Joey Jordison‘s family has launched a fundraiser to release VMIC’s debut album.
The late musician, who was Slipknot‘s original drummer, died in 2021. He was 46 years old.
To celebrate what would have been his 50th birthday on Saturday (April 26), Jordison’s family announced the fundraiser, which will see VMIC’s debut album released.
The metal band – completed by vocalist Kalen Chase, guitarists Jed Simon and Steve Marshall, bassist Kyle Konkiel and keyboardist Matthew Tarach – was formed in 2015 after Jordison’s departure from Slipknot two years earlier.
They released several singles after launching, and planned to share their first LP ‘Open Your Omen’ in 2019, but plans were halted when the record’s producer Kato Khandwala died in a motorcycle accident in 2018.
Now though, the album is set to finally be released in September 2025, with a Kickstarter launching today (April 28) to raise the funds “needed to release the album”.
A statement from Jordison’s family reads: “After years of working to secure the rights to the music, our family will be releasing VIMIC’s highly anticipated debut album, Open Your Omen independently to get the album into the hands of the fans that have been asking for it for years.”
They go on to say: “Joey didn’t do anything small. We want to release this album the way he would have wanted; with the designs he was so actively involved with creating for the CD, double LP, merch, and with the support of his fans to make the biggest splash we can upon release.”
In order to raise funds, they have added “personal items” previously belonging to Jordison, to help raise costs for manufacturing and distributing the physical album, marketing as well as hosting “a night to remember as VIMIC reunites to perform an event honouring Joey’s legacy. An evening full of iconic drummers on Joey’s drum kit, special guests, and stories you’ve never heard.”
“Join us and spread the word,” The statement concludes. “Open Your Omen.”
Earlier this month, Jordinson’s family also shared his hand-drawn original Slipknot logo on an Instagram account launched to archive photographs of the drummer from various times in his life, as well as some memorabilia from the groups he performed with. It comes after the profile unveiling Slipknot‘s very first tribal ‘S’ design that was created by Jordison, last summer.
Last September, Jordison’s estate settled its lawsuit against the band for profiting off his death.
In other news, earlier this year saw former Slipknot drummer Jay Weinberg share footage of himself playing some of the group’s tracks for the first time since leaving the line-up in 2023.
Slipknot’s latest studio album was 2022’s ‘The End, So Far’. In a four-star review, NME wrote: “Aside from the blood, the gore, the theatrics and the noise, there’s clearly always been much more to the band’s ability to shock and surprise – and now it seems their next left turn of an era could be their most daring yet.”
In 2023, they surprise-released a new EP called ‘Adderall’. At the end of last year, Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan spoke to NME about Slipknot’s 25th anniversary tour, as well as plans for new music and the long-mooted ‘lost’ album ‘Look Outside Your Window’.
“Eloy [Casagrande, drummer] is in the band and there’s something happening between the nine of us right now that is very fun. A lot is floating around and we probably have several albums in us right now,” he explained.
“As for how things feel, I’m being completely honest with you now, it’s like a cloud has left. Whatever that cloud was… everybody participates to the cloud. It’s looking great.”
Clown added: “It feels reminiscent of how it all started in the first place. It’s better than I could ever want and I think everyone would say it feels like a good time. It’s fun, like how it was when we were younger and writing music for ourselves. It’s all thumbs up.”
Slipknot are scheduled to play numerous European festivals this summer, including Rock Im Park and Rock Am Ring, as well as Inkcarceration Festival in the US. They performed a pair of raucous shows at The O2 in London last December as part of their huge 25th anniversary tour.
