Korn - MTV Unplugged Review
Posted by Jared McGuckin on 03.05.2007
What's the sound of Nu Metal unplugged? I'd say it sounds like the Gypsy Kings.
Track Listing
1. Blind
2. Hollow Life
3. Freak On A Leash (Featuring Amy Lee)
4. Falling Away From Me
5. Creep
6. Love Song
7. Got The Life
8. Twisted Transistor
9. Coming Undone
10. Make Me Bad/In Between Days (Featuring Robert Smith)
11. Throw Me Away
Often hailed as the “Godfathers of Nu-Metal”, Korn has enjoyed has enjoyed a very successful 13 year career in an extremely fickle industry. Their debut, 1994, was a refreshing sound of growling vocals and unbridled rage with a thick wall of raw down tuned guitars and thunderous drum and bass. With little MTV and radio attention, their fan base grew from incessant touring and each album containing a different sound. Over the years, Korn has played the Apollo in Harlem, stole the show at Woodstock 99, started a (semi) annual tour with rotating bands, and a host of other endeavors in an effort to keep them ahead of the game.
Korn’s latest attempt comes in the form of MTV Unplugged. Now, before we get into the thick of it, I’ve been against the idea of this album from the get go. It’s not that I’m against the Unplugged series, far from it, I’m a big fan. But I didn’t think Korn’s music really lent itself to the whole acoustic thing. And after a few listens…well, let’s pick this bitch apart.
To start off, drummer David Silveria is absent from this recording as he had just begun his hiatus from the band. In his place, is drummer Terry Bozzio, who incidentally is donning a pig mask for the performance. Also, Korn is backed a dozen classically musicians playing all kind of instruments from cellos and trombones to saws and cimbassos. So to say the least, this was going to be an interesting experiment.
Within the first minute of the opening track, Blind, you know exactly what you’re in for, a huge mistake. Shortly after that realization, you’ll start to wonder if you’re listening to the Gypsy Kings. The music is filled out nicely with the twelve backing musicians, but the terrible acoustic translation of the guitar and bass cannot be ignored. Jon Davis’ vocals are appropriately restrained most of the time, but there are time when Davis seems to forget that it’s an acoustic performance and yells over the band.
The songs chosen from Korn’s catalog isn’t their best material, but then again musically, these songs were probably some of the few that could semi fit the acoustic format. The highlight of the CD comes in the form of a cover of the Radiohead hit, Creep. To say I’m not a Radiohead fan would be a tremendous understatement, but Korn did a really great job of covering this song.
And then there’s the special guests, Robert Smith of the Cure and Amy Lee of Evanescence joined Korn for Make Me Bad/ In Between Days and Freak On a Leash respectively. In both cases, the duets sounded forced and completely unnatural, as if an acoustic Korn wasn’t unnatural enough. During Freak On A Leash, Lee adds an unnecessary harmony that’s incredibly distracting. Smith is very forgettable on his track as well.
To give credit where credit is due, Korn really went out on a limb here to try something new. And that’s something they have always done, sometimes it’s a hit, and sometimes a miss. Chalk this record up to a huge miss.
The 411: There’s very little good in this record, and it’s almost difficult to listen to at times. My guess is it will probably be hit or miss with most Korn fans, some will sing it’s praise to the heaven’s, others will denounce it as sacrilege. For me, I thought it was interesting idea on paper but the end result was a huge mistake as the songs just don’t translate well, and the special guests seem out of place. Overall, your best bet is to steer clear of this one unless you’re a die hard Korn fan.
