 While Korn was looking for a place to record their debut album , they asked producer Ross Robinson to produce their album . After accepting the offer , Robinson suggested they record at Indigo Ranch , Malibu , California . The band would record the majority of the album there , while additional recording took place at Bakersfield 's Fat Tracks . Korn recorded most of the album with all members playing simultaneously , as opposed to recording instruments separately . The " distinctive " sound and quality of music was given off by their instruments , rather than the production . The bagpipes on " Shoots and Ladders " are often thought to have been recorded on a mountain @-@ top . However , they were actually recorded with a microphone set up at the back door of the studio while Jonathan Davis walked past outside playing . As he walked further from the microphone , this led to the sound naturally fading quieter . Korn finished recording their self @-@ titled album by the end of June 1994 . 
