CLICK HERE if you are having trouble viewing these photos on a mobile device.

Slipknot is so misunderstood.

A lot of people look at the bizarre masks the members wear, read the nu-metal label and immediately assume that Slipknot must be some type of bizarre hybrid of KISS and Limp Bizkit.

That’s not the case at all. Not only does Slipknot have a far better songbook than either of those two acts, it’s also one of the most innovative and flat-out best metal bands — nu or otherwise — of the last 25 years.

Those qualities were on full display as the Iowa act opened its long-awaited Knotfest Roadshow on July 26 at Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View. The North American tour — Slipknot’s first in nearly three years — also featured three other metal acts, all hailing from different countries. The openers were Volbeat from Denmark, Behemoth from Poland and, best of all, Gojira from France.

In all, the five-hour-plus evening of music was a head-banging good time for the large crowd that came out for opening night of the tour, which now continues on from Mountain View to visit such locations as Phoenix, Denver and Toronto before coming to a close with a Sept. 8 date in the Houston area.

The band is touring in support/advance of “We Are Not Your Kind,” which is due to hit shelves Aug. 9. It will be the band’s sixth studio album to date and its first since “.5: The Gray Chapter” in 2014.

Judging by the way the band sounded at Shoreline, and the way the critical tide has started to turn in its favor, it looks like “We Are Not Your Kind” could turn out to be a real beast of an album for Slipknot.

Fans were excited to see Slipknot back in action. All you needed to do was look at the amazingly long lines to buy T-shirts and other Slipknot souvenirs. In all my decades of going to shows at Shoreline, I don’t believe I have ever seen longer lines for merchandise at the venue. One woman said she waited more than 90 minutes in the line, missing at least one of the opening act sets to do so.

Hopefully fans didn’t have to miss any of the excellent Slipknot set, featuring songs from throughout the band’s 20-year recording career. The group drew heavily from its first three albums — 1999’s eponymous affair, 2001’s “Iowa” and 2004’s “Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)” — and also touched upon its latter efforts. Everything that hit our ears was pure thunder, as vocalist Corey Taylor led the electric nine-piece through such favorites as “The Heretic Anthem” and “Vermilion.”

“Welcome to the inaugural (expletive) night of the Knotfest Roadshow,” Taylor greeted fans. “I got to know right now — Are you ready to help me tear this (expletive) down tonight?”

The music felt so muscular, propelled by two percussionists as well as a drummer, as the group delivered a decidedly 21st-century brand of metal that benefited from elements of electronic/DJ music. And the whole thing was as thrilling to the eyes as it was the ears, as these nine masked marauders seemed to be in constant motion on the three-level stage.

The other three acts did a nice job prepping the audience for Slipknot. Behemoth (the first act on) was heavy, while Gojira (the evening’s second act) was heavy and interesting. Then there was Volbeat (third up), who, in direct comparison to the other bands, sounded more like Meat Loaf than Metallica. But Volbeat wasn’t trying to be as hard as the other three.

“Did Gojira rip off your face?” Volbeat guitarist-vocalist Michael Poulsen asked the crowd. “Well, we’re here to make you beautiful again.”

Here’s the set list, according to setlist.fm:

1, “People = (expletive)”

2, “(sic)”

3, “Get This”

4. “Unsainted”

5. “Disasterpiece”

6, “Before I Forget”

7, “The Heretic Anthem”

8, “Psychosocial”

9, “The Devil in I”

10, “Prosthetics”

11, “Vermilion”

12, “Custer”

13, “Sulfur”

14, “All Out Life”

15, “Duality”

Encore:

16, “Spit It Out”

17, “Surfacing”