I was inspired by the Session song-by-song thread, so I have decided to create one for the LPU albums! We will go album by album, and I will post an update on the next one every four days (give or take). This should have us through all 13 at around the time LPU 14 should come out, so naturally, we'll do LPU 14 afterwards. So without further ado: LPU 1 - Hybrid Theory EP (Re-issue) Carousel - I think the lyrics are quite poetic, I can't help but wonder if it evolved from 'So Far Away', it was at the very least inspired by it. Technique (Short) - Not much to say, but a good transition song nonetheless. And One - Some very interesting lyrics. I like the music a lot, and I absolutely love Mike's rapping at the end. A very solid track. Step Up - Mike already being cocky, before we've even heard much of him. A fun song, I always find it amusing that the scratching sounds like monkeys. High Voltage - I personally prefer the LP version of this song, I still like this one though. The chorus is very interesting, it makes me think of 'Intergalactic' by the Beastie Boys. Part Of Me - A song that really shows how young they were at the time; however, it is probably my favorite from the EP. The rapping is great, the singing is alright, the instrumentation is fantastic. My only complaint is placement, they shouldv'e moved this to the end of the CD because of... Ambient - One of their best instrumental tracks to date. I love the fact that it's hidden. High Voltage (Remix) - My preferred version of High Voltage. The rapping is still amazing, and I like the chorus better on this version. Esaul (Demo) - The lyrics are interesting, it's very cool to see how 'A Place For My Head' has evolved.
I feel like Carousel, And one and part of me are all very moody tracks compared to fun tracks like both versions of High voltage. I think Step up is pretty amazing because its one of tracks where you know what exactly he is rapping about and I like how it shows how serious he is about what he does. The original version of High voltage is fun but the remix version is a different kind of fun .I genuinely love how moody And one and part of me are. The moody kinda music, that kind of approach to lyrics. That alarm going off in Part of me adds a bit of urgency(?) to the song. I really like it. I don't know, those songs just appeal to me. I don't really like the lyrics in carousel but I like the fact that it kinda brings variety. The song sounds rough at parts but I dig its weird feel. I feel like with part of me, and one, you either dig the feel of tracks or just absolutely hate them. I don't really know what to say about the rest of tracks other than that Esaul is an awesome name.
Carousel.Andone,Part Of Me all are great tracks. Stepup-Its a good hiphop song. High Voltage-Cool Ambient-Good Instrumental Technique-N/A
Just looked up Ambient (first time I have heard it)... So freaking good. When I close my eyes and listen to it I feel like I'm at some carnival. A really, really messed up carnival with the killer clowns and whatnot. So good. So. Good. Edit: I now unwittingly have 500 posts!!! And imagine if they had a whole album about in the same vein/ambient style of sounds as "Ambient"
I've always thought that the chord progression in that secret track is so different to anything else the band have ever made, before or after
This STep Up: One of the most fun not studio album songs from LP. This energy in Mikes verses is amazing , especially when the chorus explode. And One: Again a great track. Prefer the instrumental the most of the "real" HT. Love Mikes part at the end. In General Mikes 2000s rap skills.
1. Carousel: Carousel is pretty amazing. It's got a certain mystique to it with the wobbly, synths, deep baselines and chanting. Mike's raps are really damned cool, showcasing a story-telling style with a somewhat chill, relaxed delivery, that definitely goes to the side as he gets more tense towards the end, capping with the "She can only fool herself", exploding into Chester's raspy, distorted, echoey, anger-fueled chorus, which feels like nothing they've ever done again. I miss this rasp and intensity in Chester's voice, and I feel like THP could have benefited from this. The chorus lyrics are simple but effective, bringing to mind a delusional, confused serial killer. Mike's second verses kick back into the more relaxed atmosphere, but building much quicker this time into an even greater intensity. The bridge, adorned with the chanting and whispering... Oh lord, this part is just magical, slowly building with a "glitchy" drum beat into an even more layered and intense rendition of the chorus, then the pure insanity at the end... Carousel really remains one of my favourite tracks that Linkin Park has ever produced, it's purely amazing, and I really wish more songs of this atmosphere continued off into their albums. 2. Technique: Technique is a fun intermission, bridging the harshness of Carousel with the more hip-hoppy atmosphere of Step Up quite well. 3. Step Up: While the subject matter of Step Up just makes me cringe and laugh, I can really dig the beat. The deep bass hits with the little sparkles of sounds, really sounds pretty awesome. Mike's delivery is pretty nice, I think, and the samples that the song brings in here and there are pretty cool. The chorus is repetitive and silly, but is actually decently powerful and well-delivered, and I especially like the screeching synths here. As the track hits the mid point, we get that mystique and chanting back from Carousel that encompasses a lot of this EP, and I love how that feels. 4. And One: And One definitely stands out to me. I really like the way the drums build in a really cool pattern during the verses. The verses themselves are very well delivered, Chester's quivering voice lends to a sense of hopelessness, like he's been beaten and battered and desperately trying to find a way out of this situation. The "Keep it locked up inside" explosions are beautiful, with a wall of distorted guitar and the scattering beeps, a very cool sound. Rather quickly, the song breaks down into a slow, quiet, guitar driven piece, as if we've started to accept defeat, with some beautiful, quiet, resentful lyrics... Then it builds, oh lord does it build, Mike's performance here is crazy, he sounds legitimately pissed, which is amazing, I rarely hear this kind of intensity out of Mike, and this really impresses me. Chester's screams ("Break me too!") interweaving with Mike's intense chanting... Oh lord, it's just so good. This might stand as my favourite part of the EP, it's just so powerful and feels legitimately more intense than anything out of any real Linkin Park albums. As the bulk of the song climaxes, we are pulled away by a messy, scratchy synth, like nails on a chalkboard, into this wonderful little rap encore, and this is just wonderful, some of Mike's best rapping on the EP. Have I mentioned I love this song? 5. High Voltage: Really not a fan. This is the most cheesy thing in the universe, and while I can bring it up for a laugh, it's honestly just cringeworthy as hell. 6. Part of Me: The most standard-lp song on the EP, by far. Not really a bad thing. The song has some nice guitar work, deep baselines (Why didn't this extend out to Hybrid Theory (Album))? Mike's delivery is a bit boring, although I enjoy his intensity pre-chorus. The chorus itself is a little boring, but demonstrates Chester's purely raspy vocal styling at this point, again, just like in Carousel, the intensity in his voice voice is awesome. The song breaks into a sereen quite for a few moment, and we start to hear Mike chanting some very self-hateful lyrics, sounding like he's just gone a little insane, building up quickly into the chorus once again, then it's over. Not a spectacular track, definitely more by-the-books, but feels almost like a hybrid (oh, hell!) between this EP's styling and the final Hybrid Theory's structure. 7. Ambient: This is just a very cool instrumental. I absolutely love the calm, driving atmosphere here. Sounds like something out of a Playstation 1 JRPG. I won't keep it secret, that I love this EP. The atmosphere in it is just so well done, it's got some beautiful highs and silly lows, but it really delivers an impression on me. I don't know if anyone else shares this opinion, but I would have loved to see Hybrid Theory take this route rather than how it actually turned out. Don't get me wrong, Hybrid Theory is an amazing album, this this EP just delivers so much more than it can emotionally, I feel. Then again, if it did pick up this style, I'm not sure it would have hit the peak popularity that it ended up reaching, so I guess it's ultimately a good thing, but I can always sit here and wonder what an entire album of tracks in this kind of style would have sounded like. Uhhg... I just realized, if this thread goes anywhere, I'm gonna have to listen to like, 7 EPs of live tracks. God damnit.
Sorry about being a day late with this, but without further ado: LPU 2 A.06 (Short) - A great preview of a great song. I wouldv'e loved to hear lyrics put to this, however, something about the raw instruments makes it even better without lyrics. With You (Live) - A good performance of a good song. Lots of energy! Pts.Of.Athrty (Crystal Method Remix) - I prefer the remix on Reanimation. This one is decent though. Dedicated (Demo 1999) - Some of Mike's impressive rapping skill. This is a great song with great lyrics and instrumentation. High Voltage (Live) - It's cool they played this live. A great performance, you can tell the crowd is super hyped! I love the guitar in this! My December - I love the piano in this song, it just adds to the sad mood. I feel sorry for whatever Chester was going through at the time of writing this.