“Critical Darling” by Slipknot

Slipknot’s songs tend to feature plenty of metaphors and symbols. In other words, their meanings can be indiscernible when just analyzing the lyrics on a surface level. But at the same time digging too deep increases the margin of error of misinterpreting the song. So with that being said, this is a hypothetical analysis of “Critical Darling” based on the apparent narrative contained therein as well as the general theme of some of the band’s other songs.

As the title suggests, the singer is addressing someone close to him, as in an endeared associate. We strongly suspect the addressee to be a female. What he is telling this person is that she is too “critical”. And in that regard, what he seems to be specifically referring to is her religious beliefs.

For instance, this person seems to be under the impression that the world is coming to an end. Moreover, being religious-minded, she conducts herself in a manner as if to say she hasn’t “broken any laws”. And apparently her actions have affected the singer also, as he has made an effort to emulate such a lifestyle. But he seems to have rather come to the conclusion that conducting himself in this manner is not being true to who he actually is.

Additionally he seems skeptical of the idea of the world coming to an end and weary of religion in general. And the rationale behind his taking such a stance appears to be an inability to perceive what is being preached as actual reality. For instance, he thinks the idea that the world’s demise is a product of pessimistic thinking and rather thinks his “critical darling” should focus on a more positive future.

Conclusion

So succinctly put, “Critical Darling” appears to be questioning certain religious beliefs and concepts. The singer seems to be more of the type of person whose mind is more in the here and now as opposed to an apocalyptic future or some metaphysical realm. You can say that he is more or less disillusioned with the concept of religion. And he is imploring his addressee to accept a similar disposition because he thinks they’re too “critical” or judgmental.

Writing and Production of “Critical Darling”

The members of Slipknot, including frontman Corey Taylor wrote “Critical Darling”. Furthermore, the band teamed up with Greg Fidelman to produce the track. So Slipknot and Fidelman are credited as the official producers of “Critical Darling”.

Release Date of “Critical Darling”

On 9th August, 2019, Slipknot finally released this song along with their hit album We Are Not Your Kind. Despite not coming out as a single, “Critical Darling” is one of the prominent tracks on the album. “Nero Forte” is also an example of another outstanding track from this album which wasn’t a single.