Korn released The Path Of Totality in the United States on December 6, 2011, through Roadrunner Records. Their tenth studio album grew out of a collaboration with Skrillex that changed how the band wrote and recorded. Electronic producers supplied beats and bass parts that became the foundations of new Korn songs.
The move followed 2010’s Korn III: Remember Who You Are, which had revisited the band’s earlier approach. Jonathan Davis had introduced guitarist James “Munky” Shaffer to Skrillex’s music backstage, proposing that they try incorporating some of those elements into their next record. Munky told Guitar World that he expected a challenge, but working together on “Get Up!” made the combination feel natural. Korn already used deep bass and electronic percussion; this collaboration pushed those interests further. The project was initially conceived as an EP. After more work with Skrillex and Kill the Noise, the band decided there was enough promise to make a full album.
That meant allowing the producers into the writing process from the beginning. In his Premier Guitar interview, Munky described recording riffs over beats and bass lines Skrillex had prepared. The producer would then edit and rearrange those guitar recordings, with the two working across the room from each other. His experience singing in a band helped him understand how to arrange the music around Davis’s vocals. Collaborating with Noisia required a different setup: files traveled by email and Dropbox, with guitar parts and structural changes passed back and forth.
The dense electronic arrangements also changed what Munky needed from his instrument. He used layered guitars and octave effects to give the riffs enough weight alongside the synthesizers, then left room for cleaner, lighter playing where the electronics could carry a section. “It was like having a second guitar player,” he told the magazine. Making space became part of the guitar work. Even the tuning changed. Munky used standard tuning for the record, and told Guitar World that writing in different keys opened up chord voicings and positions on the neck he wasn't accustomed to using. Tuning up also reduced confusion when the musicians discussed notes and keys with their collaborators.
“Narcissistic Cannibal” paired Skrillex with Kill the Noise, while Skrillex also worked on album opener “Chaos Lives In Everything.” Alongside “Get Up!,” those songs carried the initial collaboration into different parts of the finished record.
Davis’s vocals were recorded in several settings. Blabbermouth’s release-day report described much of the album being made at Davis’s home studio, with the singer recording vocals both at home and in hotel rooms while touring. His explanation of the title reflected how the collaborators had come together: seeing a total solar eclipse requires being in the right place at the right time. Davis compared that alignment with the circumstances behind the record, expressing doubt that the same combination could happen again.
In April 2012, The Path Of Totality won the fan-voted Album of the Year award at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards.
