Linkin Park Departs from Norm with Minutes to Midnight

Ok, take every preconceived notion you had of Linkin Park. Now, throw it all out and start fresh.

Gone is the nu-metal sound that distinguished Linkin Park from the rest of the music scene. Gone is the non-stop aggression howled by frontman Chester Bennington. Gone is a heavy hip-hop shadow and constant rapping by multi-instrumentalist Mike Shinoda.

The band has aligned themselves with world-renowned producer Rick Rubin (Red Hot Chili Peppers, System of a Down, Johnny Cash) for its first release in four years entitled Minutes to Midnight. Rubin is known for being enlisted when a band wants to change its style and sound, and this is no different.

Yes, this isn't your Linkin Park from your teenage years. This is a new, mature group that wants to break away from any and all stereotypes it may have established itself with 2000's Hybrid Theory, and 2003's Meteora.

Minutes... begins with a bang with the instrumental opening of "Wake." "Wake" provides a slowly-building sonic landscape of what Linkin Park has in store for its fans for the next 41 minutes, which seamlessly flows into "Given Up". "Given Up" is probably one of the few tracks on this album that will appease the hardcore LP fan. It features Bennington's trademark aggressive vocal style and screaming chorus, but also features a LP oddity: the f-bomb, where Benngington angrily asks "What the f--- is wrong with me?"

From there LP slows things down with the reminiscent, "Leave Out All the Rest." Bennington's vocal work soars and takes center stage, exclaiming, "Don't resent me, and when you're feeling empty; keep me in your memory." "Bleed It Out" follows and is arguably the catchiest tune in LP's catalog. The track is the first of two that features Shinoda's rapping stylings, and he's not afraid to drop an f-bomb or two himself. "Bleed It Out" also features drummer Rob Bourdon using a tambourine, making this song extremely dancable. LP slows it back down again with the heartfelt and melodic "Shadow of the Day". Like "Leave Out All The Rest," Bennington's vocals soar here with the help of a string section to back up the band. Lyrically this track is beautifully done, yet very sad, saying "the shadow of the day will embrace the world in grey," and "Sometimes beginnings aren't so simple; sometimes good bye's the only way."

LP's first single of Minutes..., "What I've Done" follows. This track has been getting a lot of airplay on every rock station across the country, and in some ways (in the opinion of this writer) the band reflects on their reinvention by stating "Put to rest what you thought of me; Well I cleaned this slate with the hands of uncertainty." and "I'll start again; and whatever pain may come; today this ends; I'm forgiving what I've done."

Shinoda's rapping returns on "Hands Held High," a damning criticism on President George W. Bush ("For a leader so nervous in an obvious way, stuttering and mumbling for nightly news to replay") and the current war in Iraq ("It's ironic at times like this you pray, but a bomb blew up in the mosque today"). The track is LP's first foray into integrating politics in their music, a continuing trend for the rest of the album. "No More Sorrow" is a scathing call for a new administration stating "No more sorrow, I've paid for your mistakes. Your time is borrowed, your time has come to be replaced," with a militaristic guitar riff reminiscent of Metallica's "Don't Tread On Me."

"Valentine's Day" follows and is the low-point on the album, taking too long to build to hold the listener's interest. Shinoda returns to the vocal forefront on "In Between", this time giving his rapping talents a rest and actually singing. "In Pieces" features another LP first - a guitar solo from lead guitarist Brad Delson.

Minutes to Midnight closes with LP's longest song to date, the six-and-a-half minute "The Little Things You Give Away." "Little Things..." is a slow-building, chilling recounting of the events of Hurricane Katrina with "Water creeps through the windows, up the stairs; Chilling rain, like an ocean everywhere." The band continues with its dissatisfaction with the current administration and its handling of the catastrophe stating "Hope decays, generations disappear; Washed away, as a nation simply stares." The track continues to cresendo with Bennington repeating the song's chorus of "All you've ever wanted was someone to truly look up to you." with Shinoda providing back-up vocals of the song's title.

Overall, Minutes to Midnight will be a difficult album for hardcore LP fans to accept, but one cannot fault the band for preparing the fans for the departure, saying countless times during interviews that it would be a drastic change. To the casual rock fan, this is a brilliant album full of brilliant melodies and excellent songwriting combining introspective thoughts and political commentary. Any way you look at it, Minutes... is a successful launching-pad for Linkin Park's new direction, and although will take time, be wildly accepted by LP's fanbase.