[FanIn80]

First off, I'm going to move Eight Arms to Hold You to the Wildcard category.

With my next pick, in the 1997-1999 category...

Follow the Leader, by KoЯn!

Album Information

Follow the Leader is generally recognized as their breakthrough album, and the album that ultimately ushered nu metal and re-ushered heavy metal into the mainstream. With more than 5 million copies sold in the U.S. and 4 million copies sold out of the U.S., it is their best selling album.

The album features numerous guest vocalists, including Ice Cube on "Children of the Korn", Tre Hardson of The Pharcyde on "Cameltosis" and Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst on "All in the Family". Actor Cheech Marin provides vocals on "Earache My Eye", a cover of the song from the Cheech and Chong movie Up in Smoke, with the rest of the band trading instruments for the song.

The album begins on track 13, following 12 tracks of silence. The reason, as mentioned in an interview with Metal Hammer UK around the time of release, was that Jonathan Davis did not like the fact that the album would have ended on the thirteenth track (due to superstition), so they preferred to start that album on that track instead. An alternate explanation for the reason the song started on the 13 track is that the first 12 tracks were 5 seconds of silence each adding up to one minute of silence in honor of Justin a young fan of the band that died of cancer. Justin also has a song on the CD named after him.

The album cover was drawn by Spawn comic artist Todd McFarlane.

On the Deuce(Asylum) DVD, the band stated that all they ever did while recording the album was drink constantly and party every day and night. Munky admits that at one point, the band had spent around or over $27,000 on alcoholic drinks.

This is the last Korn album where Head is credited with providing backing vocals.

Reception

Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.66) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's."

Rolling Stone (9/3/98, pp.97-98) - 4 Stars (out of 5) - "...true to an older, vital hard-rock tradition of cleansing brutality and transcendent guitar choler--Blue Cheer's 1968 Vincebus Eruptum; early Metallica and very early Black Sabbath....their best album..."

Spin (10/98, pp.135-136) - 7 (out of 10) - "When Rage Against The Machine, the band Korn most resembles, borrow from hip-hop, it's a multicultural gesture that rocks like Everest. But Korn are, ahem, post-p.c.: They See foul-mouthed, brawling rappers as expressing Ultimate Taboos, and they feel right at home."

Follow the Leader has sold over 5 million copies in America by the RIAA count. It is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Track Listing

13. "It's On!" – 4:28
14. "Freak on a Leash" – 4:15
15. "Got the Life" – 3:45
16. "Dead Bodies Everywhere" – 4:44
17. "Children of the Korn" (featuring: Ice Cube) – 3:52
18. "B.B.K." – 3:56
19. "Pretty" – 4:12
20. "All in the Family" (featuring: Fred Durst) – 4:49
21. "Reclaim My Place" – 4:33
22. "Justin" – 4:17
23. "Seed" – 5:54
24. "Cameltosis" – 4:38
25. "My Gift to You" – 15:40

"It's On!"


"Cameltosis"


"Children of the Korn"


"Got the Life"


"Freak on a Leash"


"Reclaim My Place"


"All in the Family"