KORN — Korn (review)

Album · 1994 · Nu Metal

5/5 · 2017-01-27
Warthur

Mashing up meaty alternative metal (on which I can taste the influence of the more accessible moments on Mr Bungle's debut album) and hip-hop beats, and then bringing in the vocal stylings of Jonathan Davis (much imitated afterwards, but unique when this came out), Korn's debut album set the model for nu metal, and as fashionable as it may be to dismiss it on that basis, I can't quite bring myself to.

The fact is that there are a very few albums out there which can simultaneously claim to have originated a subgenre and to be one of the best examples thereof; Black Sabbath's debut is that for 1970s metal, Cowboys From Hell is that for groove metal, and this is the breakthrough album for the nu metal genre. As much as nu metal became associated in later years (not wholly unfairly) with utter frat boy-esque crassness - like jock rock with more rapping and heavier riffs - Davis and crew are clearly much more thoughtful than they are often given credit for.

Davis' lyrics, in particular, deserve praise, tackling subjects from high school bullying (Faget) to sexual abuse and the all too common failure of adults to take childrens' concerns seriously (Daddy). Yes, if you see them written down they don't look like anything special, but as is often the case with lyrics the manner of delivery is as important as the specific words used, and Davis here hits on a lyrical style perfectly tailored both for his vocal approach and the new musical landscape the band explore here.

Some are inclined to run down nu metal simply because they don't think that a fruitful union between metal and hip-hop is even possible outside the occasional novelty number. Those willing to reject such arbitrary barriers, however, will find a lot to enjoy here. Plus the band clearly have a fun sense of humour, as witnessed by the inclusion at the end of the "Michael and Geri" hidden track, a bit of found audio capturing a man getting absurdly angry about a bit of automobile maintenance.

more than 2 years ago
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siLLy puPPy wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Nu metal generally gets shunned because the style killed the guitar solo aspect of metal and pre 90s metalheads were addicted to it plus bands like Limp Bizkit pretty much made it a joke to most. Definately not my favorite metal sub but Korn is one of my faves from it

aglasshouse wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Korn is one of the most pure-bred of their genre, and it's unfortunate because they and nu-metal in general is ostracized due to the less-than-stellar quality of those professing to have the same emotional value as Korn, but basically cloning their style. They may be perceived as a joke by the general metal community but I think they definitely have their place.

siLLy puPPy wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Nice review but personally i like the albums that followed better. This was a nice raw sound for Korn though. Definately the best band that got lumped into the "nu metal" tag. BTW not everything in that category is rap meets metal otherwise Rage Against The Machine would be lumped in there too. It's more of a guitar technique

adg211288 wrote:

more than 2 years ago

This is a good review because it intrigues me about an album I'd otherwise ignore out of hand.

Warthur wrote:

more than 2 years ago

And it's usually the copycats that give a genre a bad name...

Unitron wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Great review, I'm glad to see another positive Korn review. Davis's tortured-sounding vocals really fit with the lyrics, and nu-metal was unique when it first came out. In that sense, it's really not unlike any other genre, as each one always is followed by copycats.