Even when Chester drops in with his scratchy voice of pain and anguish chorus it still sounds fresh and mile ahead of their past rap-meet-aggro rock machinations. The addition of handclaps helps propel the track into one of the better raps that MH has lit to tape. With "Bleed It Out" the band kicks out an almost U2 sounding guitar skirmish while Mike Shinoda kicks the verbal ballistics. But hey, you can't expect a band to change that drastically overnight. Yet underneath the rippling elements of a new sound it is revealed that the band is still very much tethered to their past, the song conforming to a number of LP blueprints. The click track rhythms and bubbly bass also echo with minimalistic electronic bliss, which is a nice, warm shift in tone for the band. The cool harmonic introduction to the track again hints at a sonic makeover, as do the side shifting elements of ambiance. Bennington reveals that he has a lovely voice when he's not busy concealing the fact underneath feedback and acid drenched intensity.
LINKIN PARK GIVEN UP BASS SKIN
The LP boys continue to wrestle with their past sound while making a few inroads towards a new entity on "Leave Out All The Rest," a veritable ballad, at least in LP molting out of their old Nu Metal skin formulaicy. Okay, so this track kind of falls victim to the post-Nu Metal fall-out combined with screamo backlash and aggressive emo tendencies, but still despite the routine nature of much of the song it still packs a wallop and offers up some intriguing shifts in musicality, specifically the wonderfully turgid bass blast.
Ditto for the blitzkrieg that is "Given Up," the first bona fide song featuring a resurrected Chester B. The first thing you notice from the opening instrumental "Wake" is that not only does it seem fitting in relation to the album's title-yes, it's atmospherically indicative of the minutes leading up to the proverbial Witching Hour-is that it's richly nuanced and not at all like the flat sounding excursions of their past. They may very well have been reading my thought transmissions this time around, which would be cool and a wee bit scary at the same time. I've always wished they'd flesh out their sound a bit more, delve just a little deeper into the low-end and groove to give some added sonic depth to their proceedings.
It leans toward being dry and unemotional delivering stoically detached resonance that leaves me feeling empty and unsatisfied. “We are indebted to all of the supporters of Music Rising who have given us a great opportunity to return to our roots and help those musicians in need.My problem with Linkin Park has always been their sound. “The proceeds Music Rising earned will help bring live music back to life in a part of the country whose musical culture has been hugely influential in the world,” he continued. “We want to thank everyone involved in this amazing auction including the artists who generously gave their personal instruments and the bidders from around the globe who helped us break world records," The Edge said about the event in a statement. All proceeds went to Music Rising - a nonprofit founded by U2's The Edge and producer Bob Ezrin. It went for $266,200, which broke the record for the highest-selling smashed guitar at auction. Vedder's Placid-Blue Fender Telecaster was smashed during a Pearl Jam show at Wrigley Field on Augduring a cover of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley" and was signed by the frontman. Macca's Yamaha BB-1200 electric bass guitar was played on tour and in the studio with Wings and sold for $496,100, overtaking Bill Wyman’s 1969 Fender Mustang bass that sold for $384,000 last year. According to Guitar World, two of those instruments - a bass donated by Paul McCartney and smashed guitar from Eddie Vedder - broke auction sales records. Over the weekend, music collectors placed their bids on items from some of the biggest names in rock music during GUITAR ICONS: A Musical Instrument Auction To Benefit Music Rising.