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This album (and band) have always stuck with me. LiNkiN Park is one of those bands that, even if I'm not feeling the angst and rage that fuels their writing, the style and flow of their writing still offers something useful.
Now, the album itself...
A lot of this work reminds me of "Hybrid Theory," but in a more evolved way. My experience has been that as people "wake up" in their lives and evolve spiritually, their focus tends to turn inward, away from previous external sources of contention. This is very much the case with LiNkiN Park in "Meteora." Whereas the first album's focus was a very strong "DX YOU!!!" this one is more focused on the "Me... =/" A great deal of the band's confrontation and hostility has been replaced with a stringent, at times brutal sort of introspection. For instance, in the song "Easier to Run," there is the line "pretending I don't feel misplaced is so much simpler than change." These are the hardest things to admit to oneself, let alone to everyone who listens to your music. They still weren't a happy bunch of guys by this point in their career, but the first steps are being taken in the form of a growing self-awareness. There's even a hint of the next step in personal maturation, which involves focusing on the ideal situation. This can be heard in "Somewhere I Belong," "I want to heal. I want to feel like I'm close to something real. I want to find something I've wanted all along - somewhere I belong."
That being said, the contention is still there. "Tired of being what you want me to be." "Every step that I take is another mistake to you" ("Numb.") "It's like no matter what I do, I can't convince you for once just to hear me out." "You're gonna listen to me like it or not, right now!!" ("Faint.") Like anyone, their personal growth is taking place gradually. One doesn't just go from one stage to the next like turning-on a light-switch.
Sonically speaking, I've always been very pleased with this album. Things like the guitar harmonics in the beginning of "Easier to Run," which are clean and ambient, but still so crisp and raw. It's an almost spiritual experience. Making this even more enjoyable is the fact that the band still packs a real sonic punch. The complex but synchronous movement of heavy guitar chords with bass and pounding drum-hits make songs like "Hit the Floor" feel like actually hitting the floor (or the wall, or someone's fist, etc.) It's the kind of whallop you can't convey without well-practiced musical cohesion.
LiNkiN Park's dark, urban style is well-preserved here, and much of these compositions draws to mind thoughts of dingy alley-ways, brick walls and concrete interspersed with graffiti and trash that still can't manage to choke-out the soul of the city. There are sounds that remind me of various cultures, like the sharp but graceful woodwinds in "Nobody's Listening," a very Asian or Asian-American influence. That track also contains remixed audio from "High Voltage," the words "coming at you from every side" in the beginning. LP has always been one of those bands that likes to allude to their earlier work in the later stuff, while still writing obviously new materal. This reminds me of the way that aspects of one's personality may remain present, though each (perhaps) in a different way, as one grows.
Overall I give this album four out of five stars. Not everything here is "instant classic" material, but in my opinion, it's all worth having and represents a more mature personhood in the musicians involved and the collective-mind of the band itself.
Now, the album itself...
A lot of this work reminds me of "Hybrid Theory," but in a more evolved way. My experience has been that as people "wake up" in their lives and evolve spiritually, their focus tends to turn inward, away from previous external sources of contention. This is very much the case with LiNkiN Park in "Meteora." Whereas the first album's focus was a very strong "DX YOU!!!" this one is more focused on the "Me... =/" A great deal of the band's confrontation and hostility has been replaced with a stringent, at times brutal sort of introspection. For instance, in the song "Easier to Run," there is the line "pretending I don't feel misplaced is so much simpler than change." These are the hardest things to admit to oneself, let alone to everyone who listens to your music. They still weren't a happy bunch of guys by this point in their career, but the first steps are being taken in the form of a growing self-awareness. There's even a hint of the next step in personal maturation, which involves focusing on the ideal situation. This can be heard in "Somewhere I Belong," "I want to heal. I want to feel like I'm close to something real. I want to find something I've wanted all along - somewhere I belong."
That being said, the contention is still there. "Tired of being what you want me to be." "Every step that I take is another mistake to you" ("Numb.") "It's like no matter what I do, I can't convince you for once just to hear me out." "You're gonna listen to me like it or not, right now!!" ("Faint.") Like anyone, their personal growth is taking place gradually. One doesn't just go from one stage to the next like turning-on a light-switch.
Sonically speaking, I've always been very pleased with this album. Things like the guitar harmonics in the beginning of "Easier to Run," which are clean and ambient, but still so crisp and raw. It's an almost spiritual experience. Making this even more enjoyable is the fact that the band still packs a real sonic punch. The complex but synchronous movement of heavy guitar chords with bass and pounding drum-hits make songs like "Hit the Floor" feel like actually hitting the floor (or the wall, or someone's fist, etc.) It's the kind of whallop you can't convey without well-practiced musical cohesion.
LiNkiN Park's dark, urban style is well-preserved here, and much of these compositions draws to mind thoughts of dingy alley-ways, brick walls and concrete interspersed with graffiti and trash that still can't manage to choke-out the soul of the city. There are sounds that remind me of various cultures, like the sharp but graceful woodwinds in "Nobody's Listening," a very Asian or Asian-American influence. That track also contains remixed audio from "High Voltage," the words "coming at you from every side" in the beginning. LP has always been one of those bands that likes to allude to their earlier work in the later stuff, while still writing obviously new materal. This reminds me of the way that aspects of one's personality may remain present, though each (perhaps) in a different way, as one grows.
Overall I give this album four out of five stars. Not everything here is "instant classic" material, but in my opinion, it's all worth having and represents a more mature personhood in the musicians involved and the collective-mind of the band itself.
Another great album from Linkin Park. People usually say that sequels fall horribly in comparison to the first, this is not the case with Meteora. Some great tracks coming from this album that can compare with Hybrid Theory's In The End and One Step Closer. Consisting of Somewhere I Belong, Hit The Floor, Faint, Numb, and Breaking The Habit. Starting with Somewhere I Belong, a classic song when talking about Linkin Park's original song. It has all the components that a Linkin Park fan is looking for, and interestingly soft intro and a hard finish. Topped off with deepening lyrics and a very compelling music video. On to Hit The Floor, which is a cold-cut hardcore metal song. Chester Bennington really emphasizes his ability to scream, though not scream-o, in this track. Taking his range to a new level for Linkin Park. In Faint, we see the classical Linkin Park sound and their new directional sound clashing to form yet another great song from Meteora. Once again, Chester performing another hard singing style that heavy-mentalists will enjoy. Numb, which is one of the more noticeable songs from this album, is a generally softer song in comparison to the other tracks. Though softer, this song does provoke more real and authentic emotions in the listener. Then finally Breaking The Habit. This is probably the highlight song of their new album, focusing on an entirely new sound of techno rather than straight forward rock. Along with an interesting music video, this song sits apart from all their other work in a new realm of musical intelligence. All in all, this is another historic album in the Rock genre. Enjoy.