Korn Made Easy

Hi GMC!

Welcome to my new lesson specially composed for beginners in the style of Korn. This band was formed in 1993 and is considered the pioneers of Nu Metal along with Deftones. The band's current lineup includes founding members Jonathan Davis (vocals, bagpipes), James "Munky" Shaffer (guitar), Brian "Head" Welch (guitar, backing vocals), andReginald "Fieldy" Arvizu (bass), with the addition of Ray Luzier (drums), who replaced the band's original member, David Silveria in 2007.

Music Style:
The first time I heard Korn I amazed of their guitar job which was very minimalist but so powerful and creative. It was based on low tuned riffs for the heavy parts and simple melodies and noises with a clever use of fxs. I remember Steve Vai saying great things about their first album. This element combined with groovy drums, and very inventive vocal works that took Mike Patton’s previous work as a starting point made them so unique.

Tonality, Chord Progression & Scales:
This lesson is in D minor key. As it usually happens with hard metal music, the tune combines Aeolian with Phrygian mode as a way to create a dark atmosphere for the vocals. The chords here are mostly power chords, and the use of drop D tuning makes everything easier for beginners.

Techniques:
This is a rhythm lesson composed for beginners who want to get into hard work and metal. In this one, we’ll cover alternate picking, down picking, palm muting power chords and riffing.

Sound:
I used LePoin plugins to create the guitar tone. These are free amp emulators that are extremely recommended. The cabinet used for this guitar tone is HyBrit which is a Marshall amp emulation and before it a tube screamer emulation. Check out the settings:





The lead guitar also has phaser effect:




Tuning: Drop D (DADGBE) tuning

New to drop D? Check out this lesson: LINK

Tempo: 105 BPM