| Take a Look in the Mirror poses an interesting dilemma for Korn: what happens when the genre you birthed starts smelling as whiffy as a three-day-old corpse? Korn's eponymous 1994 debut laid the foundation for the rap-rock boom of the late 1990s, but their subsequent string of records did little to advance the template and 2002's brooding, experimental Untouchables saw fans switching off in droves. Consequently, Take a Look in the Mirror, the South Californian quintet's sixth album, is an attempt to right the decline through the trumpeting of past glories. The tortured opener "Right Now" harks back to career highlight "Faget", bassist Fieldy and drummer David Silveria seemingly keen to prove they're still one of rock's most consistently pile driver-powerful rhythm sections. But no amount of phlegm and profanity can disguise the fact that frontman Jonathan Davis' lyrics are dysfunction-by-rote and apart from a so-so guest spot by Nas ("Play Me") and a couple of deliciously wicked gothic numbers in the shape of "Deep Inside" and "Everything I've Known", this is the sound of a band treading water. Fans may relish Korn's return to the rap-metal dark ages, but if the genre's starting to smell decidedly stale for you, Take a Look in the Mirror should prove anything but a breath of fresh air. --Louis Pattison |
