New Linkin Park: Minutes to Midnight = yuck

Minutes to Midnight is a failure akin to Metallica's Load album. Not only are the songs in a much different style, but the semi-catchy ones use hooks and guitar riffs that are trite, corny, and simply unappealing. The prologue in the CD jacket describes how Linkin Park put much more time into this album than any album before (like 14 months compared to 6 months). One of the last lines of the prologue says something like"I think the difference shows." Yeah, it does. You overthought it.

The entire time I was listening to each song with rapture I kept thinking how disappointed Shyzza must be. I actually said at one point (I think during the Valentine's Day song): At this point James probably ejected the CD.

I only listened to one track on that CD, and it was with rapture. Could I borrow the CD to make a final judgment, rap? I didn't hear it enough that one time.

Honestly, after listening to the CD multiple times it has grown on me. I did expect to hear what we refer to as old Linkin Park's, which you would call Nu-metal I guess. Yes, there are some slower non metal songs on there this time around, they have been calling it progressive metal. In my opinion the first half of the CD is some of the better music you will hear from them in terms of music. You cant say they have lost there edge, when there are songs on there like "Bleed It Out", "Given Up", "What Ive done", and "No More Sorrow". All those songs sound like Linkin Park to me, there is plenty of head banging to be had. "What Ive Done" is comparable to "Somewhere I belong" off of the Meteora Cd, they were both released as the first single from each CD. Those 2 songs have the same time of sound just without Mike Shinoa's rapping, which isn't a bad thing to me. Then you have the semi-mellow songs like "Leave out all the Rest", "Shadow of the Day", "Valentins Day", and "In Pieces"...these are pretty mellow for the most parts, but still sound linkin park. Think of "Breaking the Habit", "Easier to Run" and a few others from the last album...those are all mellow but have good music and are more geared to actual music instead of loud, screamo, rap type stuff.

I am a linkin park fan and do miss the Rap/Rock type stuff from the first album sometimes, but that doesn't mean because it's different you automatically have to hate it. Believe me I was confused when I first popped it into my Cd player and heard the new sound, but after listening to the whole CD a few times I really enjoyed the music they play. Though I like to be yelling and flailing around like a wildman at times (aka Sevendust) it is refreshing for a band like this to try and put together something different since we have been hammered with the rap/rock type of stuff from so many bands. Music is broad and I am glad of this everytime I turn my XM radio on, no one wants to listen to the same sound over and over(personal opinion...maybe some do).

On that note, I did not need to be hammered over the head with hardcore political words and stances during "Hands Held High", "No More Sorrow", and "The little Things Give You Away". Two of those songs are 2 of the worst on the CD, "No More Sorrow" is one of LP's hardest songs they have ever done, but trying to get the anti-bush/anti-whomever they are going at irks me a little. Then I think though that I like Rage against the machine, jimmy eat world, and others who also have an anti-bush/conservative/war supporter attitude written into their music lyrics.

I would give "Minutes to Midnight" a 7.5 or 8/10 because I do enjoy it, but at the same time do miss the old sound when I hear songs like "Hands Held High", "The little Things Give You Away", and "In Between"(WORST SONG THEY HAVE EVER WRITTEN AND SANG!!!). If I were score the different halves of the CD, the first one would probably get atleast a 9/10 from me, but the 7-12 songs would probably get a solid 5-6.5/10.

JDogg,

Thanks for the counterpoint. One of my principle problems with great bands is their tendency to release a few great albums and then decide to "grow artistically" and release something far different than their norm. It is their choice whether to do this, and it is my choice whether I like it and whether I want to buy it. Metallica did this with Load, changed course a little with Reload, and then continued to change with St. Anger. It appears Linkin Park has made a similar maneuver with Minutes to Midnight. Both of these examples point out the fact that I don't personally care how creative, sensitive, politically informed, or multi-faceted a band can be. I care about them producing music I like. Every band has a core capability that defines them. Some bands seem to think their "sound" becomes trite after a few albums and they need to change to keep people interested. On the contrary, I am specifically interested in more music with that sound.

Want a great example of a band that didn't succomb to that pitfall? AC/DC. I count that AC/DC has 16 studio albums plus a few live albums. They played their first gig in 1974. For 33 years Angus and Malcolm Young been writing the same combinations of A/E/G/D and Angus has been wailing out solos on the same basic pentatonic scale, and they still rock.

I like Linkin Park because of their nu-metal sound. I like the contrast of Chester's vocal screams with Mike Shinoda's rapping. I like Joe Hahn's sampling and mixing. I don't like "Valentine's Day." I don't like "Hands Held High." I don't know WTF Linkin Park was thinking when the producer said "Alright guys, the mixing and mastering are done. The album is ready to ship. Any last minute changes?" and Linkin Park gave it a collective thumbs up saying "Yep, this is our new album. This is what we are as a band. Our fans are going to love this."

lol if I was listening to this CD in a car I prob woulda ejected the CD at that point, but since it was on iTunes I would just click to like the middle of every song and if I liked what I was hearing I would start the song over.

For the most part I was pretty dissapointed with the CD, I liked Given Up, What I've Done, and No More Sorrow but I can't say i'm a fan of any of the other songs. I didn't like how it seemed that in almost every song It was either Chester or Mike never both (atleast all the ones I liked). I mean that was what I liked most about them they had two talented singers that could both be in one song and it sound really good, most the time prob better than if it was just one of them, but the only somewhat rockish song that had both was bleed it out but it just seemed that their voices clshed whenever chester would come instead of flow together like in Lying for you, Faint, One step Closer and I think just about all the others.

I wonder what effect, if any, the dynamics between Chester and Mike had on the songs. When Shyzza mentioned they don't sing on the same song often anymore, if at all, it made me think the two musicians might be going separate directions, and while the band is still together, the production might have changed, ergo the different sound. Perhaps the whole of Linkin Park is more than the sum of it's parts, and we're getting a taste of that first-hand through this album that is supposedly their "new sound", albeit broken down and soft.

Mike Shinoa has his own rap band now in Fort Minor, and just about every part he had in songs sounds the same as Fort Minor. In the first 2 linkin park albums his rapping/singing parts just sound different and less like straight up rap to me...maybe from it being blended with Chester. Now they do seem to just split their parts into 2 total songs within a song(if that is possible). The song "Somewhere I Belong" from meteora had both parts from Chester and Mike, but has a total different sound than Minutes to Midnight. Mike pretty much just freestyles when he has a part of the song, though I admit he is very good at it.

I miss the old Linkin Park. I mean you could listen to them anytime, no matter if they were a band from late 90's, and bang your head without stopping. But now, they just...changed. Not cool.

Someone's learned the secrets to Linkin Park's past success and they're sharing it with the world!