Linkin Park Minutes to Midnight Review

[jitz]

Ok so a few people look at the What I've Done thread from memory so I'd figured I'd do a review of the album that has been officially acknowledged by Mike Shinoda to have leaked.

It's shit, don't bother. I'll admit that I like Linkin Park. They're one of those bands that became cool to hate due to their success, I always thought that while they needed computers to sound any good, that sound was pretty good. This though, this is something else. Linkin Park claim that's it's their most inspired, most ambitious album, but every song on the album says otherwise. Between hard rock (they've completely stripped their sound of all metal) and sappy ballads it's hard to find anything to write home about.

By 'more mature" Linkin Park was obviously talking about their bitch about George Bush, yes yet another band bites it with another anti-Bush song. Honestly these have become the most uninspired, disposable trash songs and will be looked back in 10 years as the worst part of the 00's.

The major problem with the album though is the musicians, these slower songs only point out their weaknesses. They were never that good at their instruments, instead relying on thrashing on them. Now that they can each be heard individually, none of the band steps up to the plate. On an album that relies heavily on ballads, the uninteresting music puts you to sleep as there's nothing to listen to.

The saddest part is the lack of Mike Shinoda. He raps on two sounds and actually sings on one. Now I was never a huge fan of the guy, I completely ignored the Fort Minor album. His going MIA is the biggest travesty for the album because he is clearly the most improved member of the band. His rapping has improved so much that it overshadows Chester's vocals. The worst part however is the song Mike sings on, it's starts off being the best song on the album, then some dickhead decides Chester should sing backup vocals on the track too, Chester ruins it. Thankfully (sort of) the song ends up going nowhere (like nearly every other song on the album), so it's end up being just another track to fall asleep to, so the blame can't rest squarely on Chester's shoulders.

I can't understand who this album is for, because it's definitely not for their fans. They've stripped themselves of their identity in trying to gain a more mature sound, but that mature sound is so cliched and uninspired it won't attract the older crowd they're aiming for. This 'new' sound has been done plenty of times before in the best, and far better. Thankfully though, the album is so bad it's already garnering bad reviews on all the torrent sites. It'll get bad reviews in mainstream music publications. It'll get bad reviews across the board and the band will get the message. Mike has already jumped to the defence claiming you need to look at the album art, and watch the making of dvd, and listen to the tracks in order (which I do no matter what anyway because I know what he's talking about). Any album that relies on a making of DVD that isn't packaged in the standard edition, and also relies on album art...well shit the warning signs are there. Usually I'm not so sure of that a band will apologise for an album, but this album is that bad I honestly do expect the band to say a few bad words about it down the track.

Download simply to listen to how bad it is, and join in with the chorus of abuse the album will receive.

[The Don]

Iain isn't gonna gonna like this post as he has/s going to order the 100 dollar edition, but then again I ordered the 30 dollar edition. I personally like Linkin Park as they are one of the few rock band I'll still listen to. I wouldn't go as far as to say the album is a complete failure but it is their worst yet... ironically I've shelled out the most for this cd than I have any LP CD to date.

The lack of Mike is the biggest fault of the CD, with the "more mature sound" a close second. Listening to it makes me yearn for the days when One Step Closer first came up and really grabbed a lot of people by the balls and made them take notice. they've slowly but surely gone down hill since then. The need to get out of the trend of releasing a studio album followed by a filler album and then a new studio album two years later. I don't know the cycle in rock, but n rap the cycle is one CD a year, 18 months tops, then a new CD comes out.

I still can enjoy the CD and am gald I ordered it and am waiting for it to arrive at my door. What I've Done is a good track, I enjoy Given Up and Bleed it out as well. I really hope they get their ass in the studio and get back to the old sound sooner rather than later. But then again I'm also waiting for the second Fort Minor CD.

On a side note I'm quite dissapointed in the few rock bands I still listen to. Minutes to Midnight is lackluster. Aerosmith needs to pack it in if they haven't already, and KoRn doesn't seem the same... Kid Rock's next CD better be damn good. Oh and RIP Limp Bizkit... I still do it all for the Nookie *puts on red Yankees hat backwards*

[Big Bizang]

You can sometimes wait years and years for a new release with rock bands which just makes it all the more disappointing when they suck. It's like 'What the hell have you been doing all this time?' I waited three years for a new Modest Mouse album and when it came out it was fucking incedible so I'm lucky I guess.

I used to listen to Linkin Park but I don't know, by the second album I found them a bit embarrassing, like the sentiment they were trying to portray was way too forced and a Bush-Bashin' album is exactly the next clich

[The Don]

the only thing I thought when I saw their new video was 'Christ Chester looks gay'.

LMFAO! Me too! I still like them however.

[jitz]

Most bands these days release an album every two years, the reason it takes that long is because they tour the world for over a year in those two years. If rappers actually rapped live and toured the world then it'd take longer.

Back to Linkin Park, I always thought Meteora was a huge improvement over Hybrid Theory. The song structures were far improved, not relying on a hook in the chorus. The structure of the songs on Minutes to Midnight seems to have taken a backwards step, in effect the songs flat line.

Oh and I find it humourous that The Don picks three of the four actual rock songs on the album as the one's he enjoys, lets not forget this is a 11 track album (exc. intro track), so that makes it eight songs that aren't worth mentioning. The album is dead in the water.

EDIT - Oh and they are the good songs, I agree with you. They would be the three I'd pick too, Bleed It Out is extremely repetitive though.

[The Don]

Bleed It Out is extremely repetitive though.

Have you listened to a hip-hop raido station as of lates?

[jitz]

I live in fear of the scourge that is radio, one slip up and I could wind up being reminded how Avril Lavigne's 'Girlfriend' goes, then it's another four days straight of mental torture.

[The Don]

Thankfully I have not herd that song so my ears are still intact.

[jitz]

You don't enjoy sexy white chicks slutting around in video clips lip syncing to pop songs? It's hot.

[Nemo]

anything that isnt on hybrid theory sucks.

fuck linkin park.

[Aero]

fuck linkin park.

[Fozy]

Not gonna get into it just now, but I'm just gonna say give the album a few more listens, don't think it's shit straight off the bat.

I LOVE it now, and that's a big change from what I thought to begin with.

[Fozy]

Oh and that Given Up has the best scream in a song, ever.

[scoot]

ive listened, and despite its merits, this album, to me at least, fails to deliver, although for the hardcore linkin park audience, this might be what dark light was for the hardcore HIM fan base, something that requires more than one listen to unlock the true glory underneath. for the average listener however, it just doesnt live up to expectations

[jitz]

I really don't understand why you must relate everything to HIM. Besides Dark Light wasn't nearly as much of a divergence as Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights was, even Razorblade Romance was completely different to Greatest Lovesongs. Infact the only albums that have any real similarites are Razorblade Romance and Love Metal. So you point is null and void. The only reason HIM fans felt jarred was because the fane base grew astronomically after Love Metal due to the amount Bam was flogging them off to everyone (with due reason). So the new fans took the body of work already available as HIM, ignored the differences between the albums, then Dark Light came out and was different and they cried.

Linkin Park's change is more inline with a lot of other bands from "nu metal" (god I hate that name) era, where the fan base died off so they softened the music.

[scoot]

im not saying any albums of the past were not diffrent, what im saying is that its not an album that the genral HIM fan loved on the first paly through, and that i just imagine its a similar thing with minuites to midnight. i do agree that the other albums HIM released were of many diffrent styles and sounds, just diffrent styles and sounds that could be loved on the first play through. i imagine a similar thing will happen with venus doom, which will be more heavy than previous HIM material (GIAN prooved that one to me).

[CrossFan]

Oh and that Given Up has the best scream in a song, ever.

Dude i just listened to that and it's fuckin awesome

[The Don]

My copy came today and I must say it's pretty cool. You can tell they spent a lot of time on the book. I'd like to see what Iain got for 100 bucks.

Maybe they shoulda spent more time on the CD and not worried about the book as much however.

EDIT: The more I listen to the CD the more I like it. It won't stay in rotation like Hybrid Theyory, but it's an okay CD.

[Legendeath]

I think that the new album is somewhat good. But no where compared to the other albums. I think it's toned down even more which I think is a bad move. Alot of people liked it as the only screaming that you can like and understand.

[DJ Armageddon]

i absolutly hate there new song. there 2nd album is my fav. this one in my opinion was horrible. the lack of mike killed linkin park in my view. fort minors 2nd cd i believe will be great the 1st one was incredible