Korn Flakes - Another Unofficial Korn Site
Reviews
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They say no band is good unless the critics say so, but Korn is exceptional regardless. One look at Korn sales and you should be convinced. But is it art?
Here's what others have had to say:
* TOLL BOOTH on Korn
Few people could have predicted that this was the band that was going to resuscitate a heavy metal scene which was largely bereft of new ideas. Make no mistake, Korn, the album, is totally cutting-edge, with a dual guitar sound that took detuning down to a new level and a rhythm section that tore up the "how to play bass and drums in a rock band" rulebook.
Lyrically, it also goes way beyond the introspection that had characterized the grunge years - lead singer Jonathan Davis had been abused as a child and the listener had almost no choice but to enter into his torment.
* IAN BARTOSEVICH on Life is Peachy
Korn hits the scene in 1995 and changes it forever. Korn�s music had to be acknowledged. The same holds true for their latest release, Life is Peachy. It sticks to the Korn fundamentals- tribal rhythms, squealing guitars, and "Xtra-loose" bass, and vocals thrown down at a level of intensity that is unparalleled.
Coming �atcha with more anthems of youth�s frustration, Jonathan Davis�s vocals are that of a man possessed. He can cover the emotional spectrum in a fraction of a second- from that of a frightened child to one of an enraged madman. This album is tighter and more complex than their first. Their horizons have been expanded. They are the fallout of a decaying metal scene.
* SHAWN MCKENZIE on Untouchables
I have been a Korn fan since I heard their first album in college in 1994. In fact, I was the first person to play their song "Shoots and Ladders" on my college radio station. The other DJ's didn't want to play it because they thought a metal song with a bagpipe intro and nursery rhyme lyrics was too stupid to play on their shows. I thought it was original sounding.
The point being, Korn, at least at that time, was an original, unique- sounding band. They combined rap and metal, they had Jonathan Davis's weird vocals and bagpipe, and they had some really hard, crunchy guitar licks. On Untouchables, some of that is gone...and missed.
Untouchables is still a hard album, but it kind of takes a dip in hardness throughout the middle of it. After the promising opening track, the first single "Here To Stay," the album dips into creepy, slow goth-rock territory. Not that Korn has ever been a sunny, cheery band, but the music just starts sounding like the soundtrack for a gothic horror movie. The creepiness is just musically, but not necessarily lyrically, or at least nothing stood out in my head. Normally a Korn album disturbs me as much as it rocks me, but not in this case. The goth style displaces most of the hard riffs until track 10, "Embrace," where it starts to pick up again. From then on until the end, the album rocks hard, and it actually has some original sounds in the music and vocals (only slightly though.)
Untouchables is certainly not Korn's best album, but if you look at all the other bands out there trying so hard to copy their sound, it only makes sense that they would dump parts of what made them famous so they can sound a little different than the rest. It just sounds like they may have dumped some of the wrong parts!
* LINE NOISE on Untouchables
Korn have done it again, they've released yet another amazing album. After the lack of anything really special in Issues, they have really gone all the way with this one. The entire album is really clean and crispy. The most catchy song off the album has to be "Here to Stay", which catches Jon Davis' usual screams, and the excellent powerful guitar chords from James "Munky" Shaffer.
* TOMMY BAZZANO on Issues and Untouchables
Korn never sold out! Do you even listen to their albums? If you can get past the hype and commercialism surrounding Issues and even Untouchables and just listen to the music, you will find that nothing has changed with Korn. They have grown - just as a baby grows. You can't expect a baby to stay a baby forever... it grows and grows...
Limp Bizkit are sellouts... Blink 182 are sellouts... they still have a few good songs here and there but its obvious they sold out. But with Korn, they get more recognition but rarely do you see a Korn video on MTV, and even on the radio, when a Korn song first comes out it gets plays quite often but after that its ancient history.
* AL MENCONI's Christian response to Korn
We all know that Korn is not as destructive as Marilyn Manson. Korn, however, espouse an attitude of rage and anger at authority and Christianity in general. While they don�t say specifically to hurt Christians, they paint them as the enemy and the cause for much of the problems they are experiencing. Because of all their pent up anger and rage, they definitely are not a group that I would encourage someone to listen to.
I believe that we are in a spiritual war and the vast majority of the ammunition aimed at our kids comes from today's entertainment industry. The problem, however, isn't secular music itself; the problem is what to do about it.
I would like to challenge you to become familiar with today's Christian music scene. There are a lot of quality groups that you and your kids would enjoy. Since the majority of kids today identify with their entertainment, it is crucial that you see entertainment as more than a "side issue." You are beginning to understand the problem isn't that your kids are attending secular concerts and listening to "bad" music. The problem is what are you going to do about it?
* DAVID CLOUD's Christian response to Korn
Korn is a violent, blasphemous, angst-filled gothic metal group. ... Groups like Marilyn Mansion and Korn are blaspheming their way to eternal Hell, and like the pied piper, they are drawing multitudes of angry, self-centered, rebellious young people with them. This is not legitimate entertainment and fun, and it is not something any society can permit without grave consequences.
* NIRVANA ART's Christian response to Korn
If you're looking for Korn but prefer Jesus, check out the band "These Five Down". They'll be your Christian Korn! You'll love these guys! They kick so much ass and are very Christ-centered. They are a group of guys who became Christians after going through all sorts of trouble in their teens, and now they play music that sounds almost exactly like early Korn in many aspects. The vocals are very close and their message is very truthful and filled with hope. They seem very down-to-earth and non-preachy, and yet have a passion for God. Check them out at www.absoluterecords.com. Highly recommended for fans of Korn.
Dramatis personae: (1) Leuce, webmaster of this site (knows next to nothing about Korn, and has a life). (2) Wortle, assistant webmaster of this site (still trying to outgrow Korn and getting a life (this comment was written by Leuce... you can tell, can't you?)). (3) Geocities, our kind host (until they discover us, no doubt). (4) Korn, without whom this site would have been a lot more boring and a lot less corny.