Korn released Take A Look In The Mirror on November 21, 2003, through Immortal/Epic. Their sixth studio album reached American stores as the band tried to recover the directness of its early work. Producing the record themselves was central to that decision, with sessions based at singer Jonathan Davis’ home studio.
Much of the writing had already happened on the road. Davis recalled to Loudwire’s Jon Wiederhorn that a studio on his bus and writing rooms assembled by an engineer allowed Korn to keep working between shows. Back at his house, they recorded with Frank Filipetti, who had also worked on Untouchables. Davis described wanting to move quickly after the large budgets and elaborate processes of earlier projects. “We did it quick like we used to,” he said. Korn, Davis and Filipetti shared production credits.
“Right Now,” the opening track, made that intention clear before the album arrived. In a November 2003 interview with MTV News, Davis described the direction as “more groove-oriented, not big open choruses, just powerful and aggressive.” He said the song grew out of waking up angry at everyone around him. Its animated video came from Spike and Mike, whose cartoons had accompanied earlier Korn tours.
The connection to their beginnings also reached into the songs themselves. Korn recorded a new version of “Alive,” a track from their 1993 demo, giving material from before their debut album a place among the new recordings. “Did My Time” arrived with a different history: it had already been released as a single associated with Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life. Listeners who knew that song from the film campaign could find it alongside material reaching back a decade.
Korn also invited Nas onto “Play Me.” Davis contacted the rapper himself, and Nas accepted after telling him he was a fan. They worked remotely, exchanging music and vocals while in separate locations. In the MTV interview, Davis emphasized that he wanted Nas’ writing on a heavy Korn track. The collaboration gave the album another voice while keeping its aggressive musical approach intact.
Keeping the recordings private became another priority. Speaking to Billboard before release, bassist Fieldy described tighter controls after Untouchables had circulated online months early. Listening copies were destroyed afterward, and the band stopped handing recordings around. Davis also told MTV that Korn would limit their pre-release live exposure of the new material to the single, hoping to prevent concert recordings from spreading.
The album leaked anyway. Contemporary MTV reporting, carried by Blabbermouth, said the band responded by advancing the CD from its scheduled November 25 arrival to the preceding Friday.
The record was also Korn’s final studio album before the original lineup began to break apart. Guitarist Brian “Head” Welch left in February 2005, before the follow-up See You on the Other Side. Drummer David Silveria played on that album, then announced a hiatus in December 2006.
