Slipknot bassist found dead

SLIPKNOT bassist Paul Gray has been found dead in a hotel room in the United States.

A hotel employee found Gray, 38, dead in a room at the Town Plaza Hotel in Des Moines, Iowa, police said in a statement. Foul play is not suspected. A post-mortem examination is planned for today.

Slipknot's self-titled debut in 1999 sold more than a million copies. Known for its grotesque masks, the band won a Grammy in 2006 for best metal performance for the song Before I Forget.

The industry publication Pollstar ranked Slipknot 18th in its Top 20 concert tours list in 2009. Most of the band's members grew up in the Des Moines area.