text: voliminal : inside the nine voliminal : inside the nine is the third video album by american metal band slipknot . released december 5 , 2006 through roadrunner records , the 2 - disc dvd set features an 84 - minute movie created by band member shawn " clown " crahan . the set also includes live performances , music videos from songs on the band 's third studio album , vol . 3 : ( the subliminal verses ) , and the first unmasked interviews with all of the band members . the movie featured footage recorded from the recording of vol . 3 : ( the subliminal verses ) through the end of the tour in support of the album spanning a total of 28 months . the dvd was promoted on various websites for the weeks leading up to its limited theatrical release . critical reception of the album was mixed , dawn wrote the album has " a raw sound " calling it " an audible treat for thrash and speed metal fans " . however , billboard would tell fans to " save your cash for the band 's next tour " . voliminal would be certified gold , platinum , and double platinum in australia , the united states , and canada respectively . conception and recording the initial idea for the dvd came to percussionist shawn crahan , three weeks before the band entered the mansion in 2003 , where they would work on their third studio album vol . 3 : ( the subliminal verses ) . crahan received help from the band 's record label roadrunner , who supplied them with tapes , camera cleaning equipment and funds to hire people to operate the cameras when crahan himself couldn 't . recording began when slipknot entered the mansion and continued until they had finished touring in 2005 , reportedly covering 28 months of the bands time together . crahan 's intentions were to capture as many different slipknot situations as he could , so when the opportunity to produce a dvd came , he would be in a position to begin work immediately . during the period in which the footage was being shot , crahan began making little tests of the footage and revealed them to his fellow band mates , judging their reactions to help him establish areas of interest from them . the whole recording process produced over 300 60 - minute tapes of footage . production and promotion similarly to the editing process of their previous dvd disasterpieces , crahan watched and analysed all of the footage recorded for the dvd . however in contrast to this dvd was intended to show a previously unseen side to the band . during an interview in 2006 guitarist mick thomson explained that with the dvd the band intended to " bring something new " , he also went on to add " [ there 's ] more backstage stuff , getting to see more inside stuff as opposed to just a concert performance . " crahan explained how he wanted to allow the viewer in on more of their time instead of just their performance , recalling a moment when the band were in australia . he included the footage in the film , explaining ; " so i go down to australia and i go ‘ jesus , there ’ s bats in the air . ’ i ’ m going to film it and share it with you because it ’ s part of our lives together . but most bands and people don ’ t want to share that side of it and i think that ’ s wrong . " throughout the movie whenever the band members appear unmasked , their faces are blurred , whereas on the second disc , during the interviews , they are completely revealed . when questioned on the subject during an interview on the sauce in 2007 , crahan explained that when the band perform , the masks are always a part of their show and footage of them unmasked is blurred to represent this . further adding ; " we chose to blur it because , it 's really an intrusion . [ ... ] that 's our safe place and i kind of broke the veil a little bit by grabbing a camera and trying to show everybody those kinds of things that go on . " prior to the release of the dvd , a promotional website was launched which featured two short teaser videos . also , for the five weeks prior to its release five short teaser videos were released through the roadrunner records website respectively . the dvd was released on december 5 , 2006 and was premiered in 22 separate theatres across the united states . following the release of the dvd , a music video for the song " the blister exists " was released , the video featured footage from voliminal : inside the nine and was of the same style as the movie . the dvd is rated r16 in new zealand for graphic violence , sexual references and offensive language reception critical reception for voliminal was mixed . the newspaper dawn called the dvd " an audible treat for thrash and speed metal fans " , he went on to compliment drummer joey jordison , stating that he " structures his beats and percussions in a very traditional thrash set - up , almost as well as ( dare i say it ) the great dave lombardo of slayer fame " . ultimate guitar called the dvd " behind - the - scene action in an unorthodox format , complete with choppy editing and absolutely no specific chronology " . they would go on to state though the dvd " only gives partial attention to the music " , " the best moment in the 2 - disc collection comes during a chat with corey taylor , who shares his feelings about everything from his less - than - perfect relationship with his father to the obstacles that the band faced in its early days " . wrote " slipknot takes a unique approach to their latest film , as they turn what could have been a mundane video of live footage and band antics into a rather peculiar and extremely interesting movie " . the " scatterbrained and choppy " style of voliminal " [ will cause ] the viewer to feel like he or she is " outside looking in " , rather than being truly involved with the band 's happenings " . reviewing for blogcritics , chris beaumont wrote " [ he ] was enthralled and bored by the documentary " . he went on to state , " the best part is watching them perform " , despite the " audio is near unlistenable " ; " these guys know their way around the stage ... this shows the whole package " . reviewing for billboard , christa titus criticized the dvd writing it " randomly [ strings ] footage from concerts and the usual backstage antics with images of pigeons and overflowing toilets , then tossing in whatever visual effects struck m. shawn crahan 's fancy while he edited it . " she concluded " save your cash for the band 's next tour ... that 's where you 'll get your money 's worth " . film school rejects 's cole wrote of the dvd , " [ except fans ] , probably no one else will purchase or enjoy this dvd " . he added that with no narration , " the images are left to speak for themselves " , only " some just don ’ t speak loudly enough " . despite the mixed reviews , voliminal was certified gold in australia , platinum in the united states , and double platinum in canada . the album peaked at the 5th spot on billboard 's music video charts , and remained on the chart for 10 weeks . contents the first disc of voliminal : inside the nine is an 84 - minute movie constructed of a mixture of live performance , backstage and studio footage . the film was shot on handheld digital cameras and features rapid edits between footage which follows no chronological order . throughout the movie there are also ten " rabbit holes " , nine of which feature additional footage for each band member respectively . interviews the second disc includes interviews with all nine members of the band which are the first formal interviews of slipknot to be released without their masks , excluding members appearances outside of slipknot . personnel aside from their real names , members of the band are referred to by numbers zero through eight .