Korn's Untitled Eighth Studio Album

Untitled

Korn's untitled eighth studio album will be released on July 31, 2007, through Virgin Records. The band has opted not to give the album a title thus not necessarily naming it Untitled as many fan sites and reporters had believed originally. It will contain twelve tracks and will be the second album without ex-guitarist Brian "Head" Welch and also the second to be produced by the same producer of 2005's smash See You on the Other Side, Atticus Ross. The album is the first in the band's history without contributions from official drummer David Silveria, instead drum tracks were recorded by legendary drummer Terry Bozzio, current Bad Religion drummer Brooks Wackerman and several by Jonathan Davis (who also played select percussion on Korn's 1999 album, Issues). Another first in the band's history sees the inclusion of Zac Baird's keyboards on an album (although two tracks on See You on the Other Side contained uncredited keyboards). The tour supporting the album will feature Slipknot's own Joey Jordison performing live drums since Terry Bozzio left the band after the album's recording. The album will reportedly be released in both standard and deluxe editions, with the deluxe edition containing a bonus DVD.

Vocalist Jonathan Davis commented after the band's performance at the KROQ Weenie Roast y Fiesta that the album has influences of The Beatles and The Cure.

Background information

On August 7, 2006, Jonathan Davis, the frontman of Korn, revealed that the band had begun writing material for their eighth album in an exclusive interview with The Gauntlet: "We did two or three tours for the last album where we wrote stuff and we are working on more stuff out here. We are going to keep working on stuff after the Family Values Tour and get in the studio soon to record it and get it done.

In an interview with The Rock Radio, Davis discussed the process of writing and producing of the album: "Yeah, we're working on it right now. We don't know when we'll put it out... I mean, we're gonna write. It's when we have down time we go and write. But it's exciting and we like writing and keeping that going." Davis said Korn would probably work with See You on the Other Side collaborators "The Matrix" and some different producers on the album.

In what would be proven to be a hacked journal posting, on September 14, 2006, a message that was posted on former guitarist Brian Welch's blog stating that he was rejoining the group: "I've spoken with Jon and Munk' about us and the split.. and finally i can say that I'm taking the right side of the stage again for our next Korn tour and album ;-) I'm so excited!! I will post more later. Peace all..."

Davis would refute this post a day later saying, "It's Bullshit. Not real, false, incorrect, deceitful. Head is NOT coming back to Korn. Repeat... Head is NOT back in Korn."

It was confirmed by Davis that Korn has included a keyboardist in the writing and recording process of the new album named Zac Baird, who toured with the band in 2006 as keyboardist wearing the horse mask. Davis is content with Baird's involvement and stated "He's doing really cool melodies and very ambient stuff too."

In Davis' blog, Davis wrote about the album at the end of September 2006 stating, "I can't wait. I know it's gonna be insane. The band is really on fire and has some phat shit to record." Davis had said in earlier interviews that he and guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer had both been writing new material while on the road in support of the band's last album, See You on the Other Side.

According to Launch Radio, Korn has written and recorded 18 demos of songs in the month of October 2006 with production trio of The Matrix. In mid-November of the same year, Jonathan Davis began recording vocals and said, "I just started singing yesterday on the first song and it's really melodic, but it's still heavy, and it's definitely new and different for us."

Davis also said the group has no intentions of repeating themselves or recording another See You on the Other Side. He elaborates, "You know, we want to step it up another level and try and do some more different stuff." We don't wanna do See You on the Other Side part two. We're just taking our time and getting in there and doing some different kind of stuff, and I'm excited. I can't wait." The band is continuing to write more songs and will begin working with other co-producer Atticus Ross in the near future.

It's been reported Shaffer is experimenting with a new custom 8-string guitar made by Ibanez. The group is also using Open Labs MiKo keyboard for the recording process of the album. Arvizu has also been photographed with a 15-string bass (which was invented 10 years ago by Jauqo III-X) on the band's official website.

In January 2007 Davis reported to Revolver in an interview that five songs had been recorded and another eleven were in demo phase. Davis also added that unlike in the past, he and bass player Arvizu had contributed to writing the guitar parts with Shaffer.

In another interview, from January, with Ultimate Guitar Archive, session drummer Terry Bozzio stated that the band should finish working with The Matrix by the end of February, and at the beginning of that month, band will be recording new tunes with Atticus Ross. Bozzio expected the recording process to be finished in March.

On January 27, Jonathan Davis in an interview with KNAC.com revealed that the new album should be ready for a June 2007 release and has called the music a mix of several styles including heavy "Dirge" music and even a couple of "Prog-Type" songs. The release date was confirmed in an interview with Extreme Rock Radio, where Davis stated that the new album would be released on July 17, 2007 and that exclusive content of the new album will be available on Korn.com, the band's official site, to those that buy MTV Unplugged: Korn.

A song called "I'm the One" appeared on Korn's MySpace page around this time, originally rumoured to be on the album, however this was false. The song was performed during the Korn tour prior, as a live intro. The song can also be seen as featured on the 2006 DVD Live on the Other Side.

Current Status

On April 27, 2007, a new song entitled "I Will Protect You", was posted on Korn's MySpace. The song is approximately five minutes long, featuring a technically proficient drumming section during the bridge of the song. The first single from the album, entitled "Evolution" premiered May 16, 2007 on Los Angeles' KROQ with help from Fieldy and Munky. Both tracks from the new LP can be heard on the group's official MySpace and homepage.

An MTV article published on May 17, 2007 includes an interview with Munky as he details the process of the new studio album as well as reveals several song titles.

On May 28, vocalist Jonathan Davis joined Radio 3FM, after just performing at the Pinkpop Festival in Holland. He commented that the band's upcoming album, stating it "will not be titled." He elaborates by saying, "It's not titled. It's not going to be titled," Davis said. "We had the world's greatest drummer Terry Bozzio in and Brooks Wackerman from Bad Religion in and I played drums on some songs too. I'm so proud of it, we just can't wait to show people what we've done." Titling the album has become an issue for these reasons, as Tod Martens of Billboard.com referred to the album deliberately as Untitled, despite the same reporting claiming it to be Korn (an album the band has already recorded and titled under). Others dismiss the album as titled either, and explicitly claim the album to be virtually untitled (referred to as "Korn's untitled album"). The cover art released on June 14, 2007 contains virtually no text (or even a logo), implying that the album will be known as the latter ["Korn's untitled album"], and not literally titled Untitled. Vocalist Jonathan Davis has said, "We didn't want to label this album. It has no boundaries. It has no limits and why not just let our fans call it whatever they wanna call it?"

"We always wanted the atmospheres, and to really go deep," guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer told Billboard. "It wasn't until this record that we really felt comfortable to do that. As records progress, the urge to do that becomes greater. We feel like we've finally solidified ourselves in the rock world, and wanted to take this one a little deeper into that direction. It's less pop, and it's more experimental."

Korn's eighth studio album is currently set for release through EMI/Virgin on July 31, 2007. The band will venture on the trio's Family Values Tour 2007 several days prior to the release and tour in support of the new record.

On June 15, 2007, bassist Fieldy told Norwegian television channel VG TV that the new album "has a couple of songs on there about [Jonathan Davis] talking about almost dying, which are real heavy because he really experienced death almost so he wrote some songs about it. They're pretty touching, it's cool."

Track listing

1. "Intro"
2. "Starting Over"
3. "Bitch We Got a Problem"
4. "Evolution" – 3:39
5. "Do What They Say"
6. "Innocent Bystander"
7. "I Will Protect You" – 4:57
8. "Hold On"
9. "Ever Be"
10. "Hushaby"
11. "Love and Luxury"
12. "Killing"
13. "Kiss"
14. "Sing Sorrow" (Deluxe Edition bonus track)

Song descriptions

• "Starting Over" — A song where Jonathan Davis channels all of his feelings about the battles he's overcome in the past few years: alcohol addiction, drug dependency, and a near-fatal blood disease. Billboard journalist Todd Martens comments, "The album opens with the seemingly straightforward rocker "Starting Over," but more than halfway through, the guitars drop and give way to a dreamy, psychedelic bridge, only to have the verses resurrected by gospel-inspired keys."

• "Bitch We Got a Problem" — Billboard journalist Todd Martens compares the song to "Do What They Say" as also sporting an almost dance vibe and industrial grooves.

• "Evolution" — Described by Jonathan as "addressing global climate issues." Jonathan said, "It's not political Al Gore shit. I'm just wondering, are my kids' kids going to have a place to live?" The song is also the first single from the upcoming album.

• "Do What They Say" — Billboard journalist Todd Martens comments the song "sports almost dance-y, industrial grooves"

• "I Will Protect You" — Features a bagpipe intro and a very progressive middle section showcasing Bozzio's drumming.

• "Ever Be" — Munky describes the song as having "this epic ending to it — like, imagine 300 set to song. It's crazy." The song is written about Brian "Head" Welch.

• "Hushaby" — Shaffer plays a "reverb-y" mandolin. The definition of a hushaby is a lullaby used to soothe or lull babies to sleep.

• "Love and Luxury" — Davis addresses the departure of ex-guitarist Brian "Head" Welch. In an interview with Billboard.com, Davis says, "I had to vent, It really irritated me that he's putting out this book and profiting off of talking shit about us -- the guys who gave him everything in his life and put him where he's at. If you don't want to be in the band, fine, but don't go out bad mouthing us."

• "Killing" — "It's a hard riff to play, and if you keep playing it for an hour, your arm hurts," Munky explained. "[Frontman Jonathan Davis] was in writing the song with us, so he's the one who came up with the riff — because he's not used to playing hours on end. He was kind of the second guitar player, filling in the blanks for me."

• "Kiss" — One of guitarist Munky's favorite tracks on the new album. "It has piano in it, and there's a very melancholy tone to it," he describes the song. Billboard journalist Todd Martens comments the song has The Beatles' "Strawberry Fields" tones to it.

Guitarist Munky said of the songs, "I don't want to say that it's heavy, because that pisses the other band members off. It's still the Korn sound, but it's also very atmospheric."

Trivia

• "Bitch We Got a Problem" was originally titled "Trained Response".
• "Evolution" was originally titled "Evolutionary Stop".
• "Killing" was originally titled "My Arm Hurts".
• Popular fan titles in reference to the album include ""8", "Pioneer", "Self-Titled", "The Nature Album", "The White Album", "Turn the Crank", and "Untitled".
• This album marks the end of an unusual contract with EMI/Virgin Records. When Korn signed in 2005, they made a mutual-type deal with them: the label paid them about 23 million dollars upfront, in exchange for profits for the first 2 albums that Korn made on their label, touring, and merchandise. This leaves the door open as to what Korn wishes to do in the future: renew contracts with EMI and Virgin, or sign to a new label.

Personnel

• Jonathan Davis - Vocals, Bagpipes, Drums (Select tracks), Lyrics
• James "Munky" Shaffer - 7-String Guitar, 8-String Guitar, Mandolin
• Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu - 5-String Bass, 15-String Bass
• Terry Bozzio - (6 tracks only) Drums & Percussion, co-songwriter
• Brooks Wackerman - (Selected tracks) Drums & Percussion
• Zac Baird - Keyboards, Organ, Synthesizer, Various Instruments, Co-songwriter
• Atticus Ross - Main Producer, Engineering, Programming
• The Matrix - Producer (Left early and material was re-recorded)
• Richard Kirk - Cover art

Terry Bozzio's Departure

After successfully recording six tracks with Bozzio, Zac Baird announced that Bozzio would not be touring with the band on the Family Values Tour 2007. Though not much is known as to why Terry left, Jonathan Davis claimed, "things just got weird." Brooks Wackerman of Bad Religion was brought in to record some tracks, and even Jonathan Davis himself contributed, something not done since 1999's Issues.

The Matrix's Departure

When premiering their new single "Evolution" on KROQ on May 16, 2007, guitarist Munky noted that the band re-recorded much of The Matrix's tracks with Atticus Ross because of the band being dissatisfied with how the material turned out. This was later confirmed in a Reuters/Billboard article:

This time around, amid some changes - founding drummer David Silveria is on hiatus to become a restaurateur, and The Matrix left the project early in the recording process - the band has crafted perhaps its most musically serious work since 2002's "Untouchables". On the album's 12 tracks, Korn balances every chorus with murky keyboard atmospheres and toying arrangements, with songs that deeply explore a mood before exploding into a frenzy.

— Billboard

References

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