Life Is Peachy

For the South Korean film, see Ashamed (2010 film).

Life Is Peachy
Studio album by
Korn
ReleasedOctober 15, 1996 (1996-10-15)
RecordedApril–July 1996
StudioIndigo Ranch Studios (Malibu, California)
Genre
Length48:14
Label
ProducerRoss Robinson
Korn chronology
Korn
(1994) 		Life Is Peachy
(1996) 		Follow the Leader
(1998)
Singles from Life Is Peachy
  1. "No Place to Hide"
    Released: September 14, 1996
  2. "A.D.I.D.A.S."
    Released: March 4, 1997
  3. "Good God"
    Released: November 7, 1997

Life Is Peachy is the second studio album by American nu metal band Korn. It was released on October 15, 1996, through both Immortal Records and Epic Records. After the release of Korn's 1994 self-titled debut album, the band reunited with Ross Robinson to produce and went back to Indigo Ranch Studios to record. Life Is Peachy features such themes as drugs, social encounters, sex, betrayal, and revenge. The album has fourteen tracks, excluding the hidden track after "Kill You". Martin Riedl photographed its cover art, and its title is credited to Korn's bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu. Life Is Peachy was Korn's first significant breakthrough, which came from constant touring after the debut album's release and building a fan base, thus fueling great expectations.

Critical reception for the album was mainly mixed, but its songwriting and sound quality were praised. Authors and music journalists deemed Life Is Peachy innovative, and some lauded Jonathan Davis for his vocal techniques and embodied singing. His vocal performance on "Good God" was viewed as encapsulating the album's essence, becoming one of the decisive elements in the development of what would later be called nu metal, which Korn pioneered. During its promotional period, newspapers and magazines defined it sonically as a metal album with hip-hop beats, presenting a unique sound.

Life Is Peachy debuted and peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number one in New Zealand. The album sold 106,000 copies in the US in its first week of release. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in January 1997 and platinum in December of that same year. Life Is Peachy was RIAA-certified double platinum in the US in November 1999. By 2009, the album had sold almost six million copies worldwide.[3]

Korn released three singles from Life Is Peachy: "No Place to Hide", "A.D.I.D.A.S.", and "Good God". All three singles went on the UK Singles Chart. Shortly before the album's release, Korn launched the Life Is Peachy Tour in the US with Limp Bizkit as the opening act. After its release, the band toured in support of Metallica in the US. Korn then embarked on its headlining tour throughout the UK, Europe, North America, and Australia, with often sold-out shows. The band also took part in the 1997 Lollapalooza summer tour, where the Life Is Peachy Tour ended abruptly due to guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer being diagnosed with viral meningitis. Life Is Peachy earned Korn a 1997 Kerrang! Awards for Best Album. "No Place to Hide" received a nomination for Best Metal Performance at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards.

  1. ^ Everley, Dave; Hobson, Rich; Alderslade, Merlin (April 1, 2022). "The 50 best nu metal albums of all time". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  2. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Follow the Leader – Korn". AllMusic. Retrieved April 3, 2023. They have yet to exhaust that sound, and that's why their third album, Follow the Leader, is an effective follow-up to their first two alt-metal landmarks.
  3. ^ Arvizu 2009, p. 82.