Linkin Park - Thousands of light years ahead

Please note that this post may be highly affected by my fairly high liking towards the band. It's completely fine I guess, otherwise.

I'm not in a place where I can buy original CDs of Linkin Park, here after referred to as LP. So, yes I heard their CDs pirated MP3 320 Kbps version. And my judgment is based on that.

I guess LP's habit has become to release albums with a 3 year gap. No wonder, it helps them change their style every time. This time is no different. 2007's static electricity shocks have now turned out to be the 440 Volts. Far away from Hybrid Theory or Meteora or even their closest change Minutes to Midnight, LP has, in my opinion outdone every work they have done so far. A completely different set of sound still hanging onto the same darkness that makes LP so attractive. It's nice how they manage it. The album is a strange mix of Genres. I don't know much about distinguishing them from their way of sounding in between others but it's pure mix of many things. Pop, Rock, Alternative, Reggae, Metal etc. Here's my personal way of seeing at the tracks.

1. The Requiem & The Radiance: The most creative intro by LP so far. It's got every reason to send a shiver down my spine. Feels like a nuclear blast when the girly mixed voice is overshadowed by the flanging and then the oldey vooice telling things while a huge blast takes place multiple times.

2. Burning in the Skies: One thing to note and always remember throughout this album is that it's extensively blended. It's real hard to separate tracks. Mike's voice in this track soothes the lines "I used the dead wood to.....". And Chester's "I'm swimming in the smoke.." really gives the great sounds that were incomplete in "Rock-n-Roll" which he did some years back. The track is a beat based piece of rock backed with some guitars.

3. Empty Spaces & When they come for me: A perfect intro for such a song, Empty Spaces employs some army guys talking during a war or some test run, dunno. Then the African Military beat really is creative piece of music. As always, LP's good tracks never sound good at first time. But suddenly all the sounds mixed up to make the song a huge blast. Awesome rapping from mike and totally unexpected vocals form Chazzy really brought the mood up. "Oh, when they come for me.." those lines are mind-blowing.

4. Robot Boy: Probably we've heard this kind of sound a lot in other bands but I don't know why it just seems like all these years this sound just missed one thing and that's Chester. This is a chorus based song that builds itself up from a piano piece and then turns out with a blast flanged form the background. The lyrics are really good on this. Probably a lot of people will be able to connect themselves to it.

5. Jornada Del Muerto & Waiting for the end: I personally didn't like this kind of Hawaiian sound that Jornada gave me. But the blender builds up into a nice piece that I liked and then that mind blowing song Waiting for the End. My personal favorite on the album. It's a usual mix up of Reggae and some other style that I don't know about but have heard a lot. Still, I guess what makes the song so special to me is the way LP presents it. I've never heard other artists mix this sound with industrial beats so good.

6. Blacout: The intro of this song is my personal favorite. On the internet some people are saying that the way Chester sings fast in this piece is Rapping but I'm sure it's otherwise. It's some style I hear a lot in other RnRs. The way Chazzy builds up the going-crazy mood combined with the calm beats and sounds, it's something nobody's ever heard, I'm sure. The ending is truly great when Mike sings "Hold on..".

7. Wretches & Kings: It's already grown a lot in popularity and I don't think there's much about this song. Expect Fort Minor feat. Linkin Park. But the singing styles are great. Mike sound more like some Jamaican or African guy to me. I kind of liked his piece here. But this songs hasn't caught much of my liking domain. Still would like a lot of Mike's this rapping style.

8. Wisdom, Justice & Love & Iridescent: Martin Luther King has become very famous recently with many artists. It's some lecture he gave from some time back, whatever. Then Iridescent is a really soft piece which sound more like the 2007 "Shadow of the Day".

9. Fallout: It's just the "Burning in the Skies" lines sung from some robotic voice. Good intro to welcome the best song on the album.

10. The Catalyst: The best song on the whole album. Everybody who listens to it will definitely have his own impression of it. But I'm purely freaked out by this. My favourite lines are "Lift me up, let me go". Truly feels like the guys are screaming to the havens. A must try for anyone.

11. The Messanger: I personally liked this track a lot. Chester sounds so "taking-out-lungs" in it. The lyrics are awesome in this.


What I found out after writing this review? Well, I can't write well about songs. Particularly songs that I like so much. Whatever genre you're used to or like I prefer trying this album at least once. Even if LP has abandoned their old styles, they're doing great pieces of the music they are working on. LP ForevAH.