Korn Premier Issues Live In New York City

Having had the opportunity to listen to the disc since the show, it is apparent that Korn is growing and maturing as a unit by leaps and bounds. Produced by Brendan O’Brien, the record bears some interesting aural similarities to music that Korn must have listened to during their childhoods, as it ventures, oddly enough, into territory that might be mistaken for tracks on a Pink Floyd disc. Quirky staccato guitar parts amidst spacy and ethereal music is a standard interlude trick here, borrowing heavily on tricks played by classic rock bands two decades ago. Intense songs are linked together by these slight ventures into space, reminding you that you’re not listening to an old Floyd CD, but rather an interesting new hybrid of genres which manages to alternately slam you up against a wall and then tuck you in to sleep. With musicianship that is getting better on each disc, the musical aspect of Issues lets you know, with no uncertainty, that Korn is more than just a passing fad. These guys are here for the long run.

O’Brien’s production is a major force behind this amazing amalgam of tunes. With studio techniques and a handful of tricks up his sleeve, he takes the Korn boys and lets them mature into a sum that is much greater than their parts. Outshining all their past efforts by far, this disc is one that will most likely put Korn into a category that they found previously unattainable: classic rockers. Yes, scary as that may sound, the band has created a disc that will most likely go down in history as one of the classic rock and roll albums of all time! Hopefully, those who have had no previous experience with Korn will now try them out, as it is doubtful that the group will disappoint.

Despite what you may think this is all leading up to, Korn’s trademark angst is not missing at all. Songs like “Somebody Someone” will leave you breathing hard with your fists clenched. Those damn interludes, however, keep catching you off guard and lulling you in with their soothing, dulcet tones, until - WHAM - you are assaulted once again by tunes like “Let’s Get This Party Started” and “Falling Away From Me.” Davis’ creepy lyrics are still the standard, with self-revelation the goal more and more as time goes on. His obsession with his father is called upon once again in “Daddy,” misogyny is once again being the call for the day in “Trash,” with lines like “...I tell my lies and despise every second with you.” Tracks like “Dirty,” will leave you with a sort of sickly, wanting feeling that just won’t go away. This is one CD that demands repeated listenings and will, I’m sure, continue to reveal its complexities with each one.






	by j bloomrosen photo by j bloomrosen
*The Issues* Premier** - Live at the Apollo Theater			Issues - (Epic)
The November 15th premier of Korn’s new disc was a brilliant coup in and of itself. Even the choice of venue was a gutsy move: having a rock concert (especially one from Korn) at the preeminent black theater in the world was virtually tantamount to anarchy. Seemingly much smaller than the hall that appears on TV’s Showtime at The Apollo, the venue holds no more than a thousand people and has an extremely intimate and warm feel to it. Simply being inside was a joy in itself. From the bristly old ticket taker welcoming us to “The World Famous Apollo Theater,” to the wall-to-wall portraits of stars who had once played there, it was an amazing and rare evening in a building which is truly a piece of history. That night, history was rewritten, and the Apollo will never be the same! Since I hadn’t received an advance copy of the disc, this was the first chance I had to get a taste of the new CD, Issues. With a hearty contingent of the NYC Police Department Drum and Bagpipe Corps on hand, this brief (and I do mean brief) evening of music began promptly at 10 PM. Adorned in traditional kilts and, well, I’m not quite sure what underneath, the men of NYC’s Finest (their slogan, not mine) kicked off this rather weird, eclectic evening. After being joined by Jonathan Davis (who was dressed in a black kilt as well) and the rest of the band, the mellow, droning bagpipes and drums were quickly replaced by the crunching guitars of Munky and Head. Let us not forget the bellowing bass lines of Fieldy and the slam-bang, intricate drumming of David Silveria. Performing the entire album unabridged and in sequence, Korn proved themselves to be even more enthralling than on past visits to NYC. Extremely heavy on the bass mix, Davis’ vocals were often unintelligible, yet the gist of the lyrics managed to come across through the muck and mire. Rife with many of the seven words not supposedly playable on the radio, it is questionable as to what various stations will do to the final product, but I can tell you, as one of the lucky 1,000 or so that managed to get into this very exclusive show, Korn’s onstage power is unquestionable. They rocked the Apollo to its core, probably harder than it’s ever been rocked before. Running one into the other, often with weird instrumental bridges in between, each song took the level of energy in the hall higher, and even though there were seats instead of a mosh pit, the crowd’s enthusiasm was plainly evident. Jumping in place, the audience was transported by the intense offering that is Issues. Despite the incomprehensible lyrics, due to the poor mixdown, the angst that Davis sang with was more than apparent. The only negative feelings of the evening came when, after 50 minutes, the band concluded the album, walked offstage and never returned. It was obvious that the band was expected, at the very least, to perform an encore of familiar material, something from any of their previous albums to top the night off. But, alas, no band was forthcoming, the houselights went up and we were all escorted out by the many, many extremely large bouncers of the Apollo theater. A great, but somewhat anti-climactic evening, was had by all. The amount of time that it took to get to the theatre was longer than the acutal performance! And even though it was free, you could tell people felt sort of ripped off on the way out. Good show though. What there was of it.		Having had the opportunity to listen to the disc since the show, it is apparent that Korn is growing and maturing as a unit by leaps and bounds. Produced by Brendan O’Brien, the record bears some interesting aural similarities to music that Korn must have listened to during their childhoods, as it ventures, oddly enough, into territory that might be mistaken for tracks on a Pink Floyd disc. Quirky staccato guitar parts amidst spacy and ethereal music is a standard interlude trick here, borrowing heavily on tricks played by classic rock bands two decades ago. Intense songs are linked together by these slight ventures into space, reminding you that you’re not listening to an old Floyd CD, but rather an interesting new hybrid of genres which manages to alternately slam you up against a wall and then tuck you in to sleep. With musicianship that is getting better on each disc, the musical aspect of Issues lets you know, with no uncertainty, that Korn is more than just a passing fad. These guys are here for the long run. O’Brien’s production is a major force behind this amazing amalgam of tunes. With studio techniques and a handful of tricks up his sleeve, he takes the Korn boys and lets them mature into a sum that is much greater than their parts. Outshining all their past efforts by far, this disc is one that will most likely put Korn into a category that they found previously unattainable: classic rockers. Yes, scary as that may sound, the band has created a disc that will most likely go down in history as one of the classic rock and roll albums of all time! Hopefully, those who have had no previous experience with Korn will now try them out, as it is doubtful that the group will disappoint. Despite what you may think this is all leading up to, Korn’s trademark angst is not missing at all. Songs like “Somebody Someone” will leave you breathing hard with your fists clenched. Those damn interludes, however, keep catching you off guard and lulling you in with their soothing, dulcet tones, until - WHAM - you are assaulted once again by tunes like “Let’s Get This Party Started” and “Falling Away From Me.” Davis’ creepy lyrics are still the standard, with self-revelation the goal more and more as time goes on. His obsession with his father is called upon once again in “Daddy,” misogyny is once again being the call for the day in “Trash,” with lines like “...I tell my lies and despise every second with you.” Tracks like “Dirty,” will leave you with a sort of sickly, wanting feeling that just won’t go away. This is one CD that demands repeated listenings and will, I’m sure, continue to reveal its complexities with each one.