KORN Guitarist Says New Album Has 'Gothic Feel'

May 17, 2007

KORN guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer has told Chris Harris of MTV.com that the group's forthcoming eighth studio album, due in late July, is one of the heaviest the band has ever put to tape.

"It's very musical," he explained. "I would compare it to [2002's] 'Untouchables'. It has a lot of highs and lows throughout it, and it's very gothic, I think. It kind of took on this whole gothic feel, which we didn't set out to do. When we were done with it, we sort of just sat back, and we were all kind of laughing about it, because it has that vibe throughout. I think our fans are going to be stunned by how heavy [the album] is, as far as an emotional sense. A lot of these songs are sad. But at the same time, some of the heaviest stuff we've ever done, musically, is on this record. There are moments here and there that are just tough. This one song, called 'Ever Be', just has this epic ending to it — like, imagine '300' set to song. It's crazy. Some of the stuff's very epic like that, and then pulls way back, so the dynamics on the record are very wide — from one extreme to the next, and all over the map."

As for drummer David Silveria, who announced earlier this year that he'd be taking a hiatus from the band, Munky said he expects the kitman will return by the end of this year.

"This band hasn't taken a break ever since we started," he said. "It's always been: write album, record it, tour. And then in between, that's usually when a band will take some time off. We never did. We took a couple of weeks off here and there, and then it was back into to the studio and write. It's been that way for 10 years. That schedule can get to a person, and he needed some time with his family. He just needed to step back for a minute, because you lose perspective about real life. It's hard work, and everybody works hard, but after so long, it becomes kind of like a make-believe world that you're living in. ... But after we do these couple of tours, and by the end of the year, I think he'll be ready. But I don't want to put pressure on someone. If he's ready, he'll call us and tell us. I can't keep calling him and asking, 'Are you ready, are you ready, are you ready?' That would just push a guy like David further away."

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