Linkin Park

Meteora

Booooooooring, Boooooooring,

Review Score:

(2/10)
I was never a huge fan of their first album but I never disliked it either. Everyone and their mother knew "In The End," a unique rock ballad that died a tragic death to radio overplay, and to a lesser extent, "One Step Closer," an in-your-face crowd pleaser. Linkin Park wasn't very original but they've become cultural staples and upped the ante for high production and hybrid styles of music (rap, metal, synth). We know what it means to have a "sound like Linkin Park". They're due at least some credit simply because they've brought music lovers and haters together in dissection of our current music world.

The second album is a little more bland and less energetic, but I turned off my brain and nodded to every song. "Don't Stay" and "Lying From You" are decent enough, and "Faint" shows some growth away from their regular sound. "Easier To Run" is a cliched throwback but probably the most mature song on the album. They fail with songs like "Hit the Floor" and "Nobody's Listening" because Shinoda can't carry the center of a song, even when his vox is produced to the extreme.

If you're a Linkin Park fan, this is more of the same with little variation and the best that production values have to offer. I can see why some people would love it and some people would hate it -- it's an attestment to the best and worst of music today. The only true way they would be viewed as serious artists is if they took a turn like Metallica and did an unpredictable St. Anger type album.

Bottom Line = Love them or hate them, the second album is an enjoyable blend of loud guitar riffs, catchy chorus's, and heavy synth mixing. Call this a guilty pleasure.

More Reviews: