Linkin Park-From Zero
Mixed results on the band's comeback album
Seven years have passed since Chester Bennington’s death. His passing shook the music industry and Linkin Park’s fan base, with many questioning the band's future.
In the years that followed, Mike Shinoda released solo material. The band’s legacy was kept alive with 20th-anniversary editions of their first two albums, Hybrid Theory and Meteora, and a singles collection, Papercuts.
2024 seems like the perfect time for the band to move forward by recruiting Dead Sara vocalist Emily Armstrong to fill the void left by Bennington. The new line-up also sees Colin Brittain replacing Rob Bourdon on drums.
With so much change, you could argue it’s sensible for the band to play to past strengths on their eighth studio album, From Zero, instead of exploring new musical territory. You’ll hear nods to past singles that helped to make Linkin Park a success, a formula that works in places and fails in others.
It also makes sense for them to keep the album short and sweet at just over thirty minutes. If the album proves to be a success, it leaves people hungry for more.
From Zero has its standout moments
The album manages to deliver tracks that pack a punch with singles ‘The Emptiness Machine’ and ‘Heavy is The Crown’ with the latter sounding like the follow-up to ‘Faint’. They demonstrate Armstrong’s vocal abilities to help kickstart the next chapter of Linkin Park’s career. The fire from their first two singles carries over into ‘Casualty’ which might be one of the heaviest songs the band has written. You feel the aggression of this song when those hardcore drums and Armstrong’s vocals kick in on the chorus. You wouldn’t be blamed for thinking they are tapping into the same energy that inspired them to write ‘Victimized’ from 2012’s Living Things.
Other tracks that stand out from the album is ‘Overflow’ which seems to be tinged with reggae and dub music influences to create this huge space for the music to swirl in. The song doesn’t evolve beyond the hypnotic quality that exists between Shinoda and Armstrong’s vocal exchanges. However, the dirty guitar lick on the bridge that sees the song out, helps bring in some much-needed dynamics.
‘Stained’ comes from the same musical vein as ‘Overflow’ but somehow manages to evolve more naturally. When Armstrong sings the choruses, there is a passion that comes from her voice, showing her vocal range that seems to enhance the criticism she addresses in the song’s choruses.
From Zero falls short in places but ends strong
Whilst there are sections of the album that might evoke a positive emotional response or please the ears, there are also sections that lack a punch or are forgettable.
The band’s second run of singles, ‘Over Each Other’ and ‘Two-Faced’, don’t have the same impact as the opening singles from the album. ‘Over Each Other’ doesn’t hit with the emotional impact it hopes to get across in the lyrics. This might come from the rhythm section's unable to deliver a memorable groove that carries the song forward beyond the first chorus.
‘Two-Faced’ sees the band reimagining the riff from ‘One Step Closer’ but feels like the band having more fun with the idea than drawing from the emotional well that helped give the original its angst.
‘Cut The Bridge’, seems to nod to ‘Bleed It Out’ from the band’s 2007 album Minutes to Midnight. Shinoda delivers rap verses over a downbeat groove that might sound more impactful if hadn’t been attempted before the band. The chorus feels immature for a band this far into their career.
‘IGYEIH’ seems to be the most forgettable track on the album. The riff that opens the track seems generic and lacks a hook to make it more memorable. It seems to rely on Armstrong’s angry vocals to elevate its status on the album. If there was ever a song on this album guilty of being a filler track, this would be it.
‘Good Things Go’ seems like the ideal track to close the album and when you hear it, you can’t help but feel that this is the track that is lamenting the loss of Bennington. The chorus effects on the guitar, seem to create a sense of melancholy, while the weary-sounding vocals from Shinoda seem to be encouraged along by Armstrong repeating the same lines he sings and sometimes sings in harmony with him. It seems her vocals on the track serve as a cathartic experience to help the band heal and find a new way forward.
Linkin Park made an album that will please fans
If you’re a passionate fan of Linkin Park’s music, you’ll probably find more ways to enjoy From Zero than someone who only knows their most famous songs. However, if you’re not a massive fan the band, you wouldn’t be blamed for thinking this album is a mixture of interesting moments but also guilty of having forgettable tracks.
The band seems to have a promising future ahead of themselves especially when the band seemed to be over. This album will serve as the perfect segue way between the band’s past and future, allowing them to feel confident to explore new musical territory moving forward.
Liam Donohoe