Disco de Korn: “Issues [UK Bonus CD]”

Korn isn't really the sort of band to write concept albums. Operatic, epic, grandoise... words associated with our idea of a rock "concept album" but not the band Korn. But in this case, I'm at a loss for what else to call this music. This is Korn's "concept album."

Okay, not literally... the lyrics don't potray the psychological downward spiral of a British rock star or the tragic love story of a mafia hitman, et cetera. But this album flows as a single work of art, and the lyrics do seem to outline a specific sort of mental decline. What this album lacks in marketability and individual song strength, it more than makes up for in atmosphere, texture, and pure emotion.

Issues starts out with the simple chant-like "Dead", which is the first in a series of inbetween tracks. Many fans cried 'filler' when this album came out, claiming that these short transition songs were just put there to take up space. On the contrary, this is a long album even without those short little intermissions. If anything, they contribute to the flow of the album. Some of them are great by themselves and some of them aren't, but all of them are appropriate.

This album is also the pinnacle of Korn's "wall of sound." By this I am referring to the one simple repetative part Head plays, the simple part Munky plays that is entirely different, the beat David plays that is entirely different, the counter-groove Fieldy plays, and Jon's voice filling in the blanks. And, of course, when you put it all together, you get one complex arrangement that is many times more than the sum of its parts. Issues takes advantage of this more than any other Korn album. The rich textures on this album are one of its strongest points and it has a tendancy to draw you into its morbid, aimless haze.

Issues is, on the whole, Korn's darkest and most disturbing album. It's impossible not to feel the insomnia and alcoholism and depression that spawned not only the self-loathing lyrics but the creepy, dissonant music itself. Much of this album borrows from the abstract, heavy sounds of Mr. Bungle. It has some of Korn's heaviest moments and some of Korn's most melodic moments up to this point. All the humor from the past two albums seems to have been drained completely - this album is dead serious.

As Issues flows seamlessly from one sludgey, hopeless track to the next, it becomes difficult to decide what is a highlight and what is a lowlight. It works so perfectly as a single experiance that it seems almost criminal to break it down to its constituant parts and analyze them. However, "Falling Away From Me" and "Make Me Bad" seem like a good place to start, being the singles. The former is one of their darkest, moodiest singles and the latter is a groovey and catchey tune with a great melody. "Trash" is a particularely bitter track towards the beginning of the album that introduces the "concept" of sorts for the album: that this whole record is an account of Jonathan's various stages of a breakdown on tour.

"Hey Daddy" marks the beginning of the headiest, most emotional part of the album, which progresses more and more into a state of despair as it finishes out. By itself it is one of the heaviest and scariest songs on the album. "No Way" has a sort of sick desperation to it and is the ramp up into what I consider to be the climax of the album: "Let's Get This Party Started." Despite its unimaginative title, I see it as being the crux of this album. It is in many ways the most intense song on this album and contains some of the most biting, bitter, and personal lyrics to be found on Issues.

After this song, the album tones down a little volume-wise, but emotionally it is just as intense (although it feels a little more resigned than the first three quarters of the album.) At long last we reach the meloncholic, defeated "Dirty" which is another of this album's many high points... but maybe perhaps it is also a low point, for there is practically no hope to be found in this song. I can practically see Jon passing out drunk in front of his tv set as the network signs off the air for the night (a possibly unintended effect of the static at the end of the album?)

This is Korn's most serious, mature, and emotionally relevant album to date, and my personal favorite even over the self-titled. I can see why the "old school" fans weren't impressed, but I'm glad they moved on from the urban influence of Follow the Leader and continued to tweak their sound. I would highly recommend this to ANYONE, even people who aren't into Korn or other so-called nu metal bands.

This is the Korn television network, signing off. Goodnight.

*static*...

ARE YOU READY!

This cd will please most Korn fans, and it did please me. I thought that it was closer to the older cd's of Korn(which where way better! ) Yes they are trying to develop new sounds and more beats, but we as fans would like just a few more songs that are heavy like, blind, faget, and clown. I personally would like more songs that are funny and extremely emotional(the new cd was close on the emotional part!) like Good God, A.D.I.D.A.S, and Shoots and ladders. We all like the new beat that Issues created but it needs to have a few more songs that are more like the old Korn that we love.

Deffinitly buy this CD because it is a good CD, the only problem is that Korn could make the CD's great, by adding a few more "old style" songs! Also buy the CD because it is Korn! Korn will also be on the top!

Upon listening to Issues for the first time, i have to honestly say that i was not overly impressed. Having enjoyed the three previous albums quite a bit, I was initially dissapointed by their departure from the traditional bludgeoning/testosterone pumping sound that has characterized their music. However, after "Trash" and "Make Me Bad" started to stick in my head, i found a lot to like with this album. Thankfully, Korn has eschewed the rap influence prevailent on follow the leader. But instead of returning straight back to the style of their debut, Korn takes their sound in different directions, creating hard music not only innovative for the genre, but for the band itself. Suppose for a moment Korn had made a record that sounded just like their debut. That would have definitly won over the older, hardcore fans. But then there wouldn't be anything to distinguish Korn from Sevendust, Deftones, Staind, or any other new metal oufits of today who's sound Korn pioneered. Instead, they would've sounded like every other angst filled, downtuned band. By not replicating their old "hardcore" sound, Korn instead replicates another tradition: intense, creative, energetic music. With their experimentations with new music, Korn just may lift current hard music out of the creative rut...just like a certain oh-so-fanous debut album did back in 1994.

Any thoughts, email me (Khutta@aol.com)

Well, well. This goes out to all of these ignorant, negative reviews that I keep seeing on this album. For one, these guys are some of the most talented COMPOSERS of modern music this world has ever seen! I'll tell you why. It's the actual BLEND & STRUCTURE of the music that makes the band, not individual instruments! LISTEN to the way that they break up their individual instrument parts to create that warm,dream-like feel(kinda like an orchestra- for those who think the band has no talent. Listen to It's On when he SINGS "You see it's my fault, Angels stabbing me inside....")and then explode into that Sepultura like feel- all while making you feel like your in the twilight zone. As for John's vocals... Nobody else has yet been able to touch him on the mic! For those who say he only screams, your wrong. He uses a combination of grunts, growls, screams, singing, scatting, raping, scat-growling(yes there is a name for what he does with his "freestyle"),power singing, cry-singing, whispering, moaning, and much more! When will people understand that there's more to vocalization than JUST PLAIN singing? Issues touches sweet, yet melancholy tones, blends them with that old Korn hardcore anger feel, and really brings out the almost symphonic feel that they've ALWAYS HAD! (ie Blind, Good God,Adidas, It's On, Trash, etc.). In conclusion, this is a great album that gets better the more you listen to it. Even if you think you don't like it, keep listening. You'll hear what they're trying to say...

With Korn fourth album "Issues" it got a little worse but it was still good.

TRACK RATINGS:

1-Dead-10/10

2-Falling Away From Me-10/10

3-Trash-10/10

4-4U-7/10

5-Beg For Me-9/10

6-Make Me Bad-10/10

7-Im Gonna Go Away- 7/10

8-Wake Up-8/10

9-Am I Going Crazy-7/10

10-Hey Daddy-7/10

11-Somebody Someone-10/10

12-No Way-8/10

13-Let's Get This Party Started-10/10

14-Wish you could Be Me-10/10

15-Counting-9/10

16-Daddy-9/10

OVERALL - 141/160 88%