Korn Konfusion
Jonathan Davis is confused. Oh, he understands how to write songs that sell millions of records for Korn, his metal/rap band. That's the easy part. Figuring out life itself is a little tougher. A July 29, 2002 interview by Mark Brown in the Rocky Mountain News enlightens us:
As with all the band's albums, Untouchables has the image of a child on the front. Davis' own abuse-filled childhood is the muse for his lyrics, and the band has always featured children - usually in danger or unhappy - on their covers. Untouchables features a group of kids with haunted, empty eyes, staring straight ahead..
"It's just a very powerful image - a child when their innocence is taken away. Korn has always been for the kids," Davis says. "We took the album title Untouchables from the Indian caste system."
So far, so good. Davis is absolutely correct--childhood innocence lost is a powerful and disturbing theme, as it should be. Then he breaks with reality in a bizarre claim:
"In America we have our own caste system. We have our own untouchables. Anyone who's different, who looks different, who's into art or who just doesn't conform to Christian conservative America is just an outcast. That's what this cover represents."
Anyone who is into art (like Mr. Davis, we presume) is an outcast, comparable to the untouchables of India? Perhaps his accountants should compare numbers with the typical Indian untouchable's accountant--wait, none of them have accountants. So where is the next Mother Theresa, willing to give her life for the downtrodden untouchables of America? While numerous women reach out to Korn, few would be considered morally comparable to Mother Theresa. As for Christian conservatives ruling the day, perhaps Davis hasn't kept up on the news back home in California. I believe a judge in his state recently took issue with the mention of God in the Pledge of Allegiance.
I empathize with Davis' anguish over a troubled childhood, and respect his concern for kids (not that I agree with his solutions). I just don't grasp how people selling millions of records and filling concert venues can keep straight faces while claiming that they are miserable outcasts, despised by the masses. Perhaps it's merely a ploy to convince troubled teens that Korn is still one of them. Or maybe Jonathan Davis really is that self-deluded. In either case, he could use our prayers that some day he will find the truth of Christ that can heal his deep-seated hurt.
(Originally posted on Contend4TheFaith July 29, 2002)
Jonathan Davis is confused. Oh, he understands how to write songs that sell millions of records for Korn, his metal/rap band. That's the easy part. Figuring out life itself is a little tougher. A July 29, 2002 interview by Mark Brown in the Rocky Mountain News enlightens us:
As with all the band's albums, Untouchables has the image of a child on the front. Davis' own abuse-filled childhood is the muse for his lyrics, and the band has always featured children - usually in danger or unhappy - on their covers. Untouchables features a group of kids with haunted, empty eyes, staring straight ahead..
"It's just a very powerful image - a child when their innocence is taken away. Korn has always been for the kids," Davis says. "We took the album title Untouchables from the Indian caste system."
So far, so good. Davis is absolutely correct--childhood innocence lost is a powerful and disturbing theme, as it should be. Then he breaks with reality in a bizarre claim:
"In America we have our own caste system. We have our own untouchables. Anyone who's different, who looks different, who's into art or who just doesn't conform to Christian conservative America is just an outcast. That's what this cover represents."
Anyone who is into art (like Mr. Davis, we presume) is an outcast, comparable to the untouchables of India? Perhaps his accountants should compare numbers with the typical Indian untouchable's accountant--wait, none of them have accountants. So where is the next Mother Theresa, willing to give her life for the downtrodden untouchables of America? While numerous women reach out to Korn, few would be considered morally comparable to Mother Theresa. As for Christian conservatives ruling the day, perhaps Davis hasn't kept up on the news back home in California. I believe a judge in his state recently took issue with the mention of God in the Pledge of Allegiance.
I empathize with Davis' anguish over a troubled childhood, and respect his concern for kids (not that I agree with his solutions). I just don't grasp how people selling millions of records and filling concert venues can keep straight faces while claiming that they are miserable outcasts, despised by the masses. Perhaps it's merely a ploy to convince troubled teens that Korn is still one of them. Or maybe Jonathan Davis really is that self-deluded. In either case, he could use our prayers that some day he will find the truth of Christ that can heal his deep-seated hurt.
(Originally posted on Contend4TheFaith July 29, 2002)
posted by hockeyboy5 at
8:03 PM
