Quote:
Originally Posted by biguc
I meant to comment on this earlier. I got into Korn during last year's lockdown and they were a revelation--very musically serious. Jonathan Davis is a great song writer; he put down some thought-provoking lyrics. And the band's funky-metal sound is significantly different from the hard rock band with a DJ and whiteboy rapper sound of some of their later peers.
On that same musical trip I rediscovered System of a Down. They're just excellent. But are they nu metal?
Anyway, it's a genre that deserves better than Fred Durst.
|
"Blind" - the first track off of Korn's first album is probably the best intro the genre could have. 13 year old me was blown away when I heard it, and I knew immediately I was into this. I'd also highly recommend revisiting Deftones if you haven't, particularly "White Pony" which is an incredible album.
SOAD is generally considered Nu-Metal, but it is an interesting definition. Unlike other metal genres which can get hyper specific about musical style, Nu-Metal is kind of a broad catch-all for a bunch of bands that started around that time that shared some musical / image stylings. "Rap-rock" is often used interchangeably, but a lot of Nu-metal bands (including Korn) didn't really do it much at all. I generally consider the core original bands to be Korn, Deftones and Limp Bizkit (whether we like it or not!). Slightly later ones would include stuff like System of a Down and Slipknot, but also then branches out into "Nu-metal adjacent" stuff like Linkin Park and Orgy which while very different than Korn still fall under the larger umbrella.
There were a lot of one-offs in the genre - especially as it got popular - but other bands have continued to release and innovate. Deftones and System of a Down in particular have seemed to move beyond that label and come into their own. Korn is still recognizable in their sound, but hey, they came up with it!
Regarding Limp Bizkit I have mixed feelings. When Three Dollar Bill, Y'all came out I enjoyed it, but absolutely hated the stylistic shift of their subsequent releases and rise in popularity. Looking back now I have a weird respect for Fred Durst as someone who seems to know exactly what they are doing and doesn't take himself seriously. That's the vibe he gives off now at least, he could very well have been very obnoxious at the time. Also Wes Borland may be the most talented guitarist in the genre, and brought a weirdness to an otherwise extremely bro-ey band. That being said there's no way in hell I'm going to listen to "Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog Flavored Water".