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Ooh, look at those parents spending quality time with their kids, some as
young as 12. Could it be true? Could this really be some sort of boy band?
Some accuse Linkin Park of being merely a metal boy band (but they're
secretly elated when In the End shows up on MTV), just another one in the
long line of the nu-metal generation. But analyze this: They don't have the
shiny goldilocks and the matching bleached white teeth; they don't have the
choreographed smooth moves; they sing the old-fashioned way by using
hand-held microphones; they write their own songs and play their own
instruments and (usually) keep their shirts on. And they play some good
music, enough to make even the most contained adults loosen up. Get crazy,
in other words.
"Show we how crazy you are!" Non-rapping singer Chester Bennington yells to
the crowd. Judging from the crowd's decibel-tearing response, there are some
wild hybrids out here tonight. And they know by heart the lyrics to ALL the
songs, at least the ones to the first album Hybrid Theory. The security
surrounding the as-yet unreleased Meteora has so far prevented leaks, but
the fans seem to like the new sounds, which are strangely not too different
to the multi-million-selling Meteora. But who cares?! They rock! (and rap).
The concert lasts an hour. Okay, maybe an hour and ten minutes. It doesn't
justify the rather elevated ticket price. I mean, there's not even an
opening band. But who needs one when Linkin Park is - whooaaahh - playing.
But then again, there's school tomorrow morning and the young fans need to
go to bed early; the parents are here to make sure. Chester, rapper Mike
Shinoda and Phoenix the bassist regularly use the amplifiers as thrones,
singing to the mesmerized hybrids below who are hailing them with fists
rising and kicking the smoky air. Both singers shake and high-five the hands
of eager fans in the front rows, who now have something even more exciting
to talk about at school tomorrow.
No real surprises here, but the raw energy cuts right through you. Good
music? yes. Great showmanship? Yes. But let's try not to sound exactly like
the CD, OK? Performance-wise, it's as exciting as it could get. But the rest
is just square.
Three track from Meteora (Don't Stay, Somewhere I Belong, Lying From
You) then three from Hybrid Theory (Papercut, Points of Authority,
Runaway) then a track from Reanimation then six more tracks from the first
and second albums - wow, how organized is that? Chester has some great vocal
cords, but his singing is often drowned beneath the overtuned guitars. And
how clever, they left the most popular tracks for the pre-encore end -
Crawling is followed by In the End, the official Linkin Park hymn; the
crowd goes wild. This time, Chester's voice is drowned out by that of 5,000
chanting fans.
More chants arise after the band leaves the stage - you know
when they "fool" you into thinking that the show's over before coming out
and generously playing some more. The rather boring semi-ballad Easier to
Run is the first of three encores. Rather disappointing, if you ask me. The
energy seems to be waning. One Step Closer follows A Place for My Head -
and it's bedtime for the kids.
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