Korn – Narcissistic Cannibal (feat. Skrillex and Kill The Noise)

When I first heard news about Skrillex teaming up with Korn (or is it KoRn?) to produce a new track, I shuddered at the thought. Then I heard the name: “Narcissistic Cannibal.” You’ve got to be kidding me, what does that even mean? It’s dark for the sake of being dark, it’s so kitsch it makes my skin crawl.  I was in high school when nu-metal reigned king, when Jonathan Davis and Fred Durst were infecting popular culture with backwards red baseball caps and teenage angst. Their disappearance into obscurity was welcome, needed, and celebrated. Like the shitty hair metal bands that had come before them, their shtick had worn off; their fans grew up and they stopped voting on Total Request Live. Fast forward to 2011 and Korn seems to have risen from the dead, resurrected by none other than Sonny Moore. You know that imbecile at the beginning of every horror movie? The one who causes all the trouble for everyone? You sit there, wide-eyed and gawking at your television set, “Don’t open the coffin kid, you are going to wake the mummy, DON’T OPEN THE COFFIN!” but what does he do? HE OPENS THE FUCKING COFFIN! Skrillex is that kid.

Maybe it’s Jonathan Davis’ voice stirring up memories of the culture Korn helped spawn that makes this song pain me to listen to. Or maybe its just bad: a contrived attempt at a cash in, masterminded by an irrelevant relic of a chain wallet-wearing past. As a fan of both Skrillex and Kill the Noise, I am appalled at their decision to sell out in a way I never thought possible. Even without Jonathan Davis’ whiney vocals, the beat remains uninspired. I can only hope that this is just one big troll, that Skrillex and KtN aren’t serious about this because, if they are, God save us all…

In 1998 Jonathan Davis made music about killing himself. In 2011 Jonathan Davis makes music that makes me want to kill myself.