Mike Shinoda Discusses Direction of LIVING THINGS with NME

[Moridin]

Mike is Lost In The Toolbox.

I laughed more at that image than I probably should have.

Mike's Toolbox would like to have a word with you.

I must respectfully decline Mike's Toolbox's request to converse.

[vanRoK]

this is he's precious TOOLBOX

[superdupercop]

by the way, guys, how's Burn It Down doing on the charts? it sounds like it would receive the sort of reception New Divide did...
and being on the NBA promo video and stuff, id expect it to be very popular. and hows it doing on iTunes?

or perhaps its too early to say....idk.

[minuteforce]

It's doing okay on iTunes, just like the album is. The unreleased album.

[Snail]

Am I the only one who thinks this record might sound like a less out there version of Reanimation? Think about it...the band is quick to say the album is NOT nu-metal, but that it has the creative spirit of their older albums. It's also NOT ATS part two. Seeing as MTM/ATS weren't "the old LP" and Hybrid Theory/Meteora were nu-metal...that only leaves one more album .

Don't see that happening.

Personally, I think it's a little disheartening that Mike feels that if they do anything remotely similar to what they've done in the past, they'll be 'pidgeonholed' into that style forever. As such, I believe that Mike and co. simply do not want to tread into the foundation they laid out back in 99'-03'. This is just a guess, but I think they're over it. If I'm correct, I wish they'd just outright say it. Of course, that would basically be suicide from a marketing and financial perspective.

However, if they still enjoy the sound they had pre-MTM, I think that the band needs to take another look around. At this point in their careers, it shouldn't matter anymore what the audience or critics think at all. They're very successful, and have proven a point to themselves, the fans, and the world; Minutes to Midnight and A Thousand Suns are solid proof that they are not one-trick ponies. Despite the inclusion of their recent albums however, casual audiences are still calling the band sappy, poppy, angsty music. It's a lost cause. Therefore, if they really do still enjoy the sound they once had, I wish they would embrace it once more.

Additionally, I think that fans of the Hybrid Theory - Meteora eras get a bad rep here. Granted, a large portion are knuckleheads who have yet to, or refuse to expand their musical taste. Then again, there are those who simply expected a different pace or style to the band's evolution. It must be noted that I never yearned for another album laced with sappy, teenage-oriented content akin to Somewhere I Belong. Instead, I was and still am waiting on the band to expand upon the stylistic vibe established with songs like High Voltage, Rock And Roll (feat. Handsome Boy Modeling School), or Chester's vocal work on Slow Ya Roll. The tracks they contribute to or produce is a better representation of what the could have been, if the whole 'nu-metal' fanatics and labeling never dug into the back of the band's skulls in my opinion.

/end random 2cents.

[Derek]

I should stress that I am a Hybrid Theory fan. I just have grown out of favor with Meteora due to the trap it put the band in for most of their career and what it did to their reputation. I got into Linkin Park because they we're different and fresh, and because I knew they weren't a band that would pigeonhole themselves into one category or sound of music. It's just disappointing it took them till their third album to learn that about themselves. They did Meteora because they thought they HAD to sound like the first album, and that they had to create Hybrid Theory again (LP has said repeatedly that Meteora was largely the result of label pressure), and it made them come off as the band who's songs all sound the same.

They've spent the better half of a decade running away from themselves because of it. Sure it resulted in a very stellar album (ATS) that might end up being the best of their career, but it didn't have to be that way. Meteora cursed the band in many ways, and it's that very fact that makes me resent it.

I'm glad they evolved, and I'm glad ATS came out and got (for the most part) accepted as it has. If anything it proves to the band that they don't have to listen to their critics/Warner. We love their music the most when they're true to THEMSELVES.

[Xero21]

le disheartening that Mike feels that if they do anything remotely similar to what they've done in the past, they'll be 'pidgeonholed' into that style forever. As such, I believe that Mike and co. simply do not want to tread into the foundation they laid out back in 99'-03'. This is just a guess, but I think they're over it. If I'm correct, I wish they'd just outright say it. Of course, that would basically be suicide from a marketing and financial perspective.

I think in the past week, they HAVE more or less come out and said that. Just in a very politically correct way.

All this talk of "there are things we regret from early in our career, and there are things that we don't necessarily regret, but wouldn't do at this point" just screams of "we were into nu-metal because we were a bunch of rowdy boys in our early 20s, but we grew up."

[deftonesfan867]

Listening to ATS earlier over some Harmon/Kardon desktop speakers earlier I was blown away.

Sadly it might be their only album to ever be on that level of creative, obscurity and writing.

It's like TLTGYA on an entire album level.

I do think LT will be great, but nowhere on the level of ATS.

[Derek]

I think in the past week, they HAVE more or less come out and said that. Just in a very politically correct way.

All this talk of "there are things we regret from early in our career, and there are things that we don't necessarily regret, but wouldn't do at this point" just screams of "we were into nu-metal because we were a bunch of rowdy boys in our early 20s, but we grew up."

Agreed, but in a way it's relieving to me. I don't want them to resort back to what everyone else wants. I want the band to continue to go down "ROADS UNTRAVELED" (/LIVINGTHINGS PUN) and make music that challenges them and the listener.

[Snail]

I can see that. Actually, the recent interviews leading up to Living Things are what prompted me to make that statement.

In accordance with Derek's comments; well said. Meteora was a disappointment in hindsight. I understand that Reanimation was a collaborative effort, but I felt that after what it had to offer, Meteora paled in comparison.

Now in 2012, I'm really curious as to what the band's standpoint is on Reanimation. It would give us a better perspective as to what the band enjoyed from their past work.

[MisterAlex]

Greatest GIF in the history of ever

I can't wait for their new album to come, ATS left me mixed thoughts, but Burn It Down has gotten me really excited, mostly cause it does sound like a great mix of the styles of Blackbirds, New Divide, and ATS

[stringsibanez]

I do have to say... It has in the past, and still does bother me that the subset of fans who are more into LP's newer offerings constantly make references to maturity in discussions about style.

I won't begin to disagree that there were moments, on LP's earlier records, in which the LYRICS offered elements of youthful immaturity. I will definitively say, however, that the idea that STYLE (distorted guitars, dynamically "heavy" sections, harder-genres and instances of screamed vocals) are somehow indicative of immaturity is utterly ridiculous.

I myself have out-grown "Nu-Metal", specifically, but I would argue that a good percentage of people incorrectly define the genre. What defined Nu-Metal was not the distorted guitars, screaming, or the fact that it was "heavy" (those things are common to many genres of music). What did define Nu-Metal were the inclusion of rapped vocals, guitar riffs that did more "chugging" than moving around, the narrow musical intervals used in its song-construction and an overal lack of good melody writing.

[Derek]

guitar riffs that did more "chugging" than moving around, the narrow musical intervals used in its song-construction and an overal lack of good melody writing.

Which is why many people found nu-metal immature and are glad Linkin Park are no longer that genre.

[HybridBharath]

Am I the only one who thinks this record might sound like a less out there version of Reanimation? Think about it...the band is quick to say the album is NOT nu-metal, but that it has the creative spirit of their older albums. It's also NOT ATS part two. Seeing as MTM/ATS weren't "the old LP" and Hybrid Theory/Meteora were nu-metal...that only leaves one more album .

You never know! But Reanimation felt more like hip hop.

[deftonesfan867]

MTM showed how they should be doing their guitar work.

Would like to see alot more odd time signatures in it however.

[Faint into Pieces]

"I think we got so interested in adding new tools to the toolbox that we forgot what was already in the toolbox."

Thank God they've finally come to realize and accept this. I'm not saying "GO BACK TO DER ROOTZ!!!" but it's nice to know they're finally no longer ignorant of what made them such a good band in the first place. In order to move forward you need to recognize how you got somewhere. If this album is them recognizing this fact then I'm all for it!

[stringsibanez]

Which is why many people found nu-metal immature and are glad Linkin Park are no longer that genre.

I can agree with that statement. What I would say, is that the band could easily make a song that included: walls of heavy guitars, rapped sections by Mike, a high-energy feel, electronic elements, the dreaded pop-structure and some screamed vocals (to cover all of the usual "LP should go back to it's original sound" bases).. and that the result would in no way be "Nu-Metal". I'm not saying that they should/have to do something like that, but it is frustrating that the aforementioned qualities would likely be panned as Nu-Metal when they aren't per-se.

[Xero21]

I won't begin to disagree that there were moments, on LP's earlier records, in which the LYRICS offered elements of youthful immaturity. I will definitively say, however, that the idea that STYLE (distorted guitars, dynamically "heavy" sections, harder-genres and instances of screamed vocals) are somehow indicative of immaturity is utterly ridiculous.\

Brad Delson disagrees with you. Brad was quoted as saying that they "weren't a bunch of kids jumping around on stage anymore." That's just the bottom line.

Now, this doesn't mean that nu-metal ALWAYS = immature, but it means that "mature Linkin Park" = outgrowing that style. Just as you yourself have. When I talk about maturity, I mean that exclusively in terms of the band members themselves. Not all people who do this style of music are immature, of course not. But Linkin Park has mellowed out with age, that's an undeniable fact.

[Derek]

Also, to some of the naysayers in this thread..."firecracker" "3-4 minute songs" do not = lack of creativity.

I know every time I refer to this album it pisses NightOfNeptune off (which is half of why I do it ) but Mylo Xyloto has no song over 5 minutes, with most songs being under 4 minutes or just over, and it was one of the best and most creative albums of 2011.

There's a lot of creativity and diversity you can smash into a 35-45 minute album. "Firecracker" doesn't have to mean the kiss of death.

[Xero21]

Also, to some of the naysayers in this thread..."firecracker" "3-4 minute songs" do not = lack of creativity.

I know every time I refer to this album it pisses NightOfNeptune off (which is half of why I do it ) but Mylo Xyloto has no song over 5 minutes, with most songs being under 4 minutes or just over, and it was one of the best and most creative albums of 2011.

There's a lot of creativity and diversity you can smash into a 35-45 minute album. "Firecracker" doesn't have to mean the kiss of death.

you really think so? that album did not click with me at all. I felt like Viva La Vida was superior in pretty much every way.

but to agree with your main point, yeah there can be creative pop (firecracker, whatever) albums. Phoenix's album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, Foster The People's album, Passion Pit, and MGMT are all some of the many examples of "firecracker" music done extremely well.