Korn’s ‘Freak On a Leash’ has received the Ten Second Songs treatment courtesy of YouTube polymath Anthony Vincent. Vincent performs the Californian nu-metal band’s 1999 single in the style of 22 recognisable artists.
Some of his impersonations are a little bemusing – Nina Simone is depicted as a latin opera singer – but the redesigns are largely spot on. Vincent starts by summoning a G-funk groove in a nod to Ice Cube, which gives way to the cheery dad rock of Dave Matthews Band. ‘Creep’-era Radiohead are up next before the neo synth-pop of The Weeknd.
From there it just gets weirder. Vincent lines up a swing arrangement to accompany his Frank Sinatra croon, while the Britney Spears re-arrangement is the most akin to the original. This seems like an odd claim, but Korn and Britney were two defining forces in late-‘90s commercial music and share more common ground than we tend to think.
Vincent goes on to tear his larynx in homage to Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain and crank the sentimentality for a ‘My Heart Will Go On’ deviation. Other artists featured in the upload include Pink Floyd, NSYNC, Slayer, Michael Jackson, Scatman John, Beastie Boys and Rick Astley. A personal favourite is Vincent’s perfectly daggy Reel Big Fish adaptation.
Multi-genre cover songs are Vincent’s specialty, and this isn’t the first time he’s messed around with Korn. In April, he performed Rick Astley’s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ in 20 styles. Artists as varied as Prince, Toto, Pantera and Foster the People got a look-in, but the ten seconds devoted to Korn made the most impact.
As a result, Vincent’s next video featured an entire reworking of ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ in the style of Korn. His other recent uploads include Billie Eilish’s ‘No Time to Die’ in the style of Chris Cornell and George Michael’s ‘Careless Whisper’ in the style of Disturbed.
Check out ‘Freak On a Leash’ by Korn in 22 Styles:
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