“Spiders” by Slipknot
Slipknot’s “Spiders” is a song that uses a lot of high-ended metaphors, to the point where some listeners may deem it to be indecipherable. However, we will make an attempt to derive its overall meaning founded on an interpretation of the second verse, which seems to be the easiest part of “Spiders” to understand.
It is here where the narrator (Taylor) puts forth an ideology of seizing the moment. He seems to acknowledge fear, apprehension and overthinking as enemies of progress. That is to say he believes that “everybody’s limited to what’s on their mind”. With this statement, he is more or less insinuating that what we accomplish in life is based on our mental dispositions.
And overall, once again taking an assumption on what other metaphors in this track allude to, “Spiders” is centered on the idea of personal discontent or a general lack of achievement. As pointed out at the beginning, a person may make an attempt to conceal their mediocrity and dissatisfaction. But Taylor seems to allude to the idea that conducting oneself in such a manner is not ideal. And why isn’t it the best? Because he feels it is only a matter of time before the truth comes to light.
But what does the title (Spiders) mean?
As for what the titular “spiders” represents, it isn’t exactly clear. However, going out of a limb, they seem to symbolize the notion of an individual either being able to overcome the aforementioned mental limitations or not. Simply put, the addressee is being advised to be proactive in pushing himself forward, specifically on a mental level. And if they refuse to do so, then they can be subject to a life of being held back by their own thoughts.
And overall, once again taking an assumption on what other metaphors in this track allude to, “Spiders” is centered on the idea of personal discontent or a general lack of achievement. The addressee is faced with a situation where the singer is trying to convince him or her to be proactive and less analytical. He wants them to seize the moment and not take time for granted.
Moreover this individual apparently has issues he or she wants to keep concealed, if “the books you burns so no one get to read” mentioned in the first verse are an allegory for the retrospects of their life. But Corey seems to allude to the idea that conducting oneself in such a manner is not ideal, as at the end of the day everyone has their flaws.
Writing and Release Date
Slipknot wrote “Spiders” in its entirety. They also collaborated with noted heavy metal producer and engineer Greg Fidelman to produce the track. August 9, 2019 was the day Slipknot officially released “Spiders”. The track was outdoored along with its album We Are Not Your Kind.
Did “Spiders” come out as a single?
No. The band released only three songs as We Are Not Your Kind’s singles. They are: “Unsainted“, “Birth of the Cruel” and “Solway Firth“.
Perhaps the ‘spiders’ represents the critical part of yourself that scans through your internal database and keeps the parts that promote survival and those that hinder it. ‘Everyone is a little bit a lot of the time’ – this line in the first verse suggests we are only a limited version of ourselves at any one time because we can only hold so much in our heads about who we are and what we represent as a whole. We cant be the version of ourselves in the past and who knows what you’ll be like in the future, its all down to the judgement of those spiders that recycle ideas in our mind for better or for worse, it depends on what we think of ourselves and how we toy with these ideas – I think therefore I am.