NASHVILLE |KORN’S
‘SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE’
VAULTS INTO THE BILLBOARD POP ALBUMS CHART AT #3;
MARKS SIXTH TOP 5 CHART ENTRY
FOR THE BAND
KORN’s new and seventh album SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE vaults into Billboard’s pop albums chart at #3 next week, marking the sixth top five entry for the Grammy-winning, trend-setting band who’ve sold more than 25 million albums worldwide and earned widespread critical acclaim. The band’s previous Top Five chart entries were: 2004’s Greatest Hits, 2002’s Untouchables, 1999’s Issues, 1998’s Follow The Leader, 1996’s Life Is Peachy.
Notably, more than 30% of the 221,000 albums sold in the first week were of the album’s deluxe edition encompassing a bonus disc with three previously unreleased new tracks (“It’s Me Again,” “Eaten Up Inside” and “Last Legal Drug [Le Petit Mort]”); two “Twisted Transistor” re-mixes; and live video clips of “Twisted Transistor” and “Hypocrites” taped earlier this year from a historic KORN performance in Moscow. The whole package is bundled with a free one-year membership to the Korn BSC fan club.
Upon learning of the chart entry of SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE–marking their first album as part of a global partnership with EMI/Virgin Records–KORN said, “We continue to be blown away by the love that our fans show us. With SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE, the title was an offer for them to come through the doorway with us–an invitation for them to accept the change that we’ve made creatively.”
Jeff Kwatinetz, CEO of The Firm, the band’s management company, underlines the importance of the special package. He says, “We bundled the deluxe edition physical CD with a free one-year membership to the Korn BSC Online Fan Club. We know CD burning is a huge problem for our industry. Rather than punish our customers by putting copy-protection or spyware on our CDs, we decided to reward our customers and give them exclusive digital content. In the process, we created a hybrid physical/digital product. Over 30% of our units sold were this deluxe edition, which were priced from $16-24 at retail. The new model is working. We are able to do these types of innovative and ground-breaking moves because of the unique and creative partnership between label, management and band.”
Jason Flom, Chairman and CEO, Virgin Records says, “This incredible debut speaks volumes of the enduring connection between Korn and their fans, and, also to the commitment of Virgin Records and EMI as a whole, to this fantastic project.”
David Kang–The Firm’s Senior Vice President of Strategic Development and New Media–added, “We partnered with ITunes to create a series of EP bundles–consisting of audio and video–that allowed KORN to introduce itself to a new generation of fans. We knew we had to be aggressive with pricing and we offered four audio tracks and a video for $1.99. Both EPs we released were #1 on the ITunes rock album charts. Because of our partnership with EMI/Virgin, we were on the same side of the table and could price the EPs aggressively to get the promotion Korn deserved.”
Look for the band–JONATHAN DAVIS, JAMES “MUNKY” SHAFFER, FIELDY and DAVID SILVERIA–to hit the road in early 2006 in support of SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE.
The release of SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE has been met with critical praise:
"…Korn sound reinvigorated on their seventh studio album…See You… stretches in two opposing directions: sweeping goth anthems and trippy electronica. It's sonically stunning stuff…"
–Michael Endelman, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, 12/9/05
"There is a new clarity to the sound, a return to the direct, subversive melodies behind Korn's best early work. 'Twisted Transistor' and other new tracks reach back to find harsh, and intimate, hard-rock hooks…the renewed focus on songwriting doesn't rob Korn of any fire or angst. Guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer has no trouble filling the gap left by his former partner Welch. And the remaining players sound newly inspired, still obsessing over their creep-show effects, the bagpipe loops and heavy breathing and other weird interludes."
–Steve Appleford, LOS ANGELES TIMES, 12/6/05
"…The music has made strides…See You on the Other Side grows ambitious again."
–Jon Pareles, NEW YORK TIMES, 12/5/05
"…more melodic dimension and fresh momentum….Songs like "Twisted Transistor" have choruses you can growl along to without violating the thrilling crack of the beat."
–Jim Farber, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS, 12/10/05
"Building on the advances of two years ago, the band completes its sinisterly sexual funk-metal reinvention with seventh album…"
–Ben Wener, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 12/9/05
###
MSO Contacts: (818) 380-0400
Marcee Rondan marcee@msopr.com
Kristine Ashton-Magnuson kashton@msopr.com
Mitch Schneider mschneider@msopr.com
Virgin Records Contact:
Patti Conte Patti.Conte@virgin-records.com
###
http://
