The word era implies more than just looking at the albums and their music, but everything else they've done. I started my fanship at the very end of 2001, so saying anything about stuff before that would be in ignorance. I would almost say them all if it weren't for the 2005-06 doldrums. (Thankfully the band learned that lesson and didn't make 2009-10 boring). In the Meteora days, they had awesome as hell performances that 07-08 shows didn't compare with, and their "celebrityhood" was just beginning, like Mike's surprise at getting medical treatment over cutting his finger on a guitar string. I could still feel the presence of a band that was trying to prove itself to its fans, staying after shows to sign autograms and such, and they would do things like bring fans into the Faint video. Meteora itself was a top notch album, proving that HT wasn't just a one album wonder, that LP's career isn't a fluke and that they can in fact 'do it again'. It is this extension of their sound that bought LP a big enough career to be able to experiment in their later albums. ATS, also awesome (so far). It's a little early to be judging yet. ATS marks the return of the band interacting with their fans again, this time though the internet and through crazy puzzles. ATS is also one of my favorite albums, partly because it marks the return of LP making something distinct and unique again, but mostly because it was full of good music. But the fanbase sure has changed. Gone are the hordes of feverish supporters, compared to how it was back in the meteora days. The most popular threads on the LPU went from hitting 2000 posts in a matter of hours to hitting that mark in a matter of months, if not over a year. (in the ATS era, this is probably executive meddling that stopped the growth to a crawl, though the LPU's been in decline since MTM) In it's place has risen an older, experienced, more open minded clan of Linkin Park fans, and considerably much calmer, but I do miss the days of quick moving LP forums sometimes. And LP learned to not disappear from us when they're in the studio. I haven't seen any ATS shows yet, maybe this summer i will get lucky. MTM is a rotten egg sitting between Meteora and ATS. There was less band interaction with the fans, outright hostility from the band aimed at Nu Metal bands (who they previously toured with(!) and we thought they were all cool friends and all), and MTM itself felt like an album someone told them to wrap up and send off before LP had found a new and unique sound for themselves, because half of the songs sound like reinvented wheels other bands could have performed. There's a few gems there, but they're all surrounded by skip tracks. Their performances in that time weren't as exciting as they were in Meteora either, though as time went on they improved and got on the ball again. I would seriously, if i had a time machine, delete MTM and move the ATS over to the third album spot, because ATS was what i dreamed what MTM was gonna be like when LP first said they were going to be different. mmmmmmm.... nostalgia... Nostalgia says I should pick 2003... though ATS times are pretty sweet.
Nothing I read in that article was hostile. All Chester said is he isn't a fan of the genre or a fan of the bands in that genre. He didn't say they sucked or hated them. But they do suck. I did skim over it, so maybe I missed something else.
That wasn't the original article i read back then.... there was one that sounded really mean, though i didn't find it at LPTimes. I think he toned it down after that, but it was still jarring to me, as a fan of a band who claimed to bridge the genres.
Their early work is a little too... nu-metal for my taste, but when Minutes To Midnight came out in '07, I think they really came into their own. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. They'd previously been compared to Korn and Limp Bizkit, but I think Linkin Park took on a far more timeless, eclectic approach to songwriting. In 2010, the band released A Thousand Suns, their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is "When They Come For Me", a song so catchy, most people probably don't listen to the lyrics. But they should, because it's not just about the pleasures of conformity, and the importance of trends, it's also a personal statement about the band itself.
My least favorite era is Minutes to Midnight, can't decide on a favorite but I voted Meteora because I have a lot of memories tied to it.
Based on my favourite tracks from their discography, Minutes to Midnight. Based on overall sound sonically, A Thousand Suns Based on live performance, Meteora
Most def the Meteora era. That's when they were making the best music and putting an insane amount of energy into every show.
You know, as weak as Meteora was, this era did feature some of their most energetic shows. They were powerful on stage.
I absolutely love LP's A Thousand Suns era. You know what's funny? People that say LP have now 'sold out' or 'gone mainstream'. Like seriously how is having some of the most diverse music out there mainstream? Mainstream is crap like Ke$ha, whose songs all sound the same! The closest LP have come to selling out is Meteora and even that isn't considered mainstream. Rant over.
See, I don't count Meteora as weak. I count M2M as the worst era/album/overall work that they ever did and hopefully ever will put out. I love Meteora.
I think Meteora is their weakest work. Redundant, simple and easily the worst lyrics in their line-up. I loved it at the time, but these days I listen to it the least. It just doesn't hold up very well. Maybe I'd think differently had the word "pain" been used less. But again, their shows were very raw and enjoyable. Minutes to Midnight was simply a transition album, but it was a damn good one.
I really enjoyed all the eras of LP in it's own way. I have to say I've enjoyed Minutes to Midnight up to A Thousand Suns (which is still in progress). I loved MTM for it's raw sound and ATS for it's very complex sound. Great thing about ATS is that it left me wanting more and to see where LP goes next.