Korn is a band that needs no introduction, they speared headed the Nu-Metal genre back in the early nineties and have continued to be one of the best live bands on the planet whilst maintaining the quality of their recorded output. Frontman Jonathan Davis is a true modern day icon for metal whether it be for that signature voice or the lyrics that spoke to an entire generation. Having dabbled in various projects away from Korn, Davis is now ready to unleash his first solo offering, that being Black Labyrinth (Sumerian).

At first, it may be hard for anyone who hasn’t heard his solo work before to separate his voice from his main band, but trust me; stick with it. ‘Underneath My Skin’ kicks off the record and immediately shows Davis’ love for eighties post-punk, in particular with an opening shimmering guitar riff. The bounce and catchiness of the song echoes just how enjoyable and liberating an experience making this album clearly was. Just to show the sheer breadth of influences employed by Davis I’m going to say two words and please don’t click off… World Music. Yes, you read that right! Straight after the gothic overtones of the opener, we get ‘Last Days’ which has an Eastern feel to the percussion, all-the-while marinating lyrical honesty with the electronics that underpin everything, which proves a surprising, but not unpleasant addition to the record.

The second half of the record is where things really take off, a case in point being the one-two punch of ‘Medicate’ and ‘Please Tell Me’. The former reminds of The Cure put through a Nine Inch Nails filter, extremely dark in its lyrical content, again reminding the listener of just how introspective these songs are. The latter is an ode to the New Romantic bands of the eighties, and the keyboards really create an atmosphere that makes you concentrate on every word.

Davis has such a distinctive tone and delivery and is able to seamlessly blend an endless amount of instruments and songwriting styles. This is no small feat as this could quite have easily ended up being bloated and self-indulgent, but instead, the quality is high and there is a lot here that needs to be heard.

7.0/10

KIERAN MITCHELL