Korn, The Nothing | Album Review 💿

Alternative metal collective Korn keeps things dark, heavy, and intense to the nth degree on their 13th LP, ‘The Nothing.’ 

You know, it seems fitting that Korn released its 13th album, The Nothing, on September 13, 2019, which just happened to be Friday the 13th! The Nothing is far from a happy or jubilant affair, built on relentless darkness, heaviness, and intensity.  According to frontman Jonathan Davis via an interview with NME, he states,  “I think the new record is really about all the processes of grieving... There’s everything I was going through. Emotions I was feeling, things I felt were conspiring to stop us from making the record. It really was the worst year of my life.”

As difficult as it is to hear somebody struggling with grief over the loss of their wife and mom (“…Other than my sister, I basically lost all of the women in my life”), The Nothing as an album is quite an intriguing listening experience from start to finish. It’s a fine follow-up to 2016’s The Serenity of Suffering that arguably eclipses that album.  

“The End Begins”

“Why did you leave me? / … Why? Now they are free / Why? And now they’re coming after me…” The brief ‘intro-lude,’ “The End Begins,” definitely sets the tone for The Nothing.  It commences unusually with bagpipes, later accompanied by expected rock/metal instrumentation – drums, guitars, etc. Notably, at the end, the emotions are particularly pronounced – chocked-full of grief – as Davis states in devastated fashion, “Oh God, fuck.”  

✓ “Cold,” the first full-length record, begins ‘coldly,’ in aggressive, biting, and dissonant fashion.  Definitely angry, on both verses, Davis sings in scathing fashion, about plans to either “knock/take this motherfucker down.” Whoa! There’s a degree of funkiness that makes “Cold” quite appealing, albeit in a twisted sort of way. Additionally, the chorus is pretty awesome, finding Davis quite resolute – “This is the time to break it down.”   

“Humiliating, I fall to its craving / It feeds on the doubt in my heart.” ✓ “You’ll Never Find Me” features some truly dark, poetic lyrics. In the same token, Davis is quite honest about his status, asserting on the outro, “I’m not doing fine.” Musically, the backdrop matches the tortured lyricism, with ‘in your face,’ angular, jagged guitars and pummeling drums. Even so, “Never Find Me” also has its melodic moments, finding Korn doing a sound job of balancing things out. “Why must I be bastardized? My essence flees / Search my mind and all I find is banded feelings.” 

The pain definitely continues on “The Darkness is Revealing,” another record that blends the hurt with some truly appealing funky moments. Schadenfreude? Still, “The Darkness is Revealing” still has some lovely melodic moments, such as the moment on the pre-chorus where Davis sings, “And the sun goes down / Taking my heart.” Still, can’t ignore the indisputable angst of the intense, chanted “Where the fuck I’m supposed to go?”  

“Idiosyncrasy” 

One of the very best records of The Nothing arrives with the fifth track, ✓ “Idiosyncrasy.” Korn serves up a bit of everything, which truly makes this record quite idiosyncratic, in addition to its lyrics based around idiosyncrasy itself.  The verses are set in this bright major key, while the pre-chorus shifts to a more aggressive, snarling sound.  The chorus blends the melodic nature of the verse with the darkness of a minor key, finding Davis proclaim at the end, “You hold disgust in your heart / You just fucked with me, idiosyncrasy.” As awesome as the chorus is, arguably the best section of the song is the truly ‘idiosyncratic’ bridge where against chromatic ascending lines Davis states, “God is making fun of me / He’s laughing up there, I can see.”  

“The Seduction of Indulgence” may be short, but it’s as pained and unsettling as anything else that graces The Nothing.  The torture seems literal on the outro, which lists the following things Jonathan Davis encourages to happen to him: “Skinning me, stabbing me / Touching me, licking me / Raping me, skinning me…”  On “Finally Free,” the grief is quite funky once more.  Groove remains Korn’s friend, particularly on the chorus, capped off with the lyrical statement, “This life betrayed you, and you are finally free.” Like previous songs, the bridge is pretty sick, going extraterrestrial compared to the verses/choruses.  

“Can You Hear Me”

✓ “Can You Hear Me” is a straightforward record from The Nothing.  It’s not quite as bold as the likes of “Idiosyncrasy,” yet, it’s a crowd-pleasing record that latches the first time you hear it. “Can You Hear Me” is short, but definitely sweet. Furthermore, there’s still bite and relentless intensity. “The Ringmaster” also keeps things tight, just creeping past three minutes in duration.  Even so, it has a bit more of an unsettling nature than “Can You Hear Me,” integrating some of the good old Korn funk. Musically, the band does a great job of shifting between major and minor, particularly on the verses.  Again, Korn are on their ‘A game’ during the bridge section – let the f-bombs fly boys!  

The bass roars on “Gravity of Discomfort,” which gets one of the sickest intros of The Nothing.  Where the track’s ‘bread is buttered’ on the chorus.  The harmonic progression is thrilling, not to mention just how hooky the chorus is:

“Hate dominates 
Everything I got on my plate 
Feel the weight of my pain 
Crushing my heart, it’s sure to break 
I know it really wants to hurt me for sure 
I know it set me up, it’s death premature.”  

“H@Rd3r”

“Tell me what to feel / This shit can’t be real / Tell me why my life keeps getting ‘ Harder and harder and harder.” ✓ “H@Rd3r” maintains the angry, sad, and full-fledged emotional nature of The Nothing alive and, well, devastated.  “Roll the dice, your number never comes up / Pay the price, and still your life’s fucked up…” Yeah, it’s not good times to say the least.  Life may be fucked up, but nothing is fucked up about “H@rd3r,” which is quite enjoyable.  It’s not only the anger, but the music as well, including a number of production tricks and chromaticism honestly.  

Korn keeps the pedal to the metal on the penultimate standout, ✓ “This Loss.” That isn’t to downplay the melodic nature of the record.  The verses in particular are quite beautiful, even with a gruff, grieving Jonathan Davis at the helm.  Notably on the chorus, we are even treated with some falsetto (!), specifically on the word ‘heart’ (“It’s tearing at my heart (It’s killing me)”).  Speaking of melody, the bridge is the perfect example of Davis playing up the melodic, quite epic with incredibly soulful vocals. The brief ✓ “Surrender to Failure” caps off The Nothing sensationally, feeling like the proper follow-up to “The End Begins.” This is the acceptance of grieving process essentially. That acceptance remains dark of course, as the title suggests, and Davis asserts on the outro, “I’ve failed.”  

Final Thoughts

Not taking the time to review advance singles to The Nothing, I had no set expectations. I was a fan of The Serenity of Suffering, but wasn’t necessarily highly anticipating the follow-up.  Thankfully, I partook of The Nothing and found it to be an excellent album through and through. Jonathan Davis and Korn does a fantastic job of capturing darkness and pain, made even more personal given what Davis endured leading up to this project.  There are no missteps from my perspective – plenty to love about The Nothing despite the pain exhibited throughout.  

✓ Gems: “Cold,” “You’ll Never Find Me,” “Idiosyncrasy,” “Can You Hear Me,””H@rd3r,” “The Loss” & “Surrender to Failure”

Korn • The Nothing • Roadrunner • Release: 9.13.19 

Photo Credit: Roadrunner