Promoted via a South Park episode, Korn had made it to the top of the proverbial ‘90s cool mountain. On their fourth album, “Issues,” Korn kept the momentum going, officially being a runaway phenomenon at this point. The album was so popular on release that it locked out Dr. Dre and Celion Dion from the top spots on the Billboard 200 list. Frontman Jonathan Davis had been struggling with addiction throughout their career but after a severe panic attack partly caused by his underlying anxiety, Davis decided to get sober. “Issues” is all about this internal battle within Davis.
The definitive nu-metal band, Korn not only popularized the genre but also dominated it for most of the ‘90s, competing with greats Slipknot, Marilyn Manson and Limp Bizkit. They captured a uniquely angsty generation of teens before rock’s gradual fall from grace but in a pre-internet era, allowing them to be some of the last true rockstars. Although they weren’t the most influential band of the 90s (that title fell on Nirvana), Korn were close runners-up, inspiring several subgenres of music, popularizing a crusty Adidas aesthetic and making metal cool again.
