Search - Korn :: See You on the Other Side

Different, but Great

Terry Mesnard | Bellevue, NE | 12/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is not the same KoRn we remember. After their last true album, Take a Look in the Mirror, which I happened to like but also which just was a retread of things before, I was wondering if KoRn would change their sound. The resounding answer is yes. KoRn's new cd is heavy but in a different way.



It is atmospheric and ambient, while at the same time holding onto KoRn's very groovable melodies. It pulls in different genres of music, while at the same time being true to that KoRn sound. The major influence, as far as I can tell, is industrial. The 1 minute beginning to the cd and to Twisted Transistor is a perfect example of this, pulling in different sounds, experimenting, keeping you unbalanced until the opening guitars of Twisted Transistor pulls it together. This continues throughout all 14 tracks; songs sometimes bleed into one another, all contain about the same feel which can either be a good thing or a bad thing. Sometimes, groups that keep a similar sound throughout have a chance of becoming boring or repetitious. In my opinion, KoRn treads this line, but every song is more of a hit than a miss.



While the cd is heavy in tone, I think fans will be divided. Its not as raw as some of their earlier works. You won't find songs like Blind or Daddy that have such raw emotion in them. And, unfortunately, the bass guitar work, the sound oh so familiar to KoRn fans, that sounds like percussion at times is lessened. There are a few songs that have it, but overall its not as standout as it once was which I'm a little disappointed in.



I'm not one to give ratings for each individual song. I will point out a couple that are my favorites on the album. Throw Me Away, Love Song and Coming Undone are my favorites because of the tone. Part of the reason I love KoRn is their tone, the timbre of the music and these songs are the best for me. Some of the middle songs do tend to be more midtempo and kind of slow the album down. But I've had this cd for a week (shh don't tell; I'm buying the album today) and even the middle songs which I didn't like in the beginning have grown on me.



This is the limited edition version. What does that mean? Well you get more songs, for one. The two Twisted Transistor mixes (both "meh" but I don't usually like remixes) and two live videos, one of Twisted Transistor and one of Hypocrites. Finally you get 3 "B Sides." I like the B Sides a ton, particularly Its Me Again which would have been a great opening track as Jonathan sings about how he sees things differently. Its kind of tongue in cheek. I also like Le Petit Mort which is the French saying for orgasm, giving an interesting turn to the name of the song Last Legal Drug. You also get one year membership to the KoRn fanclub and a kick ass cd case. Is it worth 20 bucks? That's debatable. But, if you can find it for cheaper (as there are sales right now) I would definitely recommend it.



In the end, I think fans will be divided on this cd. Whenever a band "reinvents" themselves, the longtime fans (of which I'm one) tend to be upset. And I will bet that you will find fans giving quite opposite reviews here shortly. My recommendation is that if you enjoyed Twisted Transistor, you will probably enjoy this cd because the feel of that song continues through the rest of the cd. I wouldn't go so far as to say See You On the Other Side is a KoRn reinvented, however it is easily their most different and unique album; its trying new types of music and its probably their most original and exciting and daring album since KoRn came on the scene with a little song called Blind."

You people need to get a life!!!

Jon Doe | 12/22/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Fist off, Korn is the best band in nu-metal history. They are the ones who basicly started or brought nu-metal to the masses in the underground before metal ever went mainstream. I've gone through so many reviews of either people praising or bashing one of the most influential bands in rock music history. Korn are legends and they deserve more respect than that of "you people" that are stuck on one paticular style they brought out in one of their 7 albums. First off, Korn has never really changed. It's you the fans who make it seem like each album they have become something new, that is either praise-worthy or for lack of a better term "crap". Don't you people have lives? On the TALITM cd, Jonathan sings on the song "I'm done" and he says "I'm done being there for others, they have their pain and so do I". That right there should signaled something to you the fans that the man is tired of carrying you on his back and making music for "you" to feel better. You guys who are like so obsessed with Korn and you need to grow up, literally. Jonathan, as much crap as he's been through, he is really starting to mature into a adutlt and yet all "you", the "fans" have to say is that he isn't the same anymore. And for all fans out there that say that Korn was better when they first came out with songs like blind, ball tongue, and adidas, and all the other early 90's material, Jonathan Davis and the entire band were still practically teenagers. So, you throw slurs at them because now their mature adults and no longer write about things that affected them when they were teens, com' on? I could go all day writing about how stupid and immature you guys really are but I'm not going to. My purpose is to review "See You On The Other Side" cd which is by the way awesome work from Korn.



First off, Korn has never put out "one" bad album. Everyone of them has been good in their own right. The first album is special and is probably their best work to date. Life is Peachy only continued the trend of the first album but never really equaled the quality of the self-titled debut. Follow The Leader was the album that launced them into the mainstream and was very enjoyable especially to those that weren't familiar with them. Issues, was darker and them redifining themselves into darker and more melodic tunes. Untouchables was their come back from a 3-year break and it also had a lot of experimentation and it was their album to mix both the heavy and melodic weird stuff that they do. TALITM was them as quoting, getting back to the basics and going back to the heavy grooves that made the first album so successful. And now, See You On The Other Side. This album is amazing! There's no denying it. I'll agree that it's a different album than their previous albums but nothing really drastic in change. Head leaving the band was probably the best thing that happened to Korn. They were so stuck on pleasing you the fans that they were starting to lose the creative edge that made them into who they are today; rock legends. This is their best since the first ablum "Korn". You people who gave it bad reviews didn't like it because it didn't make you feel the "old" feelings you had when you listened to them back in day. That was basicly like 12-14 years ago, it's over, Korn is no longer living a little more than a decade ago into the past. You can't expect them to stay the same. And in my opinion, I don't think they've changed all that much anyway. Bottomline, this new record is tight and should not be missed by any Korn fan. It's easily there best work since their self-titled debut. My favorite tracks on this cd are all of them. This is Korn's second classic album. I urge all of you who are true korn fans to go out and support the band on this insanely awesome effort from a band that has been through so much and are still the kings of the genre that they pioneered forefronted."

The members of Korn are finally being themselves again

Mister Mitchell | Biloxi, Mississippi | 12/13/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"To fully understand my point of view on this album, you should probably know a little about my history with Korn. They were the band that introduced me to rock music. Period. My first love. The songs that introduced me to them were Freak on a Leash and Got the Life. What made the music so appealing to me was the fact that it was hard and relentless, yet it was (for lack of a better word) groovy. The songs had a definite beat to them, which made their hip hop influences obvious. The guitars were unlike anything I had ever heard before, which only made the songs more interesting and different. Of course, the biggest piece of the puzzle (and the best if I may say so) is Jon's voice. It is one of the most unusual, pleasing voices in hard rock. It can be easily immitated (poorly), but never replicated.



That having been said, now you know what side of Korn drew me to them in the first place. I was not familiar with the dryer, bluntly edged sound of their earlier works until later. Since that time, I have purchased every Korn album and loved them for what they were, as different as they may have been. The album that kind of turned me off was Take a Look in the Mirror. To me, it sounded like Korn was trying too hard to be "heavy" again. I never realized Korn stopped being heavy, but according to some fans, apparently they did. And so Korn tried to compensate with this (as one reviewer said) mediocre album. I didn't listen to Korn for over a year until I heard Word Up on the radio (During that time, my musical tastes expanded. I discovered the wonderful sounds of The Smashing Pumpkins, Bjork, and Radiohead to name a few. That tells you a little something about my musical tastes when picking up the new album). Word Up reminded me of Got the Life very much, and so I couldn't get enough. I finally felt that Korn was relaxing, being themselves again, not trying to force anything out. When news of this new album surfaced, I was hopeful that they would maintain this state of mind. And did they? Yes, they did. And then some.



This album is, in my opinion, the best thing the band has done since Issues. I liked Untouchables a lot, but it just didn't pack that punch I had hoped it would. Also, the songs weren't as memorable as they could have been, in my opinion. This album, however, floods your ears with Munky's familiar distorted effects, the return of Fieldy's funky bass (not just that scattered, unorganized slapping heard on the previous effort), David's catchiest drums ever (think Kick the P.A.), and Jon's voice at its very best, angst-ridden when it needs to be, soft when the emotion of sorrow is needed over that of anger (finally, more of that sound we got a taste of on Hollow Life and Dirty).



My favorite tracks are Open Up, Coming Undone, Tearjerker, and (of course) Twisted Transistor, the best single Korn has put out in a long time (I was really unsatisfied with Ya'll Want a Single). Another note: This album features use of more electonica elements than ever before (something I am very happy about), the return of Jon's scat (made famous on songs like Freak on a Leash and Twist), as well as tons of bagpipes. My only complaint is that the interludes were going to be separate tracks originally, similar to how they were on Issues, but instead were just placed on the ends of songs. This is a picky problem if you plan on making a mix with just one of these songs on your playlist. Also, the artwork is particularly amazing, especially with the Deluxe version, seeing as how it actually has a "pop-up book" type of effect.



Also, the bonus disc is worth the money. The b-sides are just as good as the album tracks, believe it or not. The Last Legal Drug is one of the best songs from their new recording sessions, and I have no idea why it was left off of the album. Also, the remixes are actually very creative and special in their own way. You can actually remember them after listening to them, something most remixes don't accomplish.



Anyway, if you liked Take a Look in the Mirror or didn't think that that album was even heavy enough (My god, how heavy does a song have to be for you to call it heavy? This is Korn, not Slipknot. These guys have intellect and creativity when they're not afraid to show it because of you harsh "true fans"), then you might not like this album. If you loved Issues and Untouchables (and, less specifically, Follow the Leader), then you'll probably love this album to death. They're confident, not afraid to be themselves and demonstrate what they really are: Artists. This album was good enough to make me come out of a 6 month cease of reviewing. :) That should say something."