"The Serenity of Suffering" is the twelfth studio album by American nu metal band Korn. It was released on October 21, 2016, making it one of the band's more recent offerings. Following relatively lukewarm reactions to their previous two albums, "The Serenity of Suffering" marked a return to a heavier, more aggressive sound reminiscent of their earlier work. The album received generally positive reviews from critics.
The album was produced by Nick Raskulinecz, a Grammy-winning producer who has worked with Alice in Chains, Deftones, and Mastodon among others. His involvement played a part in defining the more traditional heavy metal, nu-metal sound of the album.
"The Serenity of Suffering" features a guest appearance by Corey Taylor of Stone Sour and Slipknot. Korn went on a co-headlining tour with Rob Zombie to support the album in 2016. The album peaked at number 4 on the US Billboard 200, cementing the band's return to the forefront of the genre. Songs like "Rotting in Vain," "Black is the Soul," and "A Different World" (the latter featuring Corey Taylor) revealed the band delving into deeper, darker lyrical content, often dealing with themes of loss, depression, and internal struggle.
The cover artwork was created by Ron English, a notable artist in pop surrealism. It features a young, distressed boy in a cornfield witnessing a giant ominous figure leering over him, a portrayal seen as reflective of the album's themes of suffering and vulnerability.
