Maps of Music

Korn (1994)

Where the lyrics of Korn take you, and where it was really made.

Many now consider this debut the start of nu metal, yet the band signed with its label only because it did not want to give up its creative freedom.

Key places

Indigo Ranch Studios, Malibu (1994)

Recording site Bob Dylan's garage studio (Malibu) — Most of the album was recorded at Indigo Ranch Studios in Malibu, California. The dot marks the city centre of Malibu, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Fat Tracks, Bakersfield (1994)

Recording site Fat Tracks — Additional recording for the album took place at Fat Tracks in Bakersfield. The dot marks the city centre of Bakersfield, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Korn: debut studio album by the American nu metal band Korn
• Released October 11, 1994, through Immortal and Epic Records
• Many consider the album to have started the nu metal genre
• Themes include child abuse, drug abuse, and bullying
• Stephen Stickler took the photographs; Jay Papke and Dante Ariola directed the design
• Cover depicts Paul Pontius' niece in a blue school uniform on a swing
• A threatening man appears only as a shadow on the ground; the band's logo is drawn in the sand

Background

• Korn was formed in 1993 and recorded a demo with "Blind", "Predictable", and "Daddy" within two weeks
• The band played its first show at California Dreams in Anaheim
• Immortal/Epic A&R Paul Pontius spotted the band at Huntington Beach and offered to record an album
• Other labels also made offers, but Korn chose Immortal/Epic
• Korn went with Immortal/Epic because they did not want to "sign away all of their creative freedom"
• Producer Ross Robinson also produced the 1993 demo Neidermayer's Mind

Recording

• Ross Robinson agreed to produce the album and suggested recording at Indigo Ranch in Malibu, California
• Most of the album was recorded at Indigo Ranch, with additional recording at Fat Tracks in Bakersfield
• Recording took place from May to June 1994, and the band finished by the end of June
• Indigo Ranch was on a hill rather than in the city, so the band could record outside
• Most of the album was recorded with all members playing at the same time
• The bagpipes on "Shoots and Ladders" are often thought to have been recorded on a mountain-top, but they were recorded at the studio's back door

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · fr.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993 by James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and David Silveria, former members of L.A.P.D.
• Name styled KoЯn; the backwards R was borrowed from the Toys R Us logo.
• Demo Neidermayer's Mind (1993) pioneered the nu metal sound.

Members

• Current: Jonathan Davis (vocals), James "Munky" Shaffer (guitar), Brian "Head" Welch (guitar, returned 2013), Ray Luzier (drums, since 2008).
• Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu (bass) departed in 2021; Silveria left in 2006.

Career

• Debut album Korn (1994); Life Is Peachy (1996) brought commercial breakthrough.
• Follow the Leader (1998) and Issues (1999) both debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.
• Over 40 million records sold worldwide as of 2021; two Grammy Awards from eight nominations.
• Fourteen official releases reached the Billboard 200 top ten; the band is credited as the originators of nu metal.

Reception

At release

• Mike Boem of Los Angeles Times found that if one accepts the style of thrashing, metallic, incessantly wrathful rock, the debut is a smashing success
• Boem said the music had no sensible measure of its artistic merit, though it could be cathartic for listeners who identify with Davis's lyrics
• Boem also wrote that the album becomes less distinctive as it goes on
• Jason Arnopp of Kerrang! rated Korn 4 out of 5 in 1995 and praised Davis's voice as overflowing with cracked, frustrated emotion
• Arnopp described the band as injecting its own special insanity into the music
• Manuel Rabasse described the album in 1996 as an almost dadaist record, and said Korn was a group of crazies

Reappraisal

• Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave Korn a positive review, calling the album a powerful sound that builds on funk-metal innovations
• In a 2002 critical reappraisal, Catherine Yates of Kerrang! gave the album 5 out of 5
• In 2022, Metal Hammer writers said they considered the album to be Korn's best
• Sputnikmusic praised Davis's voice as what made Korn unique and named Blind, Ball Tongue, Need To, Faget, Helmet in the Bush, and Daddy as the best songs

Records

• On January 29, 1996, Korn went gold in the United States
• Billboard 200 peak: number 72, reached February 10, 1996
• New Zealand: number 10, after 30 weeks on the chart
• Canadian Alternative 30: "Blind" reached number 15
• ARIA Charts: number 46 at peak, in 1999
• UK Albums Chart: number 181 on February 10, 2001
• Platinum in the United States on January 8, 1997; double platinum from the RIAA on November 10, 1999
• At least 2,100,000 copies sold in the United States by 2003, according to Billboard
• In 2014, Rolling Stone described Korn as the most important metal record of the last 20 years
• In 2017, Rolling Stone placed the album at No. 30 on its list of the 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Davis sang "Daddy" alone in the dark without knowing his vocals were being recorded
• A hidden track in "Daddy" comes after about 4.5 minutes of silence, at 14:05, depicting an argument over a Dodge Dart carburetor
• The album launched the career of producer Ross Robinson, who later produced Sepultura's Roots and Limp Bizkit's debut Three Dollar Bill, Y'all
• "Sean Olson" was put on the single release of "Shoots and Ladders" and also appeared on The Crow: City of Angels soundtrack
• In 2015, Davis ranked the 1994 debut as his favorite Korn album

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

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