Linkin Park LIVING THINGS Face to Face Interview

The funny thing is, my videos have been online a day longer than the official ones thanks for the mention

 

Awesome, thanks Joe!

 

Love Part 2. Is Dave getting gray hair?

 

Well, it's been sixteen years. Also, Mike needed a haircut, look at those videos from the ATS era...

 

Wonder what Phoenix said in the part they muted out. I really loved part 2 btw!

 

Haha yes I just found this gem:

 

Interesting interview!
But that last part... Especially the last question "Who's going to be EUROPEAN CHAMPION 2012?" Hate questions like this one... I think they're always so embarrassing. What else should they say to these guys from WBGermany than "I think Germany..." >,<

 

Okay I'm going to post now my inputs now that I've watched all 4 videos. EXCELLENT interview.

From Part 1: Mike mentions about the folk elements (once again) that made their way through the record, so that makes me pumped to hear what the rest of the songs could sound like, the rest was pretty much general.

From Part 2: I actually hadn't noticed they stopped doing the "Brad - Guitars, Phoenix - Bass" thing on their records, and it's actually a smart thing to do, considering that they admit every guy in the band has an input on every instrument, they just go into the tracks and experiment, no matter what tool they're working with.

About the Brad thing, I think I understand what the interviewer meant, which is something we pointed out here for a while now, that he's more "involved" into the process, not necessarily with the guitar, but behind the computer, putting together some elements, throwing out some ideas, I have noticed that as well and it makes me glad to see that.

Another highlight for me here is what Mike said about drum kit, they are actually admitting that both electronical-sampled beats are merged with Rob's kit to a point it's almost impossible to tell -even by the bandmembers themselves- if the sound was played through Rob's kit or was sampled. And the same thing goes for the bass, which may or may not have been played by Phoenix in some tracks.

So it's not "intentional" for band members to keep others "out" like someone tried to say a few weeks ago on other threads, claiming that Rob and/or Brad had nothing to do anymore, they do stuff, just that they might conceive them in different ways.

There was also a -censored?- muted part from Phoenix, which makes me curious, .

On Part 3: Addressing the complexity of Linkin Park's fanbase, I agree that he got to define "us" as a complicated base because we are so many people with different opinions on what the band has done over the years, and some of them could be carved in stone (those who still hang on to the old sound), some who are just as shifting as the band, and ever some younger ones who have discovered the band through their latest efforts. And they've said it before but it's hard for people to swallow the fact that the Hybrid Theory (not the album) was the philosophy for the band from the very beginning, a combination that isn't just rock and rap (like many people think) but the merging of different styles and all the musical tastes that converge in one point.

Loved that they made clear that they don't hate or regret any of their albums. Good to know. Also Phoenix is such a cool and funny guy, that RaR anecdote was hilarious.

On Part 4: Fußball!! YAY! I never thought Phoenix would be so into football, since I've seen him talking about golf. I knew Mike was more of a Basketball fan (Lakers fan), I really want to see one of those LP matches . Phoenix knows stuff, I agree with the fact that Germany is looking very solid (10 wins out of 10 during Euro qualifying), so I hope they finally make it, and he is looking forward to the input of Jürgen Klinsmann into the US soccer team, they could do well, we'll have to see how the elimination works although there's not much competition in North America, USA and Mexico come on top most of the time.

ZDF playing BID at the Euros? NICE! And good to see Mike understands Phoenix's excitement having the NBA Playoffs experience..

It was a great interview overall, they talked about studio, hobbies, fanbase, it was very interesting to watch and it's always nice to hear some information about their writing process, you start to understand a bit more how the band works.

 

these videos make me happy =) bits and pieces of Hybrid Theory/Meteora era is coming back...i guess they sorta finally gave in lol

 

Cool interview, thanks

 

That was a pretty nice interview. Loved to hear Mike talking about the fanbase

 

Very nice interview.

 

we'll never know what the muted part was :/

 

I definitely wouldn't say "gave in". More like they wanted to bring back that same energy in a new light.

 

Only if someone can read lips.

 

I honestly feel like the most significant and interesting thing Mike said in this interview is how his rapping is different in this album....how it has more "bragginess" with a more "aggressive attitude" rather than his past styles, which he defines as more "introverted." It seems like he was having a hard time explaining this but funnily enough, I really understood exactly what he was trying to say. I think we all did, to be honest. As variated and diverse as Linkin Park has been in the past, they've kept one thing consistent throughout their career- they never talk about themselves directly in their songs. I usually associated that kind of attitude to Lil' Wayne, Drake, Jay-Z, Kanye West, and the other mainstream rappers out there, but I never thought Linkin Park would ever approach that area of music (the area that I'm referring to is the area where mainstream rappers are these days; talking about how much cash they have, how many women they "have", how much swag they've got, how cool they are, how "sick" their "flow" is, etc.). Even when Mike wrote those Fort Minor songs, being a hip-hop project, it still never had that kind of content. Mike Shinoda has never written what he defines as those "pop" sounding raps, and I feel like LP has always been better off without that kind of thing. The closest Mike has ever come to that sort of thing is in When They Come For Me.....but even there, he basically makes a few (very true) statements about himself and lets it go. But it was never really a full out "battle" rap, like in I Have Not Begun (which I absolutely love).

Idk...is this a change in style for LP? I'm okay with it, I hope I'm not coming across as a complainer, whatever LP does is usually for the better, but still, it is undeniable that this is another one of those steps Linkin Park has taken toward the whole "pop" thing. I also noticed that in those Until It Breaks verses before the live Waiting For The End performances. I still love the way it sounds, the way it's delivered and the aggression, but I'm just liking it in the same way I'd like some of Jay-Z's or Eminem's material. LP normally has a special vibe to their songs that makes me like their songs beyond other artists'.

Point is, what I've noticed and loved about Linkin Park until now is that they are, or can become mainstream without sounding very mainstream at all. Generally, as we all know, they intentionally attempt to sound different from mainstream. This shift in rapping style though feels a little bit like they're moving in that mainstream direction a little bit, whether intentionally or unintentionally (probably unintentionally, since LP has always wanted to sound fresh and new).

What do you guys make of this?

Disclaimer: I'm not saying Mike is soon going to start rapping about swag, money, and women. I seriously doubt that will ever be the case, and the danger of Mike rapping about swag is ridiculously low, although he has every right to, considering that he has so much of it. I am saying that I've always felt that Mike Shinoda is bigger than the whole mainstream scene, and so it surprised me that he took a step (a small step, but still) in this direction.