Final Masquerade isn't my favorite song from THP because it's the most impressive instrumentally or

It's my favorite because it touched me on a personal level that no other song on the record did, releasing at a time when its lyrics were most relevant to my life.

About a week before the song first leaked, my girlfriend (whom I was incredibly close to) abandoned me and everyone else who loved her overnight, picking up and leaving without saying a word to me. And even after sending her message after message, hoping at the very least for a reason why, what little she had to say to me provided no closure whatsoever.

As the week went on, I found out some small pieces of information here and there from discussing the situation with a mutual friend of hers, but still, we constantly circled around the same unanswered question: Why? What she was doing completely contradicted everything she had ever said and done, and the constant state of having no closure was eating away at both of us.

It wouldn't be until that weekend that the truth would begin spilling out all at once, forcing us to confront an awful reality we couldn't deny: She lied to us. She lied to everyone. She had been acting with perfidy in every sense of the word for God knows how long, and now the truth was finally coming out.

The girl who I had stuck by through her absolute worst, the girl I had given everything to, the girl that had promised me forever, the girl who had presented herself as one with a beautiful, trustworthy heart, had finally been revealed to be cold and uncaring, manipulative and disingenuous - a masquerader whose show went on for far too long.

My feelings were just a game with no consequences to her, and as I sit here knowing I'm not going to be OK for a long time, I can't help but wonder how someone like her could possibly live with herself.

And so how fitting it was, then, that Final Masquerade leaked when my world began falling apart completely - revealing the mask she'd been wearing the entire time, and chipping it just enough to reveal more truth than her lies will ever be able to cover over again.
_______________________________________________


Mini-vent aside, have there been any Linkin Park songs that have released at particularly fitting times for any of you guys, songs that may not have meant as much to you had they not affected you on such a personal level at the time?

 

Iridescent. My all-time favorite song.

I had a really rough time trying to deal with loneliness and depression growing up in my teenage years, and even as they slowly faded away, they were still with me and kept haunting me forever. Even though I finally had a girlfriend that I loved personally and deeply, and even though life was finally starting to feel easier for me, it was still hard for me to cope with some of those feelings, and I would still be paranoid at times due to my worst-case scenario thinking. So when A Thousand Suns came out, it was perfectly released at the perfect time. This album wasn't just the best musically, but it was the best personally: I connected with almost every song and I was listening to a very good story behind it (since it was a loose concept record).

Then after Wretches and Kings, the two next tracks hit me emotionally. Wisdom, Justice, and Love was comforting, but Iridescent? Iridescent made me cry only a minute into the song. It was everything I needed as support: for someone to be there for me and tell me to let it all go even with all my heavy burdens almost killing me. And when the band comes in with the gang vocals? Broke down. The second half of Iridescent remains the most chilling to me.

MTM really got me through those tough years, and ATS helped me stay strong. When my girlfriend broke up with me a few months after the release, I found myself lying on the floor crying and sometimes just sitting there with the blankest expression on my face, only to get back up and try to get through it thanks to God (I'm Catholic) and A Thousand Suns, especially Iridescent. The song got me through some of the worst and roughest times of my life ever since then, and up to this day, it still remains my favorite song of all-time, no matter what criticisms launch its way.

So yeah, Iridescent was the song that was released at the most perfect time for me.

 

FM is my favourite too.

 

These little stories are why I love LP. Why I love music. It's so amazing to see how even three minutes of music can help someone so much, how it can completely resurrect someone, make them stronger and give them hope.

 

Roads Untraveled

Occurred when I was a teenager, and not long ago

At the time, I liked a girl who, at that time, appeared be the best person that could have appeared in my life, outside my family. When we talked to each other, IDK, I always felt good. The sound of her voice ... when we were together, it seemed that the world and all the things to which it belonged disappeared, except for me and her. I know this all seems like a lot of [...], but it was how I felt.

After a while, things started to change a bit. Some of my friends were starting to tell me that I was being cheated, that she took advantage of me. I, stupid, not paying attention. But time would call my attention to a more rude way and right-in-my-face than imagined. When it was over, early in 2012, I was pretty shaken (I remember that, with so much teenage angst, I listened to Meteora from beginning to end, please don't judge me ). When Lies Greed Misery was launched, I remember listening to this song all damn day, singing it in school, especially. It was funny when she asked me (yes, still we talked a little) what I was singing because she didn't understand, and I replied, every time: "Nothing big deal".

When the full album came, and Roads Untraveled along with it, I immediately realized what was wrong with my attitude. Thinking good, or thinking bad, I was still thinking about her, and it didn't make me felling good. The song made me realize that I should not be whining, and simply move on with my life and no matter with whom I crossed and didn't work, I always have people who would be on my side, supporting me.

Today, Living Things is my least favorite album, but RU, for me, is one of the best songs of the band, and one of the reasons I like them even more ^^.

Sorry for my English, it sucks

 

I'm sorry that you guys went through those situations, but I'm glad that I got to read about them, as it was therapeutic. (Why are people so awful?)

Something tells me that I'm gonna fall in love with Roads Untraveled and Iridescent all over again when I listen to them, heh.

(PS, Kiq, if that's your idea of sucking at English, I'm afraid to know what being good is! Haha)

 

Stories like these is just more proof that music is art, it touches in ways other things can't.

My Uncle died in a horrible car crash around the time ATS was about to be released. Iridescent was a really great song to listen to through that time.

Edit: AS for more happy things I would say Bleed it out. My friends and I were on a holiday in Cape Town and while driving along the side of the mountain on a very beautiful clear day with a wonderful view of the city and blue ocean on one side and the towering Tabletop mountain on the other side. Bleed it out was playing full blast and we were shouting the lyrics to it and that was a deliriously happy time. The song always brings a smile to my face now.

 

Nah, Translator helps me haha. Actually I'm only check the translate version and change the mistakes from Google

And Rippin on That, sorry for your lost. Glad the song helps you to deal with it

 

I listen to Waiting for the End A LOT since its my favorite song. That song connects in a very personal way especially with the lines "Holding onto what I haven't got" and "The hardest part of ending is starting again". FM also seems to do the same thing with many of its lines.

And Fragmuffin, she clearly doesn't deserve you or anyone. I know saying such cliche stuff doesn't help a lot but its the truth.

 

Until It's Gone hits close to home for me. My father had a heart attack back in december and flatlined twice, though he pulled through. Then in February, he went in for triple bypass surgery and lost too much blood, and nearly died again. Thankfully he pulled through once again, and today he's very active and healthy. The song reminds me of what my family went through.

 

Not LP but these two songs really helped me during my breakup (which I'm still kind of recovering from)

[video=youtube;sFZR1iqxJWM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFZR1iqxJWM[/video]

[video=youtube;9UtQe0JOCnM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UtQe0JOCnM[/video]

 

All you say is exactly what happened to me half a year ago after a 3 year relationship. And I havent been as broken as that. No reason, no answers, overnight BAM. while she was extremely bonded and close to me. And Final Masquerade just touched me so much... But until its gone is also extremely difficult for me to listen too because now I have that emptiness in me for a few months I really feel how big of an impact she had on me and how i attached to here... and now shes gone.. And now I feel how much she meant to me... but she apperently lied all the time.. no answers still.. she just dissapeared and I tried my best to contact here with no good, the parents even wanted to call the cops for ''stalking'' I was mind blown... And having no closure is the worst pain you can go trough....

 

I know, but that doesn't make it hurt any less. Thanks for the comment, though.

Wow...it really is consoling in a way, knowing that I'm not alone, but at the same time, it scares me that situations like this don't seem very rare.

I'm sorry to hear that, in any case.

EDIT: I'm sorry to hear that, Rippin on That.

Also, I'm glad he pulled through, Robot Man. You must be incredibly grateful.

And lastly, I'm sorry for you too, AS. Stay strong.

 

This is why I love LP so much. Roads Untraveled helped me a lot too when me and my girlfriend broke up. It was mainly because of my mistakes (I found out later that it was me and not her who was wrong) and many months later we talked again via Facebook. I remember that at the end of that conversation I wrote her the last phrase of RU (she doesn't know the song), and since then we kept the tradition of writing it a the end of each conversation we had.

That was very nice and we speak occasionally. And before I moved to my natal country we saw each other and love flourished again. But obviously I had to go... so it was kinda sad that she had to tell me "I love you" days before I left the country.

And that's my story. All of you have very unique stories, some of them are so sad... but no doubt that you guys will get thru all that and smile again

PS: I know my english is a little bit simple at times but that's the best I can do

 

I definitely agree with this! Music is an art and art helps is many ways on an emotional, personal level. Even if the song may not be the greatest, if it connects with you and touches your heart, then it becomes on of the best songs in the world.

 

The only song that impacted me emotionally was Videotape by Radiohead.

 

Linkin Park (and many other artists) have helped me deal with depression. No Roads Left is one song that really sticks out to me. Many times this song brings me to tears. I've always had a hard time fitting in, so I'm such an easy target and many times I'm the center of hate at my school. Though I've never stood up or said anything, I just take all the hate in until I can't take anymore hate. So I then go on throughout the day, ignoring everyone, just thinking to myself how much I've fucked up everything I've done. Then I go home and do the one and only thing that can help me cope with all the pain; listen to music. I can relate to No Roads Left so well, with lines like "Why am I searching for perfection knowing it's something I won't find?" and "When did I lose my sense of purpose? Can I regain what's lost inside?" and "I run... till I have no breath and no roads left but one" all hitting so hard. And the song really just says to me to move on I need to let go. I can't just keep running away from everything and hiding all my pain, I need to confront my problems and let go of the past. As cliche as that sounds, it's a process I'm still working on.

 

Definitely. The doctors called him a miracle.

 

Numb, while I didn't even know Linkin Park very well when it came out, I have always connected with. My parents have always expected me to be perfect, and although my life is extremely good compared to most depressed peoples', I was just super depressed. Lots of $h!t was happening, and still is, and honestly, I've become mostly numb to all of it.

 

Fragmuffin, it's really a shame that she did that to you. I hope your recovery goes well. As for the song itself, I still haven't heard it yet. I'm waiting to listen to the whole album until I receive my own copy. Based on the overwhelmingly positive feedback, I can definitely say that I am very excited for the album!