Mike is a great singer. But when it comes to live..... I could sing better than him live.... The mall track is the best I've heard mike sing since MTM era. I was completely disappointed when I heard LT because I expected something like the mall soundtrack instead of In my Remains
Saw this on my Facebook ''I was listening to heavy metal and I stopped because of some cunt screaming'' in reference to Rebellion
Mike just sounds very nervous live. If he had more confidence in himself and his singing, I think his live voice would benefit greatly. There have been golden moments for him (ex. The Catalyst @ Red Square)
First of all, to those saying chester can't sing with emotion... listen to Slow ya roll by young buck.... Second, Mike and Chester are like Peanut butter and jam. Both are pretty good on their own but its really when they are both on the same track that the magic happens. (Prolly also why most of you like Linkin Park to begin with)
i think the lack of emotion on chester's singing is a bit of linkin park and mostly mike fault. listen to grey daze, dead by sunrise, and even Slow Ya Roll as Danny said above, if thats not emotional or something like that... Chester is one of the best and most versatile singers since grunge died, but in LP he just do more of the same, similar high notes and screams on most songs, and push himself to fit LP music. Compare in my remains live to out of time, he hits similar notes on both songs, for some reason he struggles and sounds bad on 90% of IMR performances while in Out Of Time he sounds good live
That's why when I heard Rebellion for the first time, I'm totally impressed the way both Chester & Mike compliment each other. I mean, unlike GATS, Wastelands & in some parts of UIG, those three songs it feels like being forced to a certain degree in order to please the casual listeners & as usual to satisfy what they're looking for; That scream. In Rebellion, Chester's voice sounds natural and you can hear the passion especially on the chorus part..
Mike is nervous when he sings live but sometime when he is doing the back-vocals and chester is stopping before mike sometime you can here how good mike could actually sing live!!
this is funny, he probably feels more conforable doing backvocals live because theres no presure on him
I honestly love Mike's vocal. So different from Chester in a great way. In terms of Mike's live performance... I think he is nervous and unable to handle his breathing properly. Not just his solo vocal parts, but sometimes his backing vocal duties are not executed properly as well. And, I remember him saying in an interview that he learns how to sing (probably partly) from Chester. Which I think may not be a good idea.
In terms of pure technicality, Chester is a much better singer for Linkin Park. Mike's baritone voice fails to cut through much, even in shallower mixes. That said, he's a great singer in the studio. The end of Blackout will forever be one of my favorite bits LP ever wrote, and Mike kills it. But he's got a very limited range (G2 to G4-ish in chest voice and up to Eb5 in falsetto) and can't scream or belt nearly as well as Chester (who can belt and scream well into the 5th octave and is consequently better suited for LP's heavy stuff). Still, Chester's voice has weakened significantly of late. The Hunting Party and its tour took a toll; I think it's clear his voice was one of the reasons there is no screaming on One More Light. It's hurting his voice, at least somewhat. I think we'll be seeing a lot more of Mike's voice on future releases, rapping or singing.
He used to have a really weak voice around the MTM era but he's improved a lot since then. I think he personally learned from Chester what to do correctly as a singer? Just my guess. I think Mike sounded the best on Castle of Glass. I still prefer Chester's voice.
Chester has off days, sure, but in these acoustic performances he still seems strong as hell. Also, Mike's singing on acoustic BID is probably the best I've ever heard from him live. It's definitely a comfortable range for him and it sounds great in that rendition, especially with Chester's harmonies. I can't wait to hear Invisible, Sorry for Now, that Martin Garrix track (when the heck is that dropping??), and whatever other singing from Mike we're gonna get.
I may actually like Mike's voice better than Chester's, especially on The Hunting Party. I don't know, there something about his voice I love. It's deeper, it's somewhat soothing, and flawed. I love that. He just needs a little more confidence when singing on stage
I prefer Mike's singing over Chester tbh, his low voice is so fucking relaxing and chill, I fucking love it. and his live singing is improved too.