Meteora

Sophomore albums are famously tricky affairs. Musicians have their entire lives to pen their debut album, the theory goes, and a relatively short time to follow it up. But what if the debut in question is the biggest selling album in recent memory? And what if the music industry has Hollywood-like expectations for another instant blockbuster? That was the scenario Linkin Park faced when they entered the studio to record Meteora, the follow-up to their multi-platinum debut Hybrid Theory.

That album-which Rolling Stone called "twelve songs of compact fire indivisibly blending alternative metal, hip-hop, and turntable art"--has shipped 14 million units worldwide to date. It was the Number One selling album of 2001. It launched three chart-topping singles including "In The End." And in 2002 it received a Grammy® for Best Hard Rock Performance for "Crawling," as well as nominations for Best Rock Album and Best New Artist. After diligently pursuing their craft since the band's humble origins in Southern California circa the mid-'90s, Linkin Park now had the world's ear.

To those outside the band, the pressure to follow up that success might have seemed insurmountable. But within Linkin Park, vocalists Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda, guitarist Brad Delson, turntablist Joseph Hahn, drummer Rob Bourdon, and bassist Phoenix weren't sweating it in ways you might expect. Instead of dwelling on outside expectations, they set to work, meticulously crafting each moment of each song to their own exacting standards. The bigger picture developed accordingly.

"We don't ever want to have the mindset where we need to sell 10 million albums each time out. That's ridiculous," says Bennington. "It's a blessing to sell that many albums; it doesn't happen very often in this business--even once in your career is an achievement. Our obligation is to our fans. We're not going to get too comfortable and say it's a given that people will run out and buy our albums." "And if you know us, you know the biggest pressure came from within the band," says Shinoda.

"We just wanted to make another great album that we're proud of," says Bourdon. "We focused on that, and worked hard to create songs we love. We're our own harshest critics." If you doubt that, consider this: Shinoda and Bennington wrote 40 unique choruses for Meteora's poignant first single, "Somewhere I Belong," before arriving at the best possible version.

"We knew we needed to fix a couple things on that song," says Shinoda with a shrug. "So we'd write a new chorus, record it, mix it. Then we'd listen to it the next day, and Chester and I would look at each other and say, 'I don't know... I think it could be better.' And then we'd start again from scratch. It was a lot of work. We probably wrote and scrapped our sophomore jinx album somewhere in the mix. But we took our time, remained critical, and wrote songs we knew were good. Some people might have expected us to write a weaker version of Hybrid Theory--water it down, stagnate. But that's not what we're about."

The winning results of that painstaking approach are instantly apparent on Meteora. The twelve lean tracks display immense growth from the road-honed band, while still showcasing the rare chemistry that's been in place since Bennington completed the line-up in 1999. Working once again with Hybrid Theory co-producer Don Gilmore, the album came to life in a variety of studios, including the band's beloved tour-bus facility and each member's respective home set-up. This time Linkin Park had the opportunity to experiment with a wider palette sound, and an even more diverse array of styles.

They married wildly distressed samples to heavy guitars on songs such as "Somewhere I Belong." They arranged live strings and piano for "Breaking The Habit" and "Faint." They experimented with complex beats on songs such as "Easier To Run." They even added a Japanese flute called a shakuhachi to the hip-hop-driven "Nobody's Listening." Throughout, the rich textures and dynamic arrangements serve to enhance the moods created by Bennington's and Shinoda's powerful vocals--and vice versa. The synergy invites repeat listens.

The guiding vision for the 18-month recording process was evoked by the album's title, Meteora. During a European tour in 2002, the band stumbled upon a travel magazine featuring destinations in Greece. On the cover, the word "Meteora " and the accompanying photo caught their eye, and subsequently fired their imaginations.

Meteora is a group of six monasteries perched atop rock pinnacles rising 1500 feet above the plains of central Greece. As Bennington puts it, "they don't seem of this planet." And it's true. (To see for yourself, rent the Bond flick For Your Eyes Only, in which Roger Moore kicks ass at one of the mountain fortresses.) The Greek word literally translates as "hovering in the air." It's a fitting term for the otherworldly region, as well as for the album Linkin Park created with the image in mind. "We wanted to write songs that lived up to the energy that name exudes," says Bennington.

"It's really epic and beautiful. It totally embodies the sense of timelessness and expansiveness we wanted the album to have," says Shinoda. "We've since met people who've visited Meteora," adds Hahn. "People go there for solitude now--to find themselves. And that's what the album is about--finding yourself. Each song is about looking within and letting out emotions."

This time out, Bennington and Shinoda expanded the emotional range heard on Hybrid Theory. That album dealt with frustration, anger, fear and confusion from a younger person's perspective, according to Shinoda. The goal: catharsis. By contrast, Meteora reflects the accelerated lives the band members have led since recording their debut. "We toured the world for two years. That alone makes you step back and take a look at the bigger picture," says Shinoda. "We've always been interested in universal feelings, and that's what we focused on with this album. But Meteora is different in the sense that we're dealing with more facets of the human condition." "It's still a very dark album, but there's definitely more optimism," says Bennington. "We're still the same people, but now there's a light at the end of the tunnel."

On "Somewhere I Belong," for example, the verses describe fear and confusion, but the chorus takes that crucial first step toward arriving at a solution. Bennington sings, "I want to heal. I want to feel like I'm close to something real. I want to find something I've wanted all along, somewhere I belong."

And on "Breaking The Habit," he sings, "I don't know what's worth fighting for. Or why I have to scream. I don't know why I instigate and say what I don't mean. I don't know how I got this way. I know it's not alright. So I'm breaking the habit tonight."

Once again, the vocalists worked closely together to deliver a broad spectrum of emotions as a unified front. Now, however, Bennington and Shinoda draw upon a longer shared history. Their voices and sentiments are practically indivisible. "Mike is a computer whiz, and a formally trained musician," says Hahn, distinguishing the difference between the two vocalists. "Chester brings the rawness--the emotion that needs to come out. They complement each other that way. It's a true yin-yang thing."

The entire band, in fact, sounds more fully realized on Meteora. It's a rare achievement: A full integration of six members that still retains the unique qualities of each individual. The end result is the thumbprint style known as Linkin Park. "We don't really analyze the chemistry," says Bourdon. "We're just lucky and grateful that we found each other and that we work so well together."

"The collaborations are more seamless now," agrees Bennington. "Mike, for instance, knows more about me as a person, and I know more about him, so it's easier to write lyrics together. It's not possible to have secrecy in our relationship. You have to open up, because you want the other person to be on the same page. We're all that way with each other."

And with collaborators like these, who needs a therapist?

"Exactly," says Bennington with a laugh. "That's why I joined a band in the first place."

The new album is titled "Meteora". It will hit stores March 25th, And March 24th in the other countries. The first single that they will release is "Somewhere I Belong". There are 13 tracks on Meteora. Track listing..

"Meteora"

1. Foreword (Intro)

2. Don't Stay

3. Somewhere I Belong

4. Lying From You

5. Hit The Floor

6. Easier To Run

7. Faint

8. Figure.09

9. Breaking The Habit

10. From The Inside

11. Nobody's Listening

12. Session

13. Numb

We would like to present you all with some hot clips from Linkin Park's first single off of Meteora, "Somewhere I Belong." The first clip is snippet of the chorus, the second clip is the first half of the chorus, and the third clip is the second half of the chorus. The third clip is simply the instrumental clip played on LPTV. Together, we get:

"And the fault is my own,

And the fault is my own,

I want to heal,

I want to feel what I thought was never real,

I want to let go of the pain I've felt so long,

Erase all the pain 'til it's gone,

I want to heal,

I want to feel like I'm close to something real,

I want to find something I've wanted all along,

Somewhere I belong"

Now, these lyrics may or may not be inaccurate so you must be the judge.

Sorry, due to certain issues they have been removed. You may go to the LP Association.com and listen to them there.

Track-By-Track Descriptions

"Foreword" (Intro): Hammering for several seconds, panes clatter, and the album breaks loose.

"Don't Stay": Both Chester and Mike start this song off very aggressively, and Brad has a sharp guitar riff in between syllables. A good start into the second album. New lyrics contain, "forget our memories, possibilities." Hard nü-metal-type song.

"Somewhere I Belong": The first single from the new CD, a sure hit. It begins sounding like Red Hot Chili Peppers, shady, and then transforms into the recognizable sound of Linkin Park. This has the same sort of stuff as the hits "One Step Closer" and "Crawling." Mike and Chester have very full and rich voices on this track, and it changes rapidly from that rich sound to a new agressive one. Both are impressive.

"Lying From You": This song is filled with sloping beats and violins that appear again and again throughout the song. In addition, the bass guitar and the rhythm section pushes hard. Mike raps a lot in this song while Chester belnds in a soft soothing voice. There is then also some screams that will singe the seed flax in your wall.

"Hit The Floor": This song starts out with extremely distorted heavy guitars that take no prisoners. There is also a lot of experimental sounds by Joe in this track. Here, the six string guitar is dominant, and will fight in the end against Mike and Chester's vocals and Joe's samples. Wild.

"Easier To Run": Right at the beginning a huge broadside riff rolls over your ears. The comes a whining Chester into the mix. Not a love song, but the orchestra samples fues with both singers and wrap the song up.

"Faint": The big beats pound accompanying the pounding guitar. Phat. Asiatic bursts of sound surf on the massive waves of riffs, which accompany Mike's fast emceeing and Chester's deep singing. Chester threatens to scream himself out of his body. This is a fast song, it is full of despair and is reminiscent in its chorus of filter harmonies.

"Figure.09": This is a hard nü-metal track. In it Chester sounds like David Draiman of Disturbed, which gives the track a certain type of feeling. There is talk of Draiman as a guest on future tracks. Chester like's Draiman's voice, and they got to know each other during the recording of the Queen of the Damned soundtrack.

"Breaking The Habit": Chester sings very soft to hard bass riffs and drum beats. This track is very experimental instrument-wise and has a lot of electronic sounds in it. This song is different from the rest, having a unique 80s pop melody.

"From The Inside": Once more, heavy guitars and melodious nü-metal that really uses the name "Hybrid Theory." Chester goes all over the place with his vocals and shows how screamish he can be.

"Nobody's Listening": Yo! Yo! Yo! Pure hip-hop, baby! Hard electronic beats, Mike is in his full element. Chester also comes in and makes some gloomy sounds in the background. Nice change from the rest of the songs. There is no guitar in this track.

"Session" (Instrumental): Oblique ticking beats (reminiscent of a badly copied Aphex Twin) and electronic samples. Then a piano is thrown in, the individual sound elements produce a war that climaxes in a furious ending. No guitars in this track, either.

"Numb": So that the fans are not let out of the album unsatisfied, there follows a real nü-metal crash that closes Meteora in a worthy fashion. Chester defends himself textually again, against all limitations.

Overall: In comparision with Hybrid Theory, this album is better. Not perceptible right at the beginning, but then the sensually detailed loving work of the instruments opens up. The guitars are played harder, more biting, more precise. While rock and rap harmonize better than at the debut album. Chester sings much richer and sounds often more despairing than earlier, which gives Meteora an emotional depth. The perfect successor to Hybrid Theory, the fans can grab it without hesitation.

Credit: Lanimilbus, Trumtram, and Lanimibus's father who is well knowledged in german and english for translating this, and finally the LP Association.

Making the video Somewhere I Belong air dates according to tvguide.com these are the REAL air dates:

Tuesday; March 4th on MTV @ 11pm Eastern Time

And repeated on March 5th on MTV @ 2pm Eastern Time.

Credit: LP Association