Now that the hunting party has been listened to the last couple weeks.. What would you change about it? Me, I think it's missing Mr. Hahn and some electronics. One thing for me and only annoyance is the lack of digital beats and instruments. Nothing super electronic but something simple like lying from you or faint, or some more digital backings would've really amped this album up a lot more for me. Linkin Park has always had this in almost every album since the beginning, and that's the only thing it's missing for me.
As you say, more parts by Joe. Also i would change the beginning of KTTK in a Faint Type intro. A Intro who punch like the NO CONTROLL NO SURPISE exclamination.
I don't mind electronic sounds if it's anything like Wretches and Kings. I like this new album a lot and it could've been better if it had more of Joe's scratches
Replace Wastelands with something else, that's a b-side if I have ever heard one. In its place put in a more progressive, insterment based track, like MTG or ALITS. More fades between tracks. The fade between Wastelands and UIG left me wanting more, and those are my two least favorite tracks. If you're gonna have Tom Morello, allow him to shread. Don't put him on an acoustic interlude. I reckon I wouldn't mind hearing more scratching, especially on tracks like UIG and GALS. That's all that comes to mind at the moment.
Change the direction of the album to the alternative-pop sound that Mike has been talking about. I'm kidding, I like the album. But I don't really know what I'd change. I guess more of an inclusion of Joe would be nice, along with some more meaningful lyrics. I feel like the lyrics were lacking a bit on this album, especially with it being the sixth album. Until It's Gone isn't even my problem, it's really KTTK, AFN, War, and others that I have a problem with lyric wise.
To be absolutely honest, very very little. The Hunting Party is a direction I've craved from this band since the moment I became obsessed in 2006. To be incredibly picky, song-by-song: All For Nothing - Get rid of Paige Hamilton and leave Mike on lead vocals. Get rid of the cheesy "you say" stuff from Chester. Guilty All The Same - Some actual screams, like right before the bridge and the last "same" would have gone a long way IMO. Wastelands - Some screams like for GATS, but other than that maybe a little more structural variety? Until It's Gone - Lyrics obviously. Drawbar - Perhaps a more prominent Morello riff, though that could potentially ruin the flow of the song altogether. A Line In The Sand - Chorus lyrics, better mixing. Other than that it's perfect.
Wastelands and UIG. Not necessarily by replacing them, since I like a lot of elements from both songs. But some changes in structures / lyrics / ... would have been welcome.
Yeah Wastelands could've used a bit more backing instruments. Same goes for MTG, I think it could've benefited from some of LP's usual electronics/scratching.
i'd tell the guys to take Mike's parts out of A Line In The Sand and to make that a whole different song, but keep it off the album, replace those parts with anything else.
I wish there was one slower song or ballad in the first half. Stick it in between GATS and The Summoning or The Summoning and War. The first half of that record is almost too much of a punch in the face, but then it gets weird with Wastelands/UIG because it slows down and becomes predictable. A set up for that would have been nice. Also I wouldn't mind more electronics, but in the context of what they wanted to achieve, I guess I'm glad they're not on there. It's essentially LP's version of a garage band album, which is great as another deviation, but I want to see LP getting back to their mindset with ATS (I know that is said a lot here, but I mean it). What I mean by that is being the best version of themselves. LT was a deviation to make a firecracker record that sold and THP feels like that attitude but with a heavier, punk twist. I don't care what the content is but I'm sort of done seeing "LP's take on punk..." "LP's take on metal..." "LP's take on U2..." I just want to hear LP doing their thang. I love a lot of their songs that come out of that mindset, but HOLY SHIT when LP goes off and does shit like The Catalyst and WTCFM... I can't help but be thirsty for more of THAT.
GATS - Add Screams The Summoning/War - Combine them into 1 track Wastelands - change structure to chorus, too similar to GATS UIG - new fucking lyrics MTG - get rid of this shit, replace it with something like White Noise Drawbar - make the guitars a bit more prominent, but still have them in the background ALITS - Increase the damn volume to Chester's part. Its like I did the mixing, and my mixing SUCKS.
I don't know if many people know this, but the exquisite rhyme pattern on Wastelands plus the fact that, as Mike has said, its the first LP song to have the chord progression of the chorus change after the bridge, makes it quite different from the rest of the songs on LP's discography. I can see why some people still see it as 'bland' though, it does seem to follow the traditional LP formula.