More than two years after the last release of an official album, on Feb. 4of 2022, KoRn fans were fed with the 14th official, new nine song album. 

   There have been many simple differences from this album than the rest of their discography that make a huge difference when it comes to the band’s consistency of style. This latest album’s new style introduces  repetitiveness and broken traditions. 

   Nu metal isn’t everyone’s favorite music taste so what is it and who is KoRn? Nu metal is a style of rock music characterized by staccato guitar riffs and typically combining elements of hip-hop (esp. in vocal delivery) with heavy metal (including screaming) and industrial music. KoRn is a nu metal band that consists of Jonathan Davis (lead singer and bagpipes), Brian Welch (guitar), Reginald Arvizu (bass guitar), James Shaffer (guitar), and Ray Luzier (drums).

   “Forgotten” and “Worst Is On Its Way” are the first and last songs on “Requiem,”  were my favorites on the album. Yet they still seem out of place. 

   In their older albums, KoRn usually sticks with the same album template; the first song leads into the album making sure it starts off the same way the last song ends. This makes sure it’s a perfect loop if you listen to the album on repeat. This is a template that “Requiem” did not follow.

   It is very odd for KoRn to change up their style especially since they have been consistent throughout the 23 years they’ve been together. 

    Another consistency that KoRn has stuck to since they started their band is having at least one song in their album that has bagpipes in the background.  Leadsinger and bagpipe player,  Jonathan Davis, who has been playing the bagpipes since he was a child because of his heritage, has since made bagpipes KoRn’s signature sound. Out of the 33 minute and nine song album, none of them have included bagpipes. It is unusual for KoRn to not have any bagpipes playing in the background. 

  KoRn’s last album “The Nothing” was a form of therapy for lead singer, Jonathan Davis, but “Requiem” shows Davis and the rest of the band’s growth in the change of style.

   KoRn’s growth was not translated into the extremely repetitive lyrics of “Penance to Sorrow.” I don’t mind repetitive lyrics, as long as there is some sort of break between the repeats, but this song never lets up. The same four lines of the chorus are repeated over five times, more than necessary and inconsistent with the rest of the chorus repetitions on the album. “I can’t break it, Hurt is sacred all along, The sting of depression follows, I can’t fix it, Piecеs don’t fit things are worn, Destroyed by a pеnance to sorrow.”

   Still despite the album’s overall break in traditions, KoRn stays true to their older days  with Jonathan Davis’ addition of their signature “Freak On a Leash” lyrics. Towards the end of the song “Worst Is On Its Way,” the lyrics “da-boom -na, da-boom, na-na-ema” were added, giving the song the spice reminiscent of their old songs.

   Regardless of tradition, his small nine song, 33 minute album achieved commercial success and success amongst those that mattered most. Their title song, “Forgotten,” reached #6 on KoRn’s most popular songs on Spotify and “Lost In The Grandeur” hit #8. Album’s abnormalities aside, “Requiem” was still loved by fans like myself.