Korn emerged in the mid-1990s at the forefront of a music genre dubbed "coldwave," a crossover between underground metal and industrial rock. Hailing from southern California, the members of Korn fused five various musical interests into their own distinct blend of fury. Although it took a year to catch on, their debut album and tour became a smashing success and firmly planted them on radio stations and in record stores worldwide.
Korn's cathartic alternative metal sound positioned the group among the most popular and provocative to emerge during the post-grunge era. Korn began their existence as the Bakersfield, CA-based metal band LAPD, which included guitarists James "Munky" Shaffer and Brian "Head" Welch, bassist Reginald "Fieldy Snuts" Arvizu, and drummer David Silveria. After issuing an LP, the members of LAPD in 1993 crossed paths with Jonathan Davis, a mortuary science student moonlighting as the lead vocalist for the local group Sexart. They soon asked Davis to join the band, and upon his arrival the quintet rechristened itself Korn.
Although the band did not have formal training, they created their music through instinct and democratic input. "We can't even read four bars of music, let alone play it in time," guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer told Aaron Johnston in Guitar Player. "It's more about exploration and finding new sounds than anything else. Not every creation has to start out with a riff—sometimes all it takes is a noise. It takes patience, but we respect each other's musicianship."
Before the formation of Korn, Shaffer, Fieldy, and Silveria played in a band called L.A.P.D., which released one album. They then disbanded and reformed as a band called Creep, in which guitarist Brian "Head" Welch joined them on stage for a few shows. Silveria also played for another rock band called Infectious Grooves. They had all moved closer to Los Angeles in California's Orange County.
In 2005, Welch left the band, evidently due to his newfound Christian faith. But Korn continued, playing shows that summer as a quartet and signing an expansive recording and development deal with Virgin. The following December they released See You on the Other Side, a number three hit that featured a batch of songs co-written with hitmaking production team the Matrix. Live & Rare, an aptly titled disc of live recordings and rarities, was released in May 2006 with the live acoustic recording MTV Unplugged following in March 2007. Later that year, after returning to the studio, this time without drummer David Silveria, the band resurfaced with an underwhelming album appropriately named Untitled. Jason Ankeny & Bradley Torreano, All Music Guide
