Just wanted to check back in to point out that I'm well aware that goth and emo music are nothing like Slipknot. Just saying that Slipknot always came across in a way that resembled a boy band to me and they seemed to appeal to the "anti-authority" kids who choose to show their individuality by all dressing the same, having the same bad haircuts and wearing too much makeup. Back when I was a teenager, those kids were mostly goth kids who were into Morrissey and The Cure. Then it became Manson/Nine Inch Nails. Then Slipknot. Then emo/screamo. Now I'm too old to give a shit.
I get you. Yeah, slipknot totally embodied the nu-metal "don't ever judge me" angst to a T (I agree with the boyband comparison). As the years have gone by and nu-metal bands have become less relevant, it's spirit never really went away as far as being THE manufactured antiauthority style. That style often gets the goth/emo tag despite the style and the bands associated with it actually being neither. I essentially made my post pretending that I'm unaware of the (unfortunate) modern context you were using.
MH//Burn My Eyes
Nu Metal was grunge/alternative music crossed with urban culture. a bastard child of groove metal hardcore hip hop and alternative rock/metal.
Korn and Deftones founded the thing and it was raw. but then Korn went on to destroy that which they engendered by creating Family Values, a terrible idea.
I don't think I can agree that nu-metal was simply grunge crossed with X...but I'll get to that in a moment...
Machine Head's Burn My Eyes is an interesting one to bring up. MH certainly BECAME a nu-metal band several years into their career (The Burning Red), but I see an album like Burn My Eyes as more of a "Metal for the 90's" release as opposed to Nu Metal (which ultimately functioned as "metal for the 90's" but with very distinct trademarks). I think albums like burn my eyes helped lay the foundation for that modern groove (you could argue Sepultura, and Pantera had a lot to do with this too) which nu-metal no doubt took major cues from...but by the time albums that weren't s/t korn and adrenaline were being released...nu-metal was coming into it's own thing for sure...and an album like burn my eyes didn't quite resemble what nu-metal had become.
I think Burn My Eyes and S/T Korn could have been mentioned in the same breathe in 1995...but by let's say 1997, Machine Head came across as almost traditional sounding in comparison to the Nu-metal being released and to the other stuff in the pipeline (hence the burning red was written).
So back to the grunge thing...I know you often mention Cold when nu-metal discussions pop up. I remember hearing them when their self titled album was released and I didn't like it. However, last night I gave them a listen for the first time in like 20 years. I will say...it's really the only example of a band doing actual rock/grunge music that hit's the original (Korn, Ross Robinson) nu-metal tone/atmosphere/angst nail on the head. While as a whole I can't say the album is my cup of tea, I can defintely appreciate/see the appeal of many bits and pieces of whats going on.