Album Review: Linkin Park - Living Things

Linkin Park
Living Things
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

Linkin Park's fifth album Living Things is not so much a return to form as it is a return to what made them successful to begin with. With the demise of nü-metal and its chief bands either throwing their hat in the dubstep ring (Korn) or still flogging a dead horse (Limp Bizkit), Linkin Park has bravely soldiered on, refining their sound to bridge the gap between their harder, guitar based influences and their hip-hop/electronic influences, releasing an almost pop-rock album (Minutes To Midnight) and a slightly more experimental/electronic record (A Thousand Suns). Neither album worked very well as a whole, sort of forgetting that the reason why they were so popular in the first place was that their best tracks had hooks for days. These were sadly missing from those records, but the band seems to have remembered that and brought that back to the table for the new record. Produced by singer/rapper Mike Shinoda and Rick Rubin, Living Things returns to a more concise format, coming in at a lean and mean 36 minutes, and is one of their most diverse sets, alternating seamlessly between hard-edged rockers, pop tracks, and electronic excursions.

By going to back to their basics, Linkin Park feel more enervated and on their game. From first single "Burn It Down," a electronic leaning rocker, that kicks it out with another killer chorus,



"In My Remains," a mid-tempo pop-rock track,



to the churning guitars of "I'll Be Gone," the focus is all about the melody and not trying to push their sound into something that doesn't suit them.



The band has noted in interviews that Living Things is a distillation of all their records into one, and in a way, that is very true. While the band sticks to their crafty hooks throughout, they do return to some sounds of old. "Victimized" is a brutal heavy riff attack and the hardest track they've done in years,



"Lies Greed Misery" and "Until It Breaks" recall their best rock/rap hybrids,



while "Roads Untraveled" and closer "Powerless" are two more haunting ballads, showcasing the range of singer Chester Bennington.



This return to basics enlivens Living Things and is the first Linkin Park record since Meteora that I have returned to again and again. While the songwriting and hooks are nowhere near as good as that record and Hybrid Theory, it easily takes its place right behind them in order of success.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.