Linkin Park

Reanimation

One absymal low can't stop this sonic powerhouse.

Review Score:

(10/10)
Reanimation is the kind of album I wish we saw more of. Linkin Park, probably for both commercial and inspirational reasons, took some time to completely rework their debut, Hybrid Theory. Teaming up with some of the best MCs of underground hip-hop and producers from the harder rock world, LP essentially gives their original songs something of an andrenal stimulant, turbo-charging the tracks into edgier, angrier, more industrial sounds. The drum set is dropped in favor of the drum machine, the Marshall stack for the ProTools...the entire album is an unholy fusion of industrial electronica and rock that works so well it's, well, evil. Forgotten is completely reborn in a bass-heavy, dark hip-hop act. Jay Gordon of Orgy gives Points Of Authority a kinetic digital boost. Mike Shinoda unloads his mainstream baggage and delivers in the standout and absolutely unbelievable remixes of Pushing Me Away and Crawling, the latter gifted with an amazing vocal cameo from Staind's Aaron Lewis and a spine-chilling assortment of strings. LP's resident DJ Joseph Hahn punches up the intensity in the distortedly epic remix of With You, while the Humble Brothers and Jonathan Davis of Korn up the complexity and length of One Step Closer in a jaw-dropping act. Mickey Petralia provides the soft, touching My December with a soft but slick beat. The fact that the original version still hasn't been released in the USA is a tragedy, but this remix, while inferior to the original, is an excellent track, and a definite highlight.

There is one low on this muscular masterpiece. It's the remix of In The End, featuring Motion Man. It's, well, awful. It completely butchers the original, stripping it of it's best assets and adding nothing new. The remix of High Voltage also lacks the kick of the original, though it's not nearly as bad as this disaster.

Still, this album deserves its 5 stars for intent and execution. Though most fans will probably write it off as "commercial cash-in" on the Linkin Park and Hybrid Theory names, it's ironically far from it. Instead, Reanimation is probably more what Linkin Park would sound like if commerical success were not a factor, if they didn't have to worry about appeasing their mainstream fans and just wanted to go all out. It's more creative, more experimental, and more aggressive than you'd believe, and arguably more interesting than both Hybrid Theory and Meteora.

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