Love them or hate them, it is impossible to deny the influence Korn has had on many heavy-metal bands, including Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Breaking Benjamin, Papa Roach and Slipknot. Korn isn’t a band with flashy guitar solos, but they still know how to put on a great concert and are always sure to stop by Utah whenever they’re on tour.
The transitioning guitar riffs between Brian “Head” Welch and James “Munkey” Shaffer, the percussive drum-like bass from Reginald “Fieldy Snutts” (get it?) Arvizu and emotional vocals from Jonathan Davis are some of the trademarks of the band. Head was absent from the band between 2004 and 2012 when he discovered Christ and rejoined the band in 2013 for the bands’ 11th studio album, “The Paradigm Shift.”
Although the band has maintained a loyal fan base, many have been disappointed with the direction the band has taken in their previous two albums — adding electronica and even dubstep into their songs. But “Old Skool” Korn fans’ minds were at ease (in a heavy metal sense) on Wednesday night at Saltair when the band played their self-titled debut album in its entirety. The band has been touring the past couple months to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the album, and their stop to Utah was the second-to-last in North America.
The first track, “Blind,” which has a calm intro that gets more aggressive, is a great way to get the crowd excited. The band has used that song for almost every show for the past 21 years. As each band member takes the stage (starting with Fieldy) the crowd grows more and more anxious until Davis takes the stage, grabs the mic and growls “Are you READY?!” as the song transitions into its main riff, and the crowd explodes into a mosh pit.
What makes this tour unique is the fact that the band plays the final track on the album “Daddy.” The song deals with a traumatic childhood, as Davis experienced sexual assault by a female family friend. The title is a reference to him telling his parents and how they didn’t believe him at the time. “Daddy” had only been played a handful of times back in 1994, and Davis stated the song was too personal for him to perform live and never would. But he surprised everyone in attendance Wednesday. The crowd was certainly uneasy at that moment, and Davis left the stage without saying a word to the crowd, letting his mic hit the floor. However, they were back a short while later to perform a five-song encore. The encore began with “Falling Away From Me,” which first released exactly 16 years ago on the South Park episode “Korn’s Groovy Pirate Ghost Mystery.”
It wouldn’t be a Korn concert without crowd surfing and violent moshing. The crowd certainly gave security their money’s worth — one fan left with paramedics. The crowd consisted mostly of people in their 30s, which makes sense, considering they would’ve been in high school when Korn was at their peak. No doubt it was a great trip down memory lane for them.
Despite a few minor technical problems (back-up mics washed out of the mix), the performance went without a major hitch. Even though Head’s high guitar string broke, he pushed through and didn’t let it affect him. Davis didn’t waste his breath talking to the audience because he couldn’t afford to; he inhaled through an oxygen mask between songs.
The band finished the night with “Freak on a Leash.” Davis thanked the crowd for coming out and “for celebrating 21 mother-f—ing years of Korn!”
“This s–t is amazing, and we couldn’t have done it without you. We love and respect everyone and we’ll be back real soon,” Davis said as the band threw guitar picks and drumsticks into the crowd, before taking their final bow of the evening.
And those who missed this need not worry — Korn are finishing up their 12th studio album and will tour again soon.