Rick Astley recently revealed his top metal anthem to Classic Rock. He named Slipknot’s ‘Duality’ and said:
“I’d seen them, the masks and everything, but I didn’t really get it. But I was on YouTube and went down a rabbit hole, which led me to ‘Duality.’ It’s a f*cking amazing song. I play it a lot. [Starts singing in a Slipknot voice] ‘I push my fingers into my eyes…’”
‘Duality’ was the first single from the band’s ‘Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)’ album in 2004. It broke a record for Slipknot by reaching number five on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and number six on the Hot Rock Tracks.
Mark Klasfeld and Tony Petrossian directed the music video for the track. The video cost between $300,000 and $500,000 to make. You can watch it below:
The Rockers That Influenced Him
Astley has one foot in the rock scene through his roots in music and friendship with Dave Grohl despite being a pop singer. He grew up listening to progressive rock bands like Genesis thanks to his sister.
The artist’s favorite rocker was from another group, though. He told Classic Rock:
“Bon Scott. I fell in love with AC/DC’s ‘Highway To Hell’ when [late DJ] Tommy Vance played it. I was in my dad’s pick-up truck, and I remember going: ‘What is this?’ Bon had a cheek to him, and so much personality in his voice. I actually learned to play the drums by playing along to ‘Highway To Hell’ constantly.”
Astley also mentioned being a fan of The Beatles, Joy Division, and The Smiths. He sang ‘So Lonely’ by The Police during his first live show.
