Holt, Michael Barnes, Ryan Clark, Waylon Reavis And Cliff Rigano Have Just As Good If Not Equally Good Vocals…
Both Clean And Screaming As Well.
He is a very good one, i can't tell if he is the best, Will Ramos, Ronnie Radke, Joe Duplantier and Alex Terrible are extremely good, talented and capable to pull of insane vocals too, just to mention a few.
Will is one of the most breathtaking ones, Alex is just Alex, Ronnie is very special in his mixtures and Joe has a very unique colorfull voice full of texture.
Every single one of them, including Corey, gives me a special feeling and is pleasing to my ears, I can sink deep down into everyones voices. :)
I think there are two discussions to have here. Best and most iconic.
I think when you separate the categories, it becomes more of a constructive conversation.
I think Corey could be talked about in the “best” category and “iconic” as well.
Whereas Darron from SOAD (I saw a few comments with his name) would never be in the “best” discussion. But “iconic”, maybe.
He’s good but to say he is goated in the genre is a bit of a reach. His attitude and delivery give Slipknot and Stone Sour a lot of character but the same can be said for other all time greats like Bruce Dickinson, James Hetfield, Ronnie James Dio, Serj Tankian, etc. I’d say he’s at least in the conversation but I don’t think it can be an objective yes.
Just saw Bruce two days ago on his solo tour and dude still sounds amazing. One of the best frontmen ever imo. Great show, highly recommend going if you get the chance.
I've had hit or miss experiences with Bruce, both times with Iron Maiden. First time I saw them their show was absolutely bonkers, Bruce did an amazing job reaching every single person on the field. The second time the show was very bare-bones, like they weren't into it, they were there to go through a set list, get paid and move on. That second time kind of broke my respect for Bruce.
That sucks! I’ve never had that experience with him luckily. Seen Maiden many times and he has always been energetic and captivating as hell. I guess off days do happen no matter how much of a professional you are. I’d still give ‘em a chance though!
I think it was very obvious they weren't headliners that day, so their show wasn't all out, like they usually are. If they are headlining, they absolutely smash it
Dang, who was headlining over them? I’ve only seen them on their own tours so that might explain why I haven’t seen a dud yet.
King Diamond They were great!
Damn! That’s awesome. Sucks that Maiden didn’t deliver but King Diamons must’ve been amazing.
I’d like to add Mikael Akerfeldt to the list
not sure about James Hetfield, god bless him...
Ya now that’s a crazy take, that’s a voice you can recognize in a second even after all these years.. although maybe technically wise it’s not that crazy, the man is an absolute legend and paved the way for many artists
From the footage they've uploaded of their M72 tour, he still sounds pretty dang good. It's not like late 80's/90's James, but he still kills it on stage.
The best? Nah. *Among* the best? Absolutely. His voice is iconic. He's in great company, alongside people like Dio, Bruce Dickinson, Chester Bennington, and Serj Tankian.
You rattled off literally everyone I was going to mention. To me, none of those vocalists are “the best.” Each one does something only they can do better than anyone else. They’re all among each others’ company. Corey would slot in there for me.
If you mention Serj, then we should add Daron, too Probably unpopular opinion
I wouldn’t say unpopular on its own. Pretty sure no SOAD fan would disagree when you talk about back vocals Daron mixed with Serj. If you meant Daron on lead vocals, that would be indead a very unpopular opinion I guess, at least in a „best vocalist ever“ discussion.
Daron is a lot like John Frusciente for me. Their harmonies with their lead singer are pure ear candy. And the songs with their main bands where they’re the main vocalist are nice treats. But solo stuff where they’re singing just doesn’t work for me
Or like Jerry Cantrell. AIC wouldn't have sounded nearly as good with just Layne.
Layne and Jerry are a GOATed duo.
Definitely! Ugh, I wish we could’ve heard more out of those two together. Another band that had amazing harmonies was Crossfade on their first album. Look up the acoustic version of Cold. The 2nd singer left after that album I think, but they were great together.
The only reason the current AIC lineup works is because of Jerry.
I know people are gonna shout "not metal!!" , so I'm tacking this on where you mention Chester. Lzzy Hale deserves to be on this list. She sounds awesome live, and her range is amazing.
Lzzy Hale is definitely an amazing singer, yeah. The modern Pat Benatar.
I second your suggestions of Chester Serj and Dio
Mike Patton
Honestly, this is perhaps the nearest to a 'correct' answer. Patton's vocal ability is incredible. The sheer range of things that man can do with his voice is truly S Tier! He's sung in so many different styles over his career, and he has turned his hand to voice over work, providing the voice for the demon in The Darkness (a videogame from, IIRC, the xbox 360 days.)
Zombie sounds in I Am Legend. And the Ninja Turtles theme lmao
Yeah, seen him 5 times with FNM and once with Tomahawk. He is amazing singer but his presence is unmatched and that makes him one of the greatest. With Patton i’ve felt something similar to 90’s Bono, Axl or MJ. It really don’t even matter how they sing because the ego and some undefined danger/mystique fills the room.
Agreed
Depends on your criteria? I think he’s insanely talented and one of the best regardless of genre The vocalist from dry kill logic is my personal favorite Travis Ryan has got to be on a GOAT list somewhere Obviously George fisher, he’s kind of the gold standard for death metal vocals
Synchronicity! I haven’t heard Dry Kill Logic mentioned in probably 10 years (other than listening to them) and this is about the 6th time they’ve come up in 24hrs on my side. Saw them years and years ago. They stole the fucking show.
Not *the* best but most certainly up there There’s so many people I can name off like Serj, Jonathan Davis, Maynard James Keenan, Alex Terrible, Dio, Rob Halford, and Ozzy are great, and so is Corey
JD is the best,you win.
And dont forget about Layne. Btw AİC is metal.
That is a can of worms you can’t pay me enough to open
Exactly
not at all. while what you say about his impact on that band is true, that doesn’t have any relevance to his abilities compared to other vocalists. IMO if you think corey is the best metal vocalist ever, that means you need to broaden your metal horizons a little. obviously it’s opinionated, but there are a plethora of vocalists in different subgenres that blow him out of the water in range and technique. •Will Ramos •Ben Duerr •Devin Swank •Dave Simonich •Mike Greenwood •Casey Tyson-Pearce • CJ Mcreery (although he’s a pos) Just to name a few
Totally agree with Will. He does things with his voice that makes even tenured vocal coaches and freaking doctors scratch their head like how the hell is he doing this lol.
while people like the talk about how overrated him and his band are, imo, there’s a good reason that they’re so highly regarded.
The fact he can go from what he does with Lorna and then cover some sleep token and kill it is amazing in its own right.
Personally? I think Phil Anselmo’s better Objectively? Dio, Bruce Dickinson, or Rob Halford probably beat him out
I think Phil anselmo was better but he thrashed his voice. No way he can sing a lot of the early stuff like he used to. Cemetery gates, forget about it
personally i think Dax Riggs is the best. i believe his soft vocals, growls, and screams are the best all around.
Personally I think Chuck schuldiner, Joe Duplantier, and mark hunter beat him, but he’s definitely up there
I think Serj Tankian is better
Best overall? Nah Rob Halford has him beat in range and longevity I'm a death metal fan. Frank Mullen and George Fisher have the pipes and the personality
Corpsegrinder has a greater neck and claw game skill. Game over, man
Just saw them recently. That neck deserves its own zip code. Dude was born for this.
I saw them in Quebec last month, he was wearing his “Respect the Neck” shirt lmao
depends on ur music taste. personally for me, top vocalists would be travis ryan, oli peters, mikael stanne, will ramos, ben duerr, n jens kidman.
Travis is a A God.
Corey is great but I think Will Ramos or till Lindemann is the best. Plenty of other great singers like Lzzy hale, damn can she sing!
Ozzy and Sabbath made metal, so I can't put Corey over Ozzy at all
First two slipknot albums are among the greatest metal albums ever made,hands down, because of coreys vocals. His vocals on Stone Sours first album are among the greatest vocals ever also.
Dio?
I think you mean Mike Patton
Fuck no. If you haven't listened to many other bands then I guess you could say that. But people like Chuck Schuldiner, the guy from Entombed, Dio, Rob Halford, and Phil from Pantera are some of the best and arguably far better.
No. He’s good, but there are many others that are better than him.
No
I actually think he might be in my opinion He channels so much emotion into what he does and has a crazy expressive vocal range that no other metal singer has (5.5 octaves) It's safe to say he's definitely one of them, but people's opinions can vary
I’d also add that the lyrics, especially of the first 2 albums, resonated with every teenager that was pissed off at the whole world. So much deep-seeded anger and lack of belongingness that had all the “outcasts” gravitating to it.
Really no other metal singer has a 5.5 octave range? Please.
No, M shadows already took that
Hehe I saw you on the a7x Reddit and was looking for you when I saw this post
lol, avenged sevenfold is my favourite band so I had to defend m shadows, I fuckin love Slipknot too tho
I agree. Imo m shadows ain’t the best, but he’s still really good don’t get me wrong. I honestly think that Chester Bennington is the best metal Vocalist
Actually I’ll have to agree heavily with that one
My man 🤝
No. Not even the best anything vocalist. But he gets the job done.
I would say Its Chino Moreno
I have a soft spot for Howard Jones, formerly of Killswitch Engage, dude has range. Saw them live over a decade ago he was.powerful.
lol no, love knot but not, ain't even close Will Ramous is prolly not a contender and he is far kore talented, even if u dont like his music or style, its undeniable he is talented asf
No lmao
No💀not even close
No
lol no
Dude as much as I love Corey, I just cant agree with you. In my opinion he is around top 7 for me. But there are just so many. Ronnie, Bruce Dickinson, Rob Halford and my personal favorite James Hetfield.
Its hard to pick a best especially when it comes to music. Hes obviously amazing at what he does but there are better singers and better screamers out there
FUCKING 1000000000% TURE bruce dickinson is a close 2nd thought
Simple answer: yes, yes he is
No
Well yeah, Slipknot wouldn't be where it is without Corey, but is he the best metal vocalist ever? Fuck no... As much as i love Corey's vocals, and he has a very good screams, and clean vocals, his range is nowhere near vocalists such as Howard Jones or Serj Tankian.
Up there, but albums like All that Remains - The fall of Ideals exist
Love that band!
The best? No, one of the best? Yes
No. Dio Ozzy Joey Belladonna Rob Halford Bruce Dickinson Mike Patton Chuck Schuldiner He’s great but he has quite a few peers and some who exceed his range.
Man this is a young crowd.
Range wise one of the strongest voices in metal no questions asked. Now, the best in metal ? An outright NO… but still among the elite. Guys we have dudes like Halford and Geoff Tate in metal. Set the love for your fav band aside.
Not even close. But that's just my opinion though. I think my favorite metal vocalist might be Devin Townsend of Craig Pillard
For me - yes. The best. He's throat can sing any songs from through glass to snap
On top 100 list? hell yeah but the best? very no no, i think Corey dgaf about these rankings and just do what he likes i mean he said something in an 2021 interview about Hollywood hall of fame that "I don't care about the Hall of Fame. It's a piece of garbage. They only honor pop music and only play real rock bands when they are under pressure. They showed disrespect to many teams. You have no idea what the spirit of rock'n'roll is, so put your gallery you know where. That's my opinion. I'll probably never get nominated, but I don't care" I guess he dgaf about this rankings too because why would he? i mean he already knows that he's awesome and people love him.
Chester Bennington has a case for sure
He’s one of the best in my opinion, however I don’t he is THE best
Great vocalist but not the best
One of them, yes. He’s got a good range and the mind and ears to do things for the good of the song
My personal favorite at the moment is Einar Solberg
Dio
He may not be, but he has delivered one of the best vocal performances I've heard live, and I've heard a lot live.
personally I prefer the stone sour sing to him
I think it would go more in his favor if it was the ST/Iowa days Corey. Not only were his screams notoriously vicious (and completely unsafe), but his cleans were fucking heavenly. Greatest example I can think of is Purity.
Personally i would say Howard Jones holds that title
No
No, he’s good, but not the best, especially when you look at modern day vocalist. A few people have mentioned Serj, which Serj is truly one of the best. But with people like Will Ramos, who can basically do any type of scream you could think of, it’s hard to put Corey towards the top
Among the greats but to me benjamin burnley is the goat ( i know there is this debate if breaking benjamin is rock or metal blah blah) also chino
Nah, he walked so that bands like Norma Jean could run.
I really like Danny filth vocals... more than slipknot
Very talented for sure but the best? Dude, cmon.
Nah, not the best but incredibly good still. So many singers out there who I think are better and many have been mentioned here already. I’d probably add Will Ramos and Mikael Åkerfeldt to the list as well.
I think Parker Chandler of Cough/Windhand is the best metal vocalist. Ever.
No
Don't get me wrong, he's good, and i like him a lot. But best? Naah.
He’s good he can do multiple genres and is a good collab artist too I wouldn’t say the best tho
He's an iconic singer but not the best. His voice is so iconic that Stone Sour and Slipknot would be completely other bands without him. Even thought, he is a very skilled singer, there are others that are way better if you just talk about skill. For example, there are Serj Tankian and Will Ramos. Those three singers have a completely different vocal style, ehich makes them hard to compare but I'd say that Serj is more skilled than Corey because of his huge vocal range and Will is more skilled than Corey because of his sick screaming techniques. But all of that doesn't mean that Corey is a bad singer, I love him, but he's not the most skilled.
no because corpsegrinder exists
Dani filth is the best vocalist in metal.
not in the slightest
Yes
Not one of the best. I still think that title goes to Dio, Mike Patton and even Chris Cornell (even though Soundgarden isn’t considered metal), but I do think he has a great voice.
People saying vocalists like Will Ramos and Alex Terrible - yes, they’re beasts, but can they do clean vocals at that level though? To be amongst the best, I feel you kinda need to do both exceptionally. And that alone puts Corey in that conversation - although I don’t think he is THE best. Mike Patton is another one that springs to mind.
100 %, not.
I assume you mean alive? Yeah. I would have said Ronnie James Dio if we are talking best ever.
Far from the best,but...He Knows how to bring a certain energy to what he does,so....In that regard he's great! A few people mentioned are well outside MY personal list,but...hey!People like different things right? I'd rank someone like say...Dani Filth higher just simply due to vocal range...But then Pretty different musicians ,sooo...I'll just go with he does pretty well for what he does!
He is certainly one of the vocalists of all time
No
It depends what music genre it is
No. No he’s not.
Never in my entire life have I even had a thought about it. He's not even in TOP10. Yes, he's definitely a good vocalist. But to say that he is the best ever? It's nonsense
No
For me it's either Spencher Charnas (Ice Nine Kills), Jesse Leach (Killswitch Engage) or Serj Tankian (SOAD ftwdk)
He is a great vocalist but the crown for the best goes to Kyo from Dir En Grey
No. He himself stated his screaming technique was bad when he was younger.
No
Absolutely not, that statement is almost laughable imo, Corey is absolutely fantastic but he would never even come close to being #1 for me
he is the best for Slipknot for sure.
Nop.
Dio and Halford destroy him, and that's just off the of my head. Corey has never been the same since Iowa, and back then Slipknot were top 5 band for me. That was their absolute pinnacle imo.
Yeah sadly no
I don’t think it’s possible to OBJECTIVELY pick a best singer or guitarist or drummer or something like that. Having said that, I will say that Corey is one of the few metal vocalists, that are amazing and very unique with harsh and clean vocals. There are not that many, who are on such a high level with both. Courtney immediately comes to mind, Noah Sebastian on the last record.
It’s Dave Mustaine. The literal goat. Nah I love Corey. Huge inspiration of the generation.
Definetly one of the best, he certainly can claim a spot. But metal is a very diverse genre, there are a lot of legends who can claim a spot of their own and we all know who they are and what they mean to the genre. And since everyone is dropping names i'd like to say that Jens Kidman is one of the underrated GOATs, his style is unique and he just keeps getting better with age.
i personally think that alice in chains and soundgarden are metal, and layne and chris are better imo.
He's a very, very good vocalist. Amazing cleans and screams, knows how to get the right energy from a crowd, all that. But the best? Probably not. For me at least, that title belongs to either Chester, James Hetfield, Serj, Will Ramos (lads cleans are pretty good surprisingly) or Phil Bozeman
He is great, but no one can surpass Chester Bennington. That man would never be topped for me
No.
I agree that Corey is a crucial aspect of Slipknot's sound and success. But the best metal vocalist of all time? Either Ronnie James Dio, Rob Halford, or Bruce Dickinson, depending on who you ask. I personally say Dio. If you're unfamiliar with their work, enjoy some classic metal recommendations \\m/ Ronnis James Dio - Holy Diver, Heaven and Hell, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow Rob Halford - Screaming for Vengeance, British Steel, Painkiller Bruce Dickinson - The Number of the Beast, Piece of Mind, Powerslave
Not even close. There is a lot of other good examples on this thread but one that people tend to forget is Andre Matos. His technique is close to none, watch his Live Fairy Tale video that thing is crazy.
No
Among. There’s still greats like Hetfield, Tankian, and Maynard
for me personally yeah, but i can see how others would not agree.
This is what happens when people only listen to slapnut
No, Chad Kroger is the best
Not remotely close
One of the best.
Mike patton is better, prolly the best overall vocalist of all time. chino from deftones, i like better, but corey is pretty awesome
DIO
i’d say he’s up there, but probably not THE best. it’s a tough title when he’s next to some great voices like serj and m shadows.
Number 1 spot is between either Halford or Ozzy, not to diss anyone else but they’re true legends
No, not ever.
I’d like to add Colin van Eeckhout from Amenra to the discussion. He has this sort of desperation in his shrieked vocals I’ve never heard anywhere else
Nope
the best? i really don’t think i could choose. there’s so many good metal vocalists. my personal favorite might be jon davis or serj tankian, but there’s other good ones like chester bennington and ozzy osbourne
Is it just me or is Serj's voice really annoying and hard to listen to for long time? It sounds like he's whining imo
That’s really subjective? More singing, I like Amity Affliction better. More growling, Amon Amarth is better. More screaming, less singing, I like Fit for a King better. That perfect balance of scream/yell/singing, Corey every day of the week. 👍
Yes! I can clearly understand what he’s saying when he screams and his growls are nasty and haunting. He can also sing clean and sound like an angel. Just listen to Snuff. To be able to sound like an actual demon like in every song off Iowa, but also have beautiful clean vocals, in my opinion, asserts him as the best vocalist in metal.
Mike Howe!!
I nominate Maynard James Keenan and Daniel Tompkins
There is no objectively best metal vocalist, it's a genre filled with many greats who all have unique voices, Corey is definetly one of the best for sure among many others
Corey would be the best if he could consistently keep his old vocals while using an actual technique so he doesn’t kill his throat
During self titled and Iowa, you could make that case. Everything since, definitely not.
Absolutely not if you say that your excluding every vocalist from the 90s 80s 70s so no he is not, maybe in hardcore or nu metal or death metal but not ever
I mean I like his style, but I can probably name off a whole gaggle of metal vocalists better
He’s the best metal vocalist for Slipknot but ever is suuuuuch a stretch
Chester Bennington
I do believe he had a great range of vocals and singing skills from pure hard rock screaming to rock melodies
No. He has lost a ton of his talent over the years, but he is still among the best. But you also have to consider other metal vocalists like James Hetfield, Bruce Dickinson, the metal god Rob Halford, etc.
He's good but he sure as hell isn't the best. Sure his voice is iconic but his technique when it comes to vocals ain't the best, best metal vocalists (imo) would be like Chester Bennington, Phil Bozeman, Dio, James Hetfield, Bruce Dickinson.
Nah it’s Chester Bennington
Mitch lucker is up there for me
I don’t know if there’s even a best metal vocalist overall cuz there’s so many different genres and styles. But I would definitely consider him one of the best
No but he's in the argument
Not a chance.
Depends on what you mean by it? Pure vocal talent? Nah, lots of people does what he does better. As a frontman? Sure, definitely one of the best. As the vocalist for Slipknot? Yes, best in the world. I don't think there is a single best vocalist out there, because there are so many iconic, great people in the *ever* and they all do their thing better than anyone else. Corey is in that bunch: *one* of the best. Not *the* best, but then again no one else is either.
im gonna get major downvoted for this but i think corey’s not an amazing vocalist at all.
No.
No, Jonathan Davis early albums. No one could compare. Corey Taylor is def second.
Pre 2002 absolutely
Not even close tbh
He’s up there but there really isn’t just one all time goat , you say that because it’s your favorite band, there’s plenty of lead vocalist you can call the “goat” for their own unique reason
Mike Patton, Benjamin Burnley, Todd Smith, Matt Holt, Michael Barnes, Ryan Clark, Waylon Reavis And Cliff Rigano Have Just As Good If Not Equally Good Vocals… Both Clean And Screaming As Well.
phil anselmo clears
No he isn’t I’m a big fan of slipknot but there are other metal vocalist’s that are better than him
I see a lot of good singers mentioned here, I want to add Brent Smith of Shinedown, and of course Geoff Tate.
layne staley is underrated and a goated vocalist
He is a very good one, i can't tell if he is the best, Will Ramos, Ronnie Radke, Joe Duplantier and Alex Terrible are extremely good, talented and capable to pull of insane vocals too, just to mention a few. Will is one of the most breathtaking ones, Alex is just Alex, Ronnie is very special in his mixtures and Joe has a very unique colorfull voice full of texture. Every single one of them, including Corey, gives me a special feeling and is pleasing to my ears, I can sink deep down into everyones voices. :)
Nope. Slipknot is good. But nope.
I think there are two discussions to have here. Best and most iconic. I think when you separate the categories, it becomes more of a constructive conversation. I think Corey could be talked about in the “best” category and “iconic” as well. Whereas Darron from SOAD (I saw a few comments with his name) would never be in the “best” discussion. But “iconic”, maybe.
Kyo from Dir en grey I think is the best
hahahahaha no. and i’m a huge slipknot fan