Life Is Peachy is the second studio album by KoЯn. The album was released on October 15, 1996 through Immortal/Epic Records. With much anticipation for the band's second album following on the success of their 1994 self-titled debut, Korn created a United States double platinum. The award was certified by the RIAA. The album charted number three on the Billboard 300 and peaked number one on the New Zealand charts.
The album has 15 tracks including the hidden track after "Kill You." Korn released three singles from the album, and each charted on the UK chart. Korn performed the song Low Rider, a song and single by War, appearing on there Why Can't We Be Friends? album.
Music and lyrical themes[]
"No Place to Hide," Life Is Peachy's first single, appears to have various themes. One could be that while Jonathan Davis exposes his painful past to the world he has no secrets left, and no comfort zones. He feels raped because Korn is becoming the next big thing and the media takes advantage of him pouring his soul out. This theme was carried into later singles "Y'All Want a Single" and "Freak on a Leash" where he feels he is simply used by the music industry to make money.
The lyrics for "A.D.I.D.A.S.," Life Is Peachy's second single, illustrate a sexually frustrated and narcissistic individual who lives in fantasy as a result of his isolation from actual social encounters.
For the song "Good God," Life Is Peachy's third single, Jonathan Davis quoted "It's about a guy I knew in school who I thought was my friend, but who fucked me. He came into my life with nothing, hung out at my house, lived off me, and made me do shit I didn't really wanna do. I was into new romantic music and he was a mod, and he'd tell me if I didn't dress like a mod he wouldn't be my friend anymore. Whenever I had plans to go on a date with a chick he'd sabotage it, because he didn't have a date or nothing. He was a gutless fucking nothing. I haven't talked to him for years."
For the album's final track (not including the albums hidden track), "Kill You," Jonathan Davis commented that "It's about a relative I first met when I was 12. I fucking hate that bitch. She's the most evil, fucked up person I've met in my whole life. She hated my guts. She did everything she could to make my life hell. Like, when I was sick she'd feed me tea with tabasco, which is really hot pepper oil. She'd make me drink it by saying, 'You have to burn that cold out, boy'. Fucked up shit like that. So every night when I'd go to sleep, I'd dream of killing that bitch. In some sick way I had a sexual fantasy about her, and I don't know what that stems from or why. But I always dream it about fucking her and killing her."
Critical reception[]
Life Is Peachy received mixed reviews from critics. The album debuted on #3 spot on The Billboard 200, selling 106,000 of copies in its first week despite minimal radio airplay and TV attention. To date, it has sold over two million units in the United States. In 1998 "No Place to Hide" earned the band a second Grammy nomination in Best Metal Performance category.
Q magazine (3/02, p.137) - 3 stars out of 5 - "Harsher and harder than their groundbreaking debut."
Allmusic - 3 stars out of 5 - " Korn add enough elements of alternative rock song structure to make the music accessible to the masses, and their songwriting has continued to improve."
The album features a darker and more experimental sound than the band's self-titled debut album, and contains more unconventional themes. A video was made showing Korn recording Life Is Peachy, entitled Who Then Now? which was included on the follow-up release Deuce.
Track listing[]
| 1. | "Twist" | 0:49 |
| 2. | "Chi" | 3:54 |
| 3. | "Lost" | 2:55 |
| 4. | "Swallow" | 3:38 |
| 5. | "Porno Creep" | 2:01 |
| 6. | "Good God" | 3:20 |
| 7. | "Mr. Rogers" | 5:10 |
| 8. | "K@#Ø%!" | 3:02 |
| 9. | "No Place to Hide" | 3:31 |
| 10. | "Wicked" (ft. Chino Moreno; Ice Cube cover) | 4:00 |
| 11. | "A.D.I.D.A.S." | 2:32 |
| 12. | "Low Rider" (War cover; sung by Brian "Head" Welch) | 0:58 |
| 13. | "Ass Itch" | 3:39 |
| 14. | "Kill You" (includes a cappella version of "Twist" in hidden track) | 8:37 |