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NU SPECIAL 2014
PRESENTS...
PRESENTS The Loco Story Of...
08 Roots of nu metal Your guide to the bands that helped shape the sound of nu metal.
12 Korn
New chat with Jonathan Davis, plus an in-depth archive feature.
22 Nu metal moments
Slipknot on TFI, Linkin Park with Jay-Z and more.
26 Papa roach
All the best action from P-Roach’s nu metal legacy.
34 Freaks
Nu metal’s most outlandish looks uncovered!
38 Limp bizkit
Fred Durst as you’ve never heard him before in this all-new chat.
46 Hip hop invasion
How the world of rap changed metal culture forever.
50 Deftones
The inside story of one of metal’s most inventive bands.
58 Iconic videos Bullets! Ping pong! Ladybirds!
62 Disturbed
The early days of David Draiman’s industrial-tinged warriors.
68 Essentials
The fundamentals of nu metal revealed.
72 Slipknot
The early days of the Des Moines noise terrorists revived.
80 Ross robinson
Nu metal’s most influential producer shares his darkest secrets.
84 Incubus
A celebration of the genre’s funkiest advocates.
92 Family values
Inside the tour that changed it all with curator Jonathan Davis.
96 Linkin park
Chester and Mike leak the untold story of Hybrid Theory.
106 Nu metal’s worst bands There’s no place to hide for the dregs of nu metal!
110 Coal chamber
Dez’s spookycore crew get the full retrospective treatment.
116 Unsung heroes
We throw the spotlight on nu metal’s overlooked luminaries.
118 System of a down
Revisit the story of one of heavy music’s most unique bands.
126 Top 40
A countdown of nu metal’s greatest tracks of all time.
130 Brave nu world
The bands resurrecting nu metal for the next generation. 6 metalhammer.co.uk
metalhammer.co.uk 7
Keep all ‘helmet in the bush’ jokes to yourself
14 metalhammer.co.uk
Ahead of the release of Follow The Leader, Hammer caught up with Jonathan and Munky to talk about cracking the mainstream and putting bananas inside members of Marilyn Manson. WORDS: Dan Silver PHOTOS: MICK HUTSON he Costes Hotel, situated
we haven’t heard it yet. Or at least, not all of it.
bang in the centre of one
However, if the five tracks we have been privy
of Paris’s more upmarket
to are anything to go by, then Follow The Leader
districts, is, if not the
will be a stormer, the true follow-up to the jaw-
height of luxury, then
dropping headfuck that was their eponymous
at least of a sufficient
debut – as opposed to the disappointing
altitude to induce pretty
second album Life Is Peachy. This, Korn fans,
severe vertigo. A once-
is the real deal.
over of the clientele lunching out in the terrace
“This could be the one, this could be it for us,”
restaurant reveals an impeccably turned out
speculates Jonathan Davis over a wake-up call
David Ginola, doubtless gathering his thoughts
Jack Daniels and Coke. “This is the album that
for his next piercing insight as part of the BBC’s
makes of breaks your career. If the third album
World Cup pundit panel, the ever-suave Johnny
does well then you’re set for life.
Depp and an assorted collection of Armani’d up nouveau riche. In their midst sits a tallish fella with hair like
“I’m stressed out at the fact that it’s that good,” adds the frontman, and it’s a good thing too, because once the dust on Life Is Peachy
matted straw, decked head to toe in casual
had settled, the considered opinion was that
sports gear, hunched low over a plate of
it was, well, arse. [It really wasn’t – Ed.] After the
mozzarella and tomatoes, enthusing in a slightly
ground-breaking debut, to be presented with
whiny American accent about the quality of
such a similar, and thus ultimately redundant,
French food. His companion, slightly tanned
record was a massive disappointment, which
and sporting chunkier, neater dreads, but
the critics ultimately turned on. Fortunately,
looking no more healthy than the first, grunts in
Korn know this too.
acknowledgement, while toying with his multi-
“Well, yeah, we knew, it was obvious. We know
storey club sandwich. As the French chattering
that album sucked,” admits Jonathan, before
classes get at one with their déjeuner, you can’t
going on to qualify this statement with: “Well it
help but wonder what they make of Korn’s
didn’t suck, there’s good songs on there, but we
Jonathan Davis and James ‘Munky’ Shaffer,
know we rushed it. We were really upset with the
enjoying one of the many fringe benefits of
last album. It was awesome, but it could’ve been
being multi-platinum-selling rock stars.
better. We settled.
Hammer is in Paris to chat to Korn about their impending new album Follow The Leader, by
“I’m schizo, I have two personalities. I never have any guilt that I have a wife and kid at home. I party” Jonathan Davis
“Life Is Peachy is all at one tempo, it’s all the same,” Jonathan continues. “On Follow The
their own admission the most important of their
Leader, we’ve got a lot of weird things going
career to date, but there’s one small problem:
on, a lot of variety.” metalhammer.co.uk 15
LIMP BIZKIT: SIGNIFICANT OTHER ERA BIZKIT FEATURING WES’S FORAY INTO THE BIZARRE AND THAT RED CAP
38 metalhammer.co.uk
The band that captured the minds of the mainstream and best defined nu metal. WORDS: TOM DOYLE f nu metal was ruled
Three Dollar Bill, Y’all – onwards, it was clear
by charismatic,
that Bizkit were lovers of rap and rock in equal
ostentatious frontmen,
measures. This was not the hokey Run-DMC
it’s no surprise that the
and Aerosmith novelty we were used to seeing.
band people associate
This was a genuine hybrid. As if any more
with the genre above
proof were needed, the band’s second album,
all others had the most
Significant Other, featured guest appearances
outlandish frontman
from both Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots
going. Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst was nothing
and Method Man of Wu-Tang Clan. There really
short of a phenomenon. A foul-mouthed whirling
were absolutely no boundaries. And while the
dervish who was two parts bravado and one
band faced criticism in the aftermath of mass
part deep self-loathing, it was his ubiquity and
violence during their set at Woodstock ’99, it
infamy that helped catapult Limp Bizkit into
wouldn’t stop them creating songs that were
pop culture’s glaring limelight. Everything about
musical dynamite to mosh pits everywhere.
Durst was instantly recognisable. Your father,
The year after the ruckus at Woodstock,
your mother, your sister, your brother – all of
Bizkit unleashed Chocolate Starfish And The
them knew what a backwards red cap meant in
Hot Dog Flavored Water. A bona fide behemoth
2001. He was a cartoon, larger than life, a new
of a record, it was an unstoppable hit-fest
generation of rock star. He was brilliant.
which saw the band flung into the mainstream
I Like Limp Bizkit
A DAY TO REMEMBER
public consciousness, with songs like Rollin’
“There’s something about Limp
cartoonish-looking member of his band. That
and My Way proving to be crossover smashes.
Bizkit, the music they wrote and
accolade went to Wes Borland, the guitarist
Durst’s knack of mixing up yell-yourself-hoarse
their overall vibe that’s made to
Ironically, Durst wasn’t even the most
whose churning riffs were the engine room
choruses with crunching breakdowns
of Bizkit’s brand of balls-out hedonism and
was one that was hard for people
control a crowd of any size. I don’t even think it’s intentional – they do
of all walks of life to resist – even
their show without having to do any
impeccable rhythm section of Sam Rivers
if some more ‘tr00’ metal fans
stunts or anything crazy. It’s one
and John Otto, and with the help of DJ Lethal
stuck their noses up at the
of the most inspiring things. We
all-encompassing anger. Together with the
bringing it on, Limp Bizkit were the
band’s genre-bending ways.
watched them every night we played
band who, more than any other
It didn’t matter by then, of course.
with them on festivals. They played
of the nu metal generation, fully and most obviously embraced the influence of hip hop. Sure,
Limp Bizkit were a staple of the mainstream, their frontman even getting namechecked by the likes
right after us at Download and to watch 80,000 people go that nuts… Fred doesn’t even have to
there were plenty of other acts
of Eminem in songs about sexual
go crazy. There’s just a vibe and
bringing in rap influences, but it
encounters with pop starlets.
an aura to Limp Bizkit that makes
was the Jacksonville quintet who
Most importantly of all, though,
people go crazy. The hardest of
were donning the big shorts,
Bizkit were a genuinely great
hardcore bands can’t get the vibe
rocking Adidas shell tops and
band, whose power, punch and
to that many people to go that nuts.
give-a-fuck attitude helped not
Surely everyone loved Limp Bizkit
only to define nu metal, but also
at some point in their lives. They
emblazoning their album covers in graffiti fonts. From their debut record – the Ross Robinson-produced
converted a whole generation
didn’t? They’re lying to themselves.”
of kids into rock fans. metalhammer.co.uk 39
72 metalhammer.co.uk
They quickly became too heavy for nu metal but Slipknot arrived in a hail of DJ scratches, rap influence and extreme reckless abandon. WORDS: Dom Lawson PHOTO: MICK HUTSON hile the nu
In truth, Slipknot unintentionally sounded nu
metal era was
metal’s death knell. These nine masked men from
undeniably
the middle of fucking nowhere plainly owed a debt
responsible for
to their Adidas-adorned forebears, but within the
unprecedented
first few seconds of [sic], the opening track from the
levels of
band’s eponymous debut, it was abundantly clear
polarisation
that the nu rulebook was being comprehensively
among the metal
trashed and rebuilt as something much more
faithful, one band gleefully made a mockery of the notion that this new approach to heavy
I Like Slipkn
ot
dangerous, daring and downright destructive. The clattering breakbeats and disorientating
music represented some kind of betrayal of
noise that fizzed and snarled at the heart of a song
cherished atavistic values. Careering into view
like Eyeless –arguably nu metal’s most exciting four
in the same year that Limp Bizkit made their first
minutes – belonged firmly to modern times, but the
credible bid for mainstream glory with Significant
core of Slipknot’s sound had far more in common
“I first heard (sic) on a body-
PARKWAY DRIVE
Other, the first Slipknot album was nothing
with the blistering, ultra-ugly slice of brutal death
boarding video and it’s still one of
short of bewildering. A remorselessly brutal
metal than with Coal Chamber or Orgy. For every
those tracks that I get stoked on
and uncompromising onslaught of foul, chaotic
astute squall of almost radio-friendly bluster like
and you always want it to be in the
riffing and throat-wrenching vocal hostility, it
Wait And Bleed or Spit It Out, Slipknot had several
live set. I wasn’t really into nu metal
showcased a band unafraid of embracing many
much less user-friendly outbursts, ranging from
at all but Slipknot were different
of nu metal’s key traits.
bellicose tirades like Surfacing and No Life through
to all of the other bands. It feels
to amorphous, sludgy dirges like Prosthetics and
weird to say it when you look at
harrowing eight-minute closer Scissors.
the suits and masks but it felt a bit
From the frenzied turntable wizardry of DJ Sid Wilson and the colon-flagellating rumble of
Those who dug deeper discovered the feral
less goofy. It was raw and loads of
of Corey Taylor’s quasi-rap vocal delivery and
attack of bonus cuts Get This and Eeyore, even
different elements went into it. It
the superficial impression that they had at
further removed from nu-metal’s polished façade.
didn’t sound contrived and even
least two more members than any band could
Slipknot arrived fully formed, angry as fuck and
among all of the insane heaviness,
ever realistically require, Slipknot were plainly
ready for war, as they kicked the door open for
there’s still melody in there. It’s not
a product of the post-Korn age.
Lamb Of God, Killswitch Engage, Trivium and
controlled heaviness either. There’s
countless others for whom old-school metal values
people just smashing kegs and
were no longer derided relics of a bygone age.
there’s all of these crazy sounds
Paul Gray’s bass lines to the staccato verbosity
But underneath that pointedly contemporary exterior, a malignant undercurrent of underground extremity and diehard metallic
When nu metal stumbled into obsolescence
and samples scratched up and it’s
devotion ensured that no matter how frequently
a couple of years later, Iowa’s finest just kept
just layer upon layer of craziness.
exasperated purists decried Slipknot’s rise to
getting stronger, casually defying the odds to
To me, Slipknot were the sound of
prominence, the notion that the Iowan nonet were
become one of the biggest rock bands on the
controlled chaos even when they
anything other than an authentic heavy metal
planet. More than a decade on and they’re
were a nu metal band.”
band was never more than wholly preposterous.
still there: unique, inspired and unstoppable. metalhammer.co.uk 73
THE DEFINITIVE LINKIN PARK SHOT TO PROMOTE HYBRID THEORY
96 metalhammer.co.uk
Nu metal’s most commercially successful band turned the world of metal on its head and remain one of the biggest acts in the world today. WORDS: Tom Doyle inkin Park have
Following such an all-conquering behemoth
made the biggest-
should have been a struggle yet with Meteora,
selling debut album
Linkin Park delivered an album which satisfied
of the 21st century.
the vast majority of appetites. The singles Faint,
Breathe that fact in
Somewhere I Belong and Numb in particular
for a second. Bigger
picked up from where Hybrid Theory left off,
than Adele, bigger
slickly produced off-ya-feet gold that could
than Lady Gaga,
raise the pulse of even the most hardened
bigger than absolutely everyone. When Hybrid
cynic. The album was another commercial
Theory hit, it was like a tidal wave sweeping
smash. Some 16 million copies sold and
through the world of metal, rock and beyond.
the most successful record to ever hit US
As inescapable as it was powerful, it quickly
alternative radio? Not a bad day’s work.
became the benchmark by which all other
Unfortunately, from that point
I Like Linkin Park
ISSUES “I grew up on country music and then I discovered N*Sync, R Kelly and
contenders were judged. They had taken the nu
onwards the band began to be
Usher and hearing Linkin Park was,
metal formula and distilled it to utter perfection.
overtaken by challengers who years
to me, like a metal band but one that
earlier would only have been snapping at
I could relate to. It wasn’t this huge
with its swooping DJ embellishments, to the
their heels. For all their ability, Bennington and
jump into super heavy music, Linkin
futuristic pulse of closer Pushing Me Away,
Shinoda lacked the personality of Fred Durst
Park was a natural step into what I
Hybrid Theory is an album that doles out
and collectively they seemed unable to move with
would listen to next. It could appeal to
massive hooks like Zakk Wylde dishes out
the times in the manner that Papa Roach and
someone like me that liked what they
pinch harmonics.
From the spidering opening riff of Papercut,
Deftones did. The result was that their futuristic
heard and discovered heavier guitars
Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda were
shtick, which chimed so well as we entered a new
but could still enjoy the melodies.
a formidable duo up front: the latter offered the
century, suddenly felt very dated only a few years
I got into them when Breaking The
twisting rhymes that propelled the band’s verses
down the line, even if they were still capable of the
Habit hit radio but after that me
along with fist-pumping gusto, but it was the
odd moment of brilliance (What I’ve Done, Burn It
and all my friends got into Hybrid
former who was the true weapon. Bennington’s
Down, Bleed It Out), and some of the tunes from
Theory and it was a huge part of my
coarse singing timbre lit up Linkin Park’s songs
their heyday had a little life breathed back into
childhood and made us skaters and
with a unique, unmistakable panache that set
them courtesy of their collaboration with Jay-Z.
rockers. Chester’s voice and melodies
them apart from the crowd. Powerful enough
Linkin Park are, in commercial terms at
really stood out. I liked the pop side
to blow the windows out of a skyscraper, his
least, the most successful band of the nu
of hip hop and so the rapping made it
roar could also be dialled down into a subtle and
metal crop, but it’s hard not to see them as
cool but Chester had this voice that
emotive focal point which afforded the band a
something of a relic in 2013 – an artefact so
didn’t have a lot of vibrato to it and he
diversity of sound that eluded a lot of their peers.
definitive of a time and place that they have
could put emotion into their music
never been able to truly escape it. Nevertheless,
with his voice and that was something
more importantly still stands as a monument to
as nu metal goes, it doesn’t get much bigger
that made me really love what Linkin
metal at the turn of the millennium.
that the boys from Agoura Hills.
Park were doing.”
Hybrid Theory won countless awards and
metalhammer.co.uk 97
ON S ALE
JAN 15th
STEP INSIDE THE LOCO WORLD OF NU METAL
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