The Path of Totality

The shift to an electronic direction on Korn’s 10th album reveals a band craving change. Frontman Jonathan Davis wrote on the Roadrunner Records website that the group is creating “future metal” by incorporating dubstep, drum and bass, and house music into its old formula. The King Midas touch of dubstep luminary Skrillex is noticeably present—especially in the opening song, “Chaos Lives in Everything,” where gigantic walls of aggressive electro textures accompany the band’s cathartic nu-metal. Skrillex ramps up his production on the standout cut “Narcissistic Cannibal” (also featuring Kill the Noise), where an arsenal of mechanics interlock with the flesh-and-blood workings of the band’s human attack. KTN also appears on the bonus track “Fuels the Comedy,” a kinetic fusion of Korn’s signature sound braided with rapcore and dubstep. Excision Datsik and Downlink appear on the second bonus song, “Tension.” Overall, The Path of Totality doesn’t sound so much like a new direction for Korn; it plays more like the remix of an entire Korn album of which there's no original version.