June 11, 2002 - Untouchables

Two weeks after my last release and two and a half years since "Issues", Korn released their fifth album "Untouchables" on June 11, 2002. Tensions were high amongst the band members during this time and they considered firing bassist Fieldy due to his drug problems, but it's still the same original line-up playing the same nu-metal that Korn has pioneered. Let's check out the latest!

The album kicks off with it's lead single "Here To Stay" and you can still tell that it's Korn right away with some heavy guitars and some dirty and super low bass by Fieldy. It's a really groovy and pretty catchy main riff and Jonathan Davis sounds good singing/yelling overtop. It's an easy choice for a single with such a toe-tapping main riff, but it's still very Korn with plenty of heaviness. Up next is "Make Believe" and one of Head or Munky plays a distorted and creepy lead guitar riff, while the other plays an interesting rhythm guitar riff and this combines for a unique main riff that sounds pretty cool. The chorus is super slow but decently heavy and Davis sounds solid singing slowly to match the mood. This song is a little repetitive by the end, but it's still interesting for sure. Track 3 is "Blame" and Head, Munky and Fieldy all sync up for this chorus riff that is fast, catchy, and super loud and in your face. The verse has some more creepy and cool guitars while Fieldy plays some pretty sweet bass and there's also another riff with Davis singing pretty quickly that is also pretty good. This song is pretty melodic for Korn, and while that means at times it's not heavy, it's an interesting break from their usual routine, even if it's not their best song. The next track is "Hollow Life" and it has yet another very unique riff with all kinds of stuff happening. Some droning rhythm guitar, some creepy lead guitar, some soft singing, a decent little drum beat by David Silveria, and even some keyboard at times just to spice things up even more! The chorus is louder in just about every aspects but still very slow and melodic and this is very abnormal, but they're doing a really good job on this one I think. After a couple rounds things get really quiet as Davus leads a quietly epic new verse, then it's back for a final verse and chorus. Again, not their best stuff, but it is interesting to hear them do some outside the box thinking. Track 5 is "Bottled Up Inside" and it is exactly what you think of as "typical" Korn with a heavy and decently catchy main riff and a headbanging and heavy rhythm section to match. Davis loudly sings/yells a solid verse and he sets the stage for the chorus really nicely, and it's a decently catchy and typical chorus as well. There's no real wow factor though, by Korn's standards, it's very predictable and average. Up next is another big single titled "Thoughtless" and it's got another interesting guitar riff leading the way with some creepy distortion. Korn seem to be liking riffs that are a little atypical and not as heavy on this album, but even if they're not at their headbanging best, it is refreshing to see them mix things up a bit and this is another pretty catchy single with Davis nicely singing overtop. After a couple rounds we get out first instance this album of Davis doing some of his heavy scat singing and as usual he sounds pretty good. A solid single for sure! Track 7 is "Hating" and one guitarist plays a distorted/computer-y main guitar riff to lead the way. Silveria adds a cool slow drum beat and then the other guitarist adds a light, differently distorted riff that makes for another interesting main riff. They ramp nicely into the chorus, which is fairly slow and bland for Korn. It's a good song for sure, but compared to those first two albums, it falls way short, something you could probably say for just about every song on this album. The next track is "One More Time" and words aren't doing proper justice to the variety of riffs Korn are writing when I say (once again) that it's a distorted and creepy guitar riff leading the way, a creepy and heavier rhythm section to match, and Davis singing/yelling nicely overtop. The chorus is loud and pretty catchy and Davis sings in a nice high voice at times that sounds pretty good as well. Another decent, but not spectacular tune. Track 9 is the final single "Alone I Break" and it also follows the album formula with some creepy and distorted guitar by one guitarist and a catchy rhythm guitar riff along with some groovy bass for another abnormal but interesting main riff. The chorus is almost acoustic it's so quiet and this is definitely unheard of for Korn and it's not what their best at honestly. Apparently others liked this change of pace; it was a decently succesful single, but it's not what I'm looking for from Korn. Up next is "Embrace" and after a short creepy opening they slam nicely into my kind of Korn riff that is really heavy, but also got a nice bounce to it. Davis screams in his heaviest vocal performance of the album and it makes for probably the best verse of the album in my opinion! The chorus has mostly singing, but still some screaming and it's not surprising that this is my favourite song on the album, it's more like their earlier stuff! Track 11 is "Beat It Upright" and it follows the same formula as most songs on this album. Lots of distorted guitars, some cool low bass by Fieldy and some solid singing by Davis, but once again they seem to happy to stick to the main drag and never really spice things up more than the baseline. The next track is "Wake Up Hate" and it's got a fast-paced and pretty catchy main riff with Davis yelling quickly overtop to match. Davis sings in an almost a whisper at the end of the verse, then they slam back into the loud chorus. Formulaic again in that things sound good, but they just jam out the verse and chorus. Track 13 is "I'm Hiding" and it's got a slower, chugging chorus riff that sounds pretty good, and a quiet and creepy verse that's pretty tame. The vibes are super creepy, but there's not much going on until they slam back into the chugging chorus, and not anything extra to pique your interest. The final sing on the album is "No One's There" and it's listed at around nine and a half minutes, but we know Korn like to do bonus songs. It's got a slow main riff with some catchy guitars by both Munky and Head and a catchy drum beat by Silveria as Davis sings softly to match the mood. Things get heavier in the chorus as everyone picks it up nicely: better drums, bass, guitars and vocals in my opinion! It still fits the formula, but I liked this one a little better, but still not too amazing. This actually ends at 5:00 exactly, then after a couple seconds of silence we unsurprisingly get our bonus song, a remix of the album's lead single "Here To Stay (T-Ray's Mix)". The vocals are pretty much the same, but there's almost no guitars and instead we have some super basic hip-hop style beats. I bet you can guess my opinions on this remix... it's nowhere near as good as the actual song. Korn without guitars isn't anything too special. A disappointing bonus song for me.

That is the end of "Untouchables" and I thought it was a decent album, but definitely a lesser one by Korn's standards. Most of the time they just don't seem interested in fully developing songs, just jamming out verses and choruses. There's some good songs and none of it is truly bad, it's all just a little meh. I don't even think it surpasses "Follow The Leader" so 5th out of 5 is where we fall. Where will Korn go from here?