The sound irritates me. Hearing that horrible whimpering grown man drivel and whine like a kid who just got hit in the eye by a ricocheting rollerblade wheel. “WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY” Ehem. Here’s a better question: Why should I suffer, along with the rest of the consumer world because Jonathan Davis’ (singer) daddy touched his tickle spot? When the band first formed and Korn started making hits, their singer purposely turned down the rebellious, estranged, anti-cool kid lyrical hook and damn near broke the knob on the “you left me in the car seat while you committed prescription fraud WHYYYYYYYYY?!” It’s no wonder then, that when they’ve done and spiked the charts and started the big downhill dip getting further and further from young americans’ money that Johnny would once again draw attention to the lyrics, in a way saying “Remember that time my Mom made me cry?” Yes John, we do, all too well in fact. You can shut up about it now.
Nobody will dare argue whether or not Korn grew into a success, but does it’s recent infamy warrant John and his buds to cover Metallica’s “One,” a hidden song on their new album? “Sure” you say “Just so long as they don’t butcher it or anything” ... [I don’t want to spoil it for you but…] Let’s just say that “Take a Look in the Mirror” had a few really, really bad songs. The kind of songs you’d never hear on the radio, the kind of songs you wouldn’t hear Timmy listening to with his buddies while playing Tekken. Some of these songs actually contain change-ups (no way!) some making it difficult for even the most somewhat novice guitar class dork to play along with, sing, and play Tekken to with Timmy all at the same time. That’s not the same predictable, reliably catchy and anthemic band who brought us hits like “All Day I Dream About Sex” (Get it? It’s A.d.i.d.a.s.!? Like the clothing company? I love adidas! Get it?) or “Shoots and Ladders” (Get it? Like the board game we played when we were kids? Get it?) or is it? In fact Johnathan Dacis actually imitated singing during newer songs, and no longer relies totally on the three word phrase formula for lyrics (“Hit me clown” x4, “Which I like” x4, “Mary had a little lamb” etc. etc.) that’s served him so well in the past.
Johnathan mastered the vocalist game long ago, and continues his gradual vocal evolution patiently while Wally Balljacker(drummer) somehow surpassed him on the rythmic motor of sound his drumsticks fuel. Built since the beginning around the static punch and bone grinding bass, Korn threw around Wally’s beats repetitively on each new album. His consistency could be easily misconstrued when looking back, but after listening to the classic metal rythyms of “Here it Comes Again” one can’t help but appreciate the contribution he’s made to the “Korn” sound.
So here’s a band that I least expected any kind of surprise from, but undeniably my irratibility with Johnathon “Tortured Rockstar” Davis was inevitably forgiven by the grace of some well orchestrated rythym drenched in overdriven guitar by his buds (Head and Chiki Munkey). Embarrassed, I scratch my head and wonder if anyone would ever accept this little hollywood band back into their hearts after crying mommy to foundries of musical consumers twice before? Piloted by the same engineers who brought us the money magnet sounds of The Deftones and Sepultura, some people just really don’t like surprises.
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