Mike Shinoda's new EP, "THE CRIMSON CHAPTER", has been released on digital platforms today. The 8-track release is centered around his guitar-heavy single "Already Over", originally released in early October, and its tracklist places it somewhere in the void between a maxi-single and a mini-album.
![[IMG]](https://www.lpassociation.com/upload/images/120123-030711_1280x1280.jpg)
There are five new remixes of "Already Over" here, including the previously-heard "Fort Minor Mix", which is a hip-hop reinterpretation featuring BROCKHAMPTON talent Dom McLennon. The "Scream VI" single "In My Head" from earlier this year also appears on this EP, a song which features Kailee Morgue and which was co-written with Jake Torrey.
Tracklist:
- Already Over (Crimson Intro)
- Already Over
- Already Over (Reorganized Mix)
- fine (Finer Mix)
- Already Over (Fort Minor Mix)[featuring Dom McLennon]
- In My Head [featuring Kailee Morgue]
- Already Over (Nothing's There Mix)
- Already Over (Part 2)
Easily the most radical and surprising out of the batch is the "Nothing's There Mix", where Shinoda veers towards an ambient downtempo mood with sliced-up piano and glitch-heavy IDM breaks. The largely-instrumental result naturally resembles works by Boards of Canada or Telefon Tel Aviv, or perhaps the more experimental end of deadmau5' music. It has virtually no reference to the original song at all, as the elements of "Already Over" sampled here are so brief and obscured that they are easily missed.
Glitchy beats also appear on "Already Over (Part 2)", which closes out the tracklist. As its name may suggest, this version features new lyrics and vocals from Shinoda that carry on thematically from the original. The production here features electronic breaks and distorted bass stabs paired with guitar chords in the background. After the first chorus, Shinoda even switches it up with a brief rap verse instead of the expected singing, followed up by a double-chorus before going into an outro section.
Silent / stoic on the surface
While a plague is growing underneath
Smiling / painted into perfect
Hiding razors in-between teeth
Also included amongst these tracks is Shinoda's brand-new remix of his 2019 single "fine", originally written and produced for the Russian sci-fi action film "The Blackout". This version abandons the original's midtempo stomp and replaces it with an uptempo rock breakbeat that puts it more in line with the live band feel of "Already Over". The track comes to a climax with a chaotic synth solo that feels completely at odds with the vocal refrain, "everything is gonna be fine".
You can check out the "CRIMSON CHAPTER" EP on Spotify, Apple Music, and other digital platforms. Tell us which track is your favourite on our message board!
Mike Shinoda's "Already Over" single cycle continues: he's cooked up and released a brand-new remix of the track dubbed the "Fort Minor Mix". The track features brand-new production from Shinoda and a guest appearance from Dom McLennon, the Connecticut-born artist best known as one of the core members of the recently-disbanded hip-hop collective BROCKHAMPTON.
What's more, the track's cover art heralds the forthcoming release of a new EP called "THE CRIMSON CHAPTER". Apple Music's tracklist reveals that this EP will contain more versions of "Already Over", as well as Shinoda's recent single "In My Head" and a new remix of 2019 single "fine".
![[IMG]](https://www.lpassociation.com/upload/images/110923-230925_1280x1280.jpg)
This "Already Over" remix has very little held over from the original song, eschewing the live drums and guitars and taking the song in a hip-hop direction as suggested by the name. Vocals from throughout the original version are pitched down, distorted and sliced up to form a hook over a sparse and ominous halftime trap beat. To fully deliver on the promise of a Fort Minor version, Shinoda himself drops in with a brand-new 8-bar rap verse using a flow that builds off the "Already Over" chorus, followed up by an 8-bar guest verse from Dom McLennon.
It's already over / you didn't even know
Halfway through the game and they like "Jesus, we should go"
Hall-of-famer hitting like my name is Ichiro
And this is only exhibition / listen, you should see the show
This track marks Shinoda's first officially-released collaboration with anyone from the BROCKHAMPTON camp. Shinoda has been a professed BROCKHAMPTON fan since they first rose to prominence in hip-hop worldwide with their trilogy of "SATURATION" mixtapes and, a few years ago, the collective was involved in a remix of Linkin Park's "With You" that was ultimately scrapped. Dom McLennon has been consistently described by publications and fans over the years as one of the group's most impressive lyricists, and that legend only grows with his current solo output.
As mentioned, the upcoming 8-track "CRIMSON CHAPTER" EP will contain a few more variations of "Already Over" in addition to this one. It begins with something called "Crimson Intro", and wraps up with a "Part 2", according to the tracklist. Fans can expect this EP to drop next month on December 1.
- Already Over (Crimson Intro)
- Already Over
- Already Over (Reorganized Mix)
- fine (Finer Mix)
- Already Over (Fort Minor Mix)
- In My Head
- Already Over (Nothing's There Mix)
- Already Over (Part 2)
Tell us what you think on our message board or on Twitter.
Source: Apple Music
Over on his YouTube channel, Mike Shinoda has just uploaded a video of himself and a group of Australian musicians doing an in-studio performance of Mikes new song Already Over, and the Linkin Park song Bleed It Out. The performance was recorded when Mike was in Sydney in early September.
Read what Mike had to say about the performance and watch the video below.
Mike ShinodaIn making "Already Over," I wrote and played all the instruments myself. But to play it live, I loved the idea of playing with a range of talented musicians who were all “locals.” While I was in Sydney, I managed to put together a session with a group of talented Aussies.
This is the first and only time we all played together.
CREDITS:
Vocals + Rhythm Guitar: Bonnie Fraser (Stand Atlantic)
Rhythm Guitar: Tash Wolf
Lead Guitar: Mitchell Black
Bass: James Karagiozis (Between You & Me)
Drums: Daniel Furnari (Polaris)
Source: Mike Shinoda YouTube
Mike Shinoda's new single "Already Over" is finally out there for you to listen to on Spotify and other platforms, a clean month after it was first teased at an exclusive Q&A event in Australia. Since then, Shinoda has been promoting the song with your expected social media teasers. More recently, however, mikeshinoda.com has recently been updated with messages promising a mysterious box ...
In a press quote shared by HEAVY Magazine, Shinoda briefly touches on the guitar-based direction of the song:
‘ALREADY OVER’ came to me as I was sitting with my favorite guitar [ed. note: Fender Stratocaster] in my hands—the same guitar I used on songs from ‘What I’ve Done’ to ‘In My Head.’ There was a familiar DNA to the song that I think Linkin Park fans will recognize. For me, it creates a bridge from the past to a blurry but exciting future."Already Over" is indeed the guitar-driven firecracker that Shinoda describes, which makes it a far cry from a lot of his post-2017 discography, though fans' opinions will vary as to whether it sits right alongside the rock-oriented cuts throughout Linkin Park's catalog. Entirely written, produced and performed by the man himself, the song radiates pop-punk energy with catchy riffs over an urgent breakbeat, and a punchy, energetic vocal that could be compared to some of the more aggressive moments on "Post Traumatic".
Shinoda has also just released a silhouette-heavy visual to complement his new single. The visual was animated and directed by Dusty Deen, and features the old-school handmade approach to motion graphics that he has become known for. The same aesthetic can be seen in Steve Aoki's video for "Diferente" which Deen recently helmed.
"Already Over" is also set to appear in a new Linkin Park x Mike Shinoda music pack for the PlayStation VR game "Beat Saber", available for purchase as downloadable content. This new pack follows a well-received Linkin Park pack from 2020. It features Linkin Park cuts such including "Fighting Myself", "Numb/Encore" and "Crawling", as well as a few songs from Shinoda's solo work and side projects. The levels for these songs feature an "advanced lighting system" and custom themed visuals built around the artists' logos and other graphics. Further details can be found in this PlayStation blog post.
Per a quote from Shinoda in the blog post, Linkin Park is the first artist to have more than one music pack released for the rhythm game:
I’m beyond excited to once again be partnering with Beat Saber to give fans and players even more music by me, Linkin Park, and Fort Minor, and I’m especially excited to share my new single ‘Already Over’ through the platform. It’s an honor that Linkin Park is the first band to have a second music pack and I hope everyone enjoys playing the new tracks.You can listen to "Already Over" on Spotify, YouTube and other services now, while you're waiting to find out more about the mysterious box ...
After teasing a new song and releasing mood boards for the past few weeks, Mike Shinoda has now revealed on his website that the new song is called "Already Over" and will be released on October 6th.
![[IMG]](https://www.lpassociation.com/upload/images/092523-145509_IMG_2068.jpg)
Are you excited for new Mike Shinoda music? Come and discuss in our forums!
Source: MikeShinoda.com
It seems Mike Shinoda has kept himself very busy during his time in Australia, including a keynote event at the BIGSOUND music conference earlier this week, and making various appearances on live TV, all to talk about his new haircut (or conspicuously not talk about it) and other music-related topics. Most recently, he held an exclusive Q&A event in Sydney, mostly attended by Linkin Park Underground members. These lucky fans got the opportunity to submit questions days in advance, and sit in the same room as Shinoda at [VENUE REDACTED] while Triple M host Brendan Annakin rattled off a selection of them for him to answer.
Among the highlights of this hour-long Q&A was the special chance to hear a brief snippet from Shinoda's upcoming music project which he has been teasing online recently. He described the upcoming new music to the audience as having been written specifically with his own singing in mind, in contrast to how he typically writes parts for other vocalists. He then prefaced the surprise preview by imploring fans to find their mental happy place before the music played.
Linkin Park Discord server member Dampney, who attended this Q&A, was kind enough to upload his own video recording of this segment, which you can see on Twitter via LinkinPark:br:
Bruises / broken in pieces
Spread out 'til they didn't exist
Losing / sight of what's decent
And too righteous to know what you did
This snippet obviously falls in line with Shinoda previously describing his new music as something that will be "familiar" to Linkin Park listeners. Indeed, fans who have feverishly speculated that Shinoda is revisiting guitar riffs are likely to feel vindicated, but it is nonetheless unknown where the song travels stylistically after the moments we actually get to hear.
The rest of the Q&A saw Shinoda talking a wide range of topics, including Linkin Park's fanbase adapting to new online social tools as they evolve, the personal experience of moving forward with brand-new solo music while compiling the nostalgic "Meteora" anniversary package, and his undying love of Rick Astley. He also thoughtfully touched on current issues like the use of artificial intelligence programs as it pertains to music-making, as well the impact that changing music consumption trends could have on songwriting decisions. There were, suspiciously, no questions about Shinoda's new haircut.
Are you excited for new music from Mike Shinoda? Tell us on our message board!
Source: LinkinPark:br on Twitter
Following on from his interview on evening news show "The Project", Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda is continuing his Australian press tour with a stop on the Nine Network's breakfast show "Today".
In the interview, posted to YouTube, he can be seen talking to the program's hosts Sarah Abo and Karl Stefanovic (a self-professed "crazy fan") about topics such as the excitement over his new haircut, the multi-generational appeal of Linkin Park's music, and how he's forged a new path forward in the wake of bandmate Chester Bennington's passing in 2017.
In this interview, he also reveals that he recently worked on music with G-Flip, one of Australia's foremost pop talents. Over recent years, Shinoda has worked with a myriad of artists on their music - for example, a song he worked on with Justus Bennetts called "Better When I'm Crazy" was released just late last month. However, he says that he's now pivoting to focus once again on his own solo output, which he described vaguely as something that will feel "familiar" to Linkin Park fans.
Shinoda is also doing an exclusive Q&A session for select Linkin Park Underground members later today, and it remains to be seen if any new information about this new project is revealed there ...
Source: Today on YouTube
Linkin Park band member Mike Shinoda has appeared for a truncated interview on nightly Australian news program "The Project", speaking with presenter Waleed Aly. Though the episode (which has just ended at time of writing) is not yet available for on-demand streaming, the interview segment has been posted on Twitter and YouTube for viewing:
No doubt disappointing many fans, the conversation is completely devoid of any major announcements concerning Linkin Park, new music, or new haircuts.
Instead, Shinoda talks about the beginnings of Linkin Park working on "Meteora" against the backdrop of their debut album's monstrous success. He also touches on "Lost" and the 20th anniversary edition of "Meteora" for which it was unearthed, as well as the way Linkin Park's lyrics are now sometimes read or misread with the context of Chester Bennington's untimely passing.
Also quickly mentioned in conversation by hosts Hamish Macdonald, Sarah Harris, Sam Taunton and Steve Price following the interview segment, is that Shinoda is appearing at the Australian music conference BIGSOUND, taking place on September 5 in Fortitude Valley, QLD. He will be conversing with Rolling Stone AU/NZ's Editor In Chief Poppy Reid for a keynote event.
In related news, Shinoda has a new haircut ...
Source: The Project on YouTube
In celebration of Post Traumatic turning five years old, Mike Shinoda has decided to release a music video for the song Hold It Together. The song was the only one during the original album cycle not to get a music video, because even though material was filmed for a video, someone stole the hard drive with the files and the video never materialised.
A new official remix of Linkin Park's recent single "Lost" has been released unexpectedly on digital music platforms. The reinterpretion, named the "PLZ Tethered Version", comes from Patrick Lawrence Zappia, a Los Angeles-based film and TV composer. Neither Linkin Park themselves nor Zappia have made any announcement regarding this track but it's reasonable to expect that they'll say something about it soon.
Fitting for his media composition background, Zappia has taken "Lost" in a more cinematic direction. Sweeping strings and delicate acoustic guitar play over sampled distorted guitars, with no drums underneath and hardly any rhythmic elements at all - a far cry from the aggressive industrial stomp of the original song. This new instrumentation, complete with some changed chords, highlights Chester Bennington's fantastic vocal performance in a different way, and allows listeners a different angle on the song's lyrics.
You can check out the new remix of "Lost" on Spotify or Apple Music.
Source: Spotify