Review Summary: one of those collections you won't hesitate in throwing out.
As if we needed another reminder of the atrocity known as ‘nu-metal’, Korn, or at least their label, has deemed it musically (financially) worthy to release yet another compilation of severely used and abused material. One wonders at the ultimate purpose behind this particular release; the band has already released a ‘greatest hits’, along with other collections containing prime examples of their ‘illustrious’ career, and
Collected seems to be nothing more than a blatant money grab on behalf of the record label.
For the uninitiated, Korn’s brand of watered down heavy metal is nothing more than a mediocre assembly of poorly executed riffs, awkwardly held together by an industrial-influenced aesthetic. To say that the majority of their music is lifeless and void of any feeling would not be an overstatement, and even with a compilation of what is considered their better songs, Korn still fail to impress.
The album opens with ‘Blind’, a fan favourite from their debut, and although the song has potential in its eerie tones and quirky nature, it does little to lighten one’s mood of the forthcoming monotony. The genre’s attempt at fusing metal and rap is very much apparent in Korn’s music, with ‘All in the Family’ built around spoken interludes and final track ‘Play Me’ featuring rapper Nas. Despite the bad taste rap metal leaves in one’s mouth, Nas is a very well reputed rapper and his average performance on the track is one of the better portions of the album.
It would be unwise to completely degrade the band; they have on the rare occasion gotten their shoddy formula right, as can be heard on what is probably their most well known song ‘Freak on a Leash’. However, that particular track is mysteriously absent from
Collected, the album’s description as ‘a selection of their finest tracks’ notwithstanding. If you’re a fan of the band, you already have these songs. If not,
Collected does not offer anything remotely interesting from a musical perspective, and thus should be avoided at all costs.
