In recent years, Korn - the poster boys of nu-metal – have watched their star power begin to fade. Lackluster album sales and unflattering critical reviews of Untouchables and Take a Look in the Mirror raised the question of whether this group still had staying power in today’s music scene. In 2005 came See You On The Other Side, Korn’s latest attempt to re-establish themselves as kings of the nu-metal hill. If Korn’s star had been fading prior to this hideous fiasco, then See You On The Other Side sees the band’s star collapse on itself, turn into a supernova, and implode, wiping out everything in its path. In simple English, it blows.

One has to bear in mind that Korn has never been capable of doing anything truly original or masterful. Their music is fairly straightforward, with down-tuned crunchy guitars spread over gravelly vocals, thumping bass and hammering percussion. This formula has yielded several monster hit singles, notably Falling Away From Me and Got The Life, but anyone claiming they’ve revolutionized metal music is either loaded up on amphetamines or a member of the band’s families. The United States will become a communist nation before Korn produces a five-star quality album. Nevertheless, both of the band’s previous albums, Untouchables and Take a Look in the Mirror, featured some lively cuts, and overall, were the highlights of the band’s tumultuous career. This is what makes their most recent failure so puzzling and frustrating, as all the good work of their recent albums evaporates in an instant. See You On The Other Side is nothing less than a monumental disaster.

In true Korn fashion, the lead single opens the album on a high note. Twisted Transistor features a punchy low guitar and a melodic chorus that will hook you like a trout. Jonathan Davis doesn’t exactly put on a vocal clinic, but his familiar throaty growls and airy melodies get the job done. Politics is another positive step forward, with Fieldy’s resounding bass laying the groundwork for Davis to condemn the current political landscape, “Don’t give a sh*t about politics!” It’s not high art, but it will have to do. After this, there won’t be another respectable song for a long time.

Hypocrites is a laboring, tortured animal that simply begs to be put down. Davis’ simplistic and nauseating yelling combined with Munky’s derivative guitar riffs make for an unsightly pairing. Souvenir is equally awful, with a squealing guitar hook that will ring in your ears and drown out your screams of anguish. 10 or a 2 Way is another sex themed song in the tradition of A.D.I.D.A.S. Lyrically abysmal and musically obnoxious, Hell will freeze over before I warm up to this excruciating blunder. Davis tacks on some bagpipes at the end just for kicks, but its dismal fate was sealed long the aggravating bagpipes break in. The album’s free fall only gets worse from here on in.

Perhaps the loss of veteran guitarist and founding member of Korn, Brian ‘Head’ Welch was more of a blow to the band than I initially suspected. With James ‘Munky’ Shaffer forced to assume all guitar duties, he flounders for the better part of the album trying to come up with something original and engaging. Exasperating songs like Open Up has him playing the same three chords endlessly, while the grotesque Getting Off similarly offers little drive or innovation. Long-time fans will wonder where the pummeling hooks of Right Now or atmospheric edginess of Falling Away From Me have gone to. Still, it’s not like the rest of the band is there to bail him out; David Silveria’s drumming is strikingly ordinary, and Davis’ vocals are limited to senseless yelling minus his usual melodic sharpness.

Even the catchy chorus and zany bridge of Liar aren’t enough to rescue it from Dante’s inferno. The ninety seconds of pointless filler noise added on to the end destroys any promise this song had. After the insufferable For No One finally subsides, Korn at last cranks out something worth listening to, that being Seen It All. The emotional bridge is the song’s biggest selling point, as the oppressive noise fades to a mournful piano and Davis’ pained vocals. Still, the six-minute run time often feels like an eternity. I could run the Boston Marathon in the time it takes for this song to play out. The finale, Tearjerker, utilizes Davis’ melodic vocals and generally spares us of his horrid wails. After a plodding three and a half minutes, things pick up as the rest of the band joins in the fray. The lingering guitar chords gradually fade to silence, as Korn’s most torturous CD since their debut comes to a longed-for conclusion.

I don’t think there’s a person alive who could have seen the unimaginable horrors that See You On The Other Side would generate. Despite a fine start, things quickly sour, leaving a putrid smell emanating from your CD player, like swine manure or rotten eggs. Korn has always been able to churn out songs with ferocious vocals and stomping riffs, but their latest album is a faceless compilation of redundant noise. In all honesty, if Korn disappeared from the music scene tomorrow, I would not shed a tear, especially after having to endure the unrivaled agony of listening to this horrendous debacle. Torture really isn’t a strong enough word to describe my listening experience of See You On The Other Side. Hands down, this is the worst album of 2005.

Recommended: No