Korn – The Paradigm Shift

With a single stroke of a heavily-detuned guitar, Korn changed the tone of top-40 metal forever in the early ’90s. Since, drugs, egos and some questionable albums have plagued the band, begging the question, ‘Are Korn still relevant?’
The Paradigm Shift sees the return of guitarist Brian “Head” Welch for his first album in 10 years, and there’s a simultaneous return to the band’s classic sound. Instantly, opening track ‘Prey for Me’ reminds us why nu-metal became so popular: it’s heavy; it’s tight; it grooves; it makes you want to bounce. The production is polished, thanks to Don Gilmore (Linkin Park’s Hybrid Theory and Meteora) and ‘Love and Meth’ and ‘Spike in my Veins’ deliver classic Korn. First single ‘Never Never’ and dark anthem ‘Lullaby for a Sadist’ are great examples of how strong the song writing is on this record.