Episode 12: Static-X's "Wisconsin Death Trip", or The Masked Singer

The P.O.D. Kast

One of the most iconic figures in nu-metal, Wayne Static, is almost more of the focus of this episode than the band is, as we look into Static-X's start as a band, Wayne's eventual death, and the band's decision to dress Edsel Dope up in a Wayne mask and go on a 20th Anniversary Tour of this album. It's the first album we've reviewed from the side of nu-metal that also held a pretty large industrial influence, and both Bryan and John explain that it was one that largely passed them by at the time but one they are excited to revisit.

In a continuing series where Bryan Quinby (Street Fight Radio) and John Cullen (Blocked Party) review one classic nu-metal album per month, Static-X comes in from a listener donation, and for John at least, it feels like the only way this would've ever gotten a review from the P.O.D. boys. But Bryan and John are game for it, as the album shows some flashes of what Static-X could have been, were they not so focused on "evil disco" and building tracks strictly from the drums and programming up. And the weird legacy of the band proves almost more interesting, as the in-fighting over the name, Wayne Static's drug problems, and the introduction of Xer0 make them a more fascinating tale than most. Plus, we find some time to talk about Korn's cover of "Devil Went Down to Georgia" going viral and Corey Taylor's new solo project.

If you want a fun solo project, you can take some alone time and use it to donate to the show at https://patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you a bonus episode every single month. Last month, we had the wonderful Jordan Uhl on to discuss Strait Up, the tribute album to the deceased lead singer of the band Snot which features nearly all of nu-metal's greatest singers, and we've got another great episode coming this month as we tackle the Queen of the Damned soundtrack. Plus you get access to all of our back catalogue of bonus episodes and there's new stuff coming every month. Donate now!