The Hunting Party Leak + iTunes Stream

[rusnam]

Is there any way people in the UK can use the iTunes stream thing?

[Numbrocker]

Is there any way people in the UK can use the iTunes stream thing?

 

Not sure, but MSC said that other countries have the stream too, so it might be in your store.

[Cleeve]

Is there any way people in the UK can use the iTunes stream thing?

 

You can listen to it on itunes as I am in the UK and listening to it.

[Southpaw262]

What's with the weird ending to most songs?

[Numbrocker]

First listen to the album and I love it! Not quite sure where some songs end and some begin but I don't really care. Need to listen more before I do favs/ratings.

[Jesper]

Chester vocals on Mark the Graves are giving me life

[lgr]

[...]

please write in English on the forum, you can talk to other fans in any other language via our language board here - http://lplive.net/forum/index.php?showforum=35

[maatze]

IMO, HT(10/10) > THP (9/10) > ATS 8.5 > Meteora (8/10) > MtM (7.5/10) > LT (5/10)

 

standout-tracks

(+) Keys To The Kingdom

(+) All For Nothing

(+) Rebellion

(+) Wastelands

(+) Final Masquerade

 

ALITS and "Mark The Graves" have to grow on me :/

 

UIG is the worst track of the album.

[Biggiee2180@aol.com]

THIS... Is the album I've been waiting 7 years for. IMO, easily their best record since Minutes To Midnight. Damn, and that was off of ONE LISTEN!!! Can already tell this record is going to own me this summer. Right into seeing them perform it in Camden!!!

[lgr]

Is there any way people in the UK can use the iTunes stream thing?

not from what I can see..

[spraypaintninkpens]

THIS... Is the album I've been waiting 7 years for. IMO, easily their best record since Minutes To Midnight. Damn, and that was off of ONE LISTEN!!! Can already tell this record is going to own me this summer. Right into seeing them perform it in Camden!!!

 

Basically. Although I liked LT, ATS was a huge failure in my opinion. This sort of restores my faith in the band. Now bring on the side projects!

[Southpaw262]

Basically. Although I liked LT, ATS was a huge failure in my opinion. This sort of restores my faith in the band. Now bring on the side projects!

I agree. ATS isn't that good. Living Things isn't bad. THP is much better!

[Biggiee2180@aol.com]

 

Basically. Although I liked LT, ATS was a huge failure in my opinion. This sort of restores my faith in the band. Now bring on the side projects!

I loved LT & ATS. Thankfully I wasn't one of those fans that completely jumped ship when they decided to expand and broaden their sonic landscape. But in terms of hitting you in the face with hard sound, this album did it and then some

[My4oKFanLP]

Love all THP album ... realy all !!!!

Keys To The Kingdom - one of the best song from LP. Chester thank you! 2:25 min is awesome sample!!!

[linkin_boss]

I just listened the album once... It was really good. indeed it made a statement about rock music, no doubt.

 

Even if I liked both ATS and LT (ATS>LT, in my opinion), this is a really good twist for the band. I was dissapointed about drawbar being so short, but it was a nice interlude into FM.

 

Is it just me or Mark the graves sounds a bit like blackout bridge (minus the scream and the electro stuff), like the part mike sings. It was weird at first, but it works okay.

 

Finally I must say I'm in love with War and A line in the sand... these were my favorite ones that weren't premiered before.

[rusnam]

Thanks for the help, found it on iTunes, my quick views:

Keys To The Kingdom - interesting, definitely punky, in a strange way it reminded me of The Offspring. Starting off the album with such a fast paced, direct song is definitely a good move in my opinion!

All For Nothing - follows on from Keys To The Kingdom nicely, Mike is awesome on this track, his rapping is very hip-hop, again I love the energy! It's awesome.

Guilty All The Same - liked the track as a stand alone, following on from the first two it seems a bit random at first in that it doesn't blend in smoothly but it's the third song in a row that's loud and fast. Good Let's continue...

The Summoning - not much to say here, that's fine, it's only a minute.

War - hmm, similar to the first two tracks with its energy, Chester screaming throughout, it's different, not my favourite.

Wastelands - wasn't a huge fan of this when I heard it for the first time but the more tracks Mike raps on the better! It's definitely growing on me. The instrumental towards the middle-end is a bit weird, to me it sounds strangely unfinished/rushed.

Until It's Gone - arguably the most familiarly LP sounding song on the album, Chester's vocals on this track have grown on me. An obvious choice for a single I suppose. I really liked the ending of this song but then Rebellion comes in with a completely different sound, weird.

Rebellion - I'm hardly the biggest SOAD fan but even I can hear the influence on this track and I mean that in a good way! I don't know why Linkin Park decided to have features on an album for once but it's an interesting twist, a cool song for sure. I like Mike's vocals here, I'm glad LP are taking advantage of the fact that Mike too can sing, it just adds a whole new element to tracks; the song on the Mall trailer sounds fantastic, I can't wait for that too.

Mark The Graves - long intro, slower than most the other songs, probably my least favourite song so far... Progressive but a little bland for me, Chester's vocals not that exciting for me.

Drawbar - instrumental, slow but actually really beautiful. Quite an emotional song, I like it.

Final Masquerade - another song that sounds like a single, not bad, a more traditional LP sounding/structured song, one of the few on the album along with UIG.

A Line In The Sand - more Mike singing, nice. Starts slow and gets heavier, Chester sings, then Mike raps, this song has a bit of everything, it's another emotional song, I'm excited for the lyrics to this one. In fact, this is controversial but Chester's vocals are arguably the worst part of this song, which is not to say they're bad.


Overall my first impressions are positive, a lot of people thought this album would be somewhat of a return to the "old Linkin Park" whatever that is, but for me this is anything but a safe album in that sense, but then I wasn't expecting this to be Meteora Pt. 2 or anything... I like it!

[hahninator]

I agree. ATS isn't that good. Living Things isn't bad. THP is much better!

 

I didn't "get" A Thousand Suns on the first listen, or for a few months even. I only LOVED Waiting For The End at first, really. I mean going from No More Sorrow and Given Up to The Catalyst is a pretty big change. Then I "got it" and ATS to me now is a musical masterpiece. I can't tell you how much I listen to it start-to-finish; it definitely ranks up there in my top ten albums ever. Robot Boy even is incredible to me. The whole CD is A+++.

 

I loved LT & ATS. Thankfully I wasn't one of those fans that completely jumped ship when they decided to expand and broaden their sonic landscape. But in terms of hitting you in the face with hard sound, this album did it and then some

 

And then Living Things hit and because it took me a little bit to get ATS, I thought LT was a huge step back for the band. And I still do. I really dislike that record a lot, and LPU XIII confirmed what I thought - they had some super creative, genius tracks like Primo and they tried to shorten them into these "firecracker" songs. The electronic elements seemed so...dumbed down from the ATS era. They had all this synth and electronic stuff and it just sounded so cheap to me. I can dig Lost In The Echo live. In My Remains, Castle Of Glass, and Powerless aren't bad songs (I think Powerless is genius). Just about everything else on the record, especially Skin To Bone, Until It Breaks, Lies Greed Misery, etc I think is really bad. I don't know if I'll ever come around on that album. Burn It Down as a lead single....OUCH. Oh man. I would have kept Primo and the other tracks and expanded on the ATS sound (even longer songs) versus shortening things up for the new album (2012).

 

But because they kept changing their sound and I didn't know what was next...I didn't even think about jumping ship. One bad record to me isn't much of anything if you love the rest. So I can't wait to hear The Hunting Party.

[RogueSoul]

Short review as I listen:

 

Keys To The Kingdom: Amazing intro to the album. LP has finally abandoned their logic to opening quietly then exploding into a massive track (though I do love each intro to every album) and open with this distorted scream. Chester destroys it and Mike sounds amazing. I would also like to note that the kid at the end immediately reminded me of MMM...Cookies. 10/10

 

All For Nothing: One of Mike's best verses I've heard yet, Wastelands has is beat though! I couldn't really identify Paige's part upon my first listen, so I'll have to go back and listen to it when I can. Overall a great song, really punch-in-the-face-y. 9/10

 

Guilty All The Same: This song sounds brand new within the album. It now has a definitive place between songs and doesn't just serve as this monstrous intro. While still huge in its sound, it felt as if I was listening to it for the first time again. It had a new perspective, I'd say. 10/10

 

The Summoning: Sounds a bit weird first time around. I like its weirdness and atmosphere, though. Nice track overall. 8/10

 

War: Is this LP? This is like early-Green Day on steroids. Chester's vocals are epic. I do feel this song wouldn't be possibly if he hadn't joined STP, he needs inspiration for this type of older-sounding stuff and needs to know how to deliver. As for Brad's solo: Holy shit. That's some intense stuff! 10/10

 

Wastelands: One of, if not the, best verses Mike has laid down yet. Mike goes hard in a rebellious-style chant similar to the feel of When They Come For Me. I love jamming to the song on guitar and it still rocks hard. I still feel as if this one sounded new, I feel like that's because it now has a place within this godly album. 10/10

 

Until It's Gone: I don't what it is about this album, but the songs that have been revitalized. Even though I've listened to Wastelands through Rebellion in an attempt to get a feel of the tracks leading into each other, they all just sound more massive to me. UIG sounds incredible, better than I've heard it before. 10/10

 

Rebellion: The only complaint I have on this album so far is the transition into this song. I really don't understand the baby noise. However, I won't let that detract from what may be one of the greatest songs I've ever heard. When the synth comes in after the main riff plays over a few times, I can't help be reminded of some medieval knights. This song defines what the band wanted when they said they were creating a "visceral" record. 10/10

 

------Took a break to eat food right here.------

 

Mark The Grave: The song begins with a happy, sweet guitar riff, but then explodes. The song features a massive riff to begin, soft verses featuring a duet between Mike and Chester (which is somewhat reminiscent of the vocal progression of the last verse of Blackout). You can actually hear Phoenix! The song's breakdown features a heavy riff again, this time it feels inspired by Deftones. Chester's vocal performance on this track is fantastic, mother of god. 10/10

 

Drawbar: An interesting track. Beautiful piano and a atmospheric synth thing accompanying the piano. I'm honestly really unsure where Morello's part in the song is. Is it that synth? Rob's drumming in this is superb, it reminds me a little of The Little Things Give You Away. I love the track for its soothing nature, but Morello could have certainly be mixed up more. Truly fantastic piano work by Shinoda. I feel this song could be used as an outro transition of sorts live, maybe for Numb (like The Radiance was) or the outro to COG. 8/10

 

Final Masquerade: My pre-album release favorite track. I can't say right now if it's dethroned, but upon my first listen it has not. Then again, I haven't listened to ALITS yet. Chester's vocal performance is the best on this song, whereas MTG showcases his range, this one shows off his technique and ability to sing. Brad's solo is beautiful, it does have the Green Day feel I've heard it compared to. Can't wait to hear this one live. If it doesn't explode and get massive airplay, I will lose hope in society. ∞/10

 

A Line In The Sand: This song is probably what I've been most excited for prior to release. It opens up softly, with sounds of a battle heard muffled in the background. Mike's vocals, oh my god - or should I say, oh my Shinoda. The song goes from a ATS or MTM sounding song into a massive, progressive metal track. The guitar, while somewhat similar to GATS (They both utilize power chords in a similar fashion, the 5th fret and 8th fret specifically being used in succession to each other). While Chester sounds amazing in the chorus, Mike is really shining. A now he whips out a verse. I'm at a loss of words right now. This is a song I've wanted to listen to for the past few years. I could never find a song that was like this. Now I have. This just beat out Final Masquerade as my favorite track on the album. I can't begin to start how much win this song is. I need one of those signs from the Russia flash mob in 2012 that says "Mike is sex". I now fully agree. ∞ x ∞/10

 

Total: 10/10 - Possibly my new favorite album.

 

Will post a full, in depth review once I get to hear the album a few more times.

[Coizu]

And then Living Things hit and because it took me a little bit to get ATS, I thought LT was a huge step back for the band. And I still do.

I feel like they didn't knew what they want to do themselves with LT. That's probably the biggest issue with the whole album...

[Southpaw262]

I feel that two instrumentals are unnecessary. My least favorite tracks are The Summoning, Mark The Graves and Drawbar. Favorites are Keys To The Kingdom, Until It's Gone, Rebellion, A Line In The Sand.

[kramer05]

Am I the only one that thinks mark the graves sounds incubus-like? In a very good way. Obviously it is different, but it was very good.

[Geki]

I've listened to the album from front to back about 3 times now. I absolutely love it. It kind of sucks that I listened to 5 of the songs before the album was available in full, but it's not too big of a deal, I still love all the songs. My favorite songs would have to be Keys to the Kingdom, Final Masquerade and A Line In The Sand, if I had to choose my top 3. Each song is unique and very good, IMO. I usually criticize some songs or parts of the album with each release (ATS, LT), but I honestly do not have much to criticize or complain about, this album is basically perfect, IMO. I do think that they could have utilized Tom Morello a bit more on Drawbar, that is probably only the complaint I have, and it's a small one at that. Chester's vocals are phenomenal on some of these songs. Mike just straight up BRINGS IT with his rapping on a few songs and his singing is much better than in the past, I love it.

 

KEYS TO THE KINGDOM: Mike wasn't kidding when he said he wanted this song to just kind of ''fuck you up'' when listening to it; it definitely does. Chester comes in hard with his screaming and he doesn't let up with it. His screaming instantly reminded me of the chorus for Wretches And Kings, but way more screamy and in your face, I also dig the robotic effect they used on his voice. This song will be a monster live. I also love Mike's rapping and singing in this track, it's top notch, IMO.

 

ALL FOR NOTHING: Another great song that just kind of punches you in the face. Page Hamilton did a good job on this track, I love the interplay between him and Chester on the chorus. The highlight of this song for me is Mike's rapping. Great lyrics and I love his attitude and flow with his rapping as well. This will be a cool song to hear live, Mike could definitely do Page's part in the chorus if he wanted to. Finally, the Muse style outro is amazing, you can definitely hear a bit of a Muse influence there and I love it.

 

GUILTY ALL THE SAME: I have listened to this song hundreds of time since it was released in March and it is awesome each time I listen to it. When it first was released, I was a bit skeptical about it, but now that I heard the whole album in full, it definitely kind of sums up the tone of the whole album and it is also very heavy, which I hadn't really noticed before, it's definitely a metal song. While I do like Rakim's verse a lot and I know he is a legend in the hip hop community, I still think that Mike could have done his verse, he sounds great when he does it live, IMO.

 

THE SUMMONING: Pretty cool little interlude, even if it is a bit pointless, it gives you a small break after the first 3 songs which are literally just punching you in the face. Not much else to say about it.

 

WAR: Wow. I was blown away at first listen to this song, I had to check and see if I was still actually listening to a Linkin Park song for a minute. This is a totally straight up punk rock song with tons of attitude and it's something I never imagined that Linkin Park would create. Chester's vocals are definitely cool in this song and I would absolutely LOVE to see this song performed live.

 

WASTELANDS: Probably one of the weaker songs on the album, IMO, but it's still good and I like it. It reminds me a lot of just a basic Linkin Park song, similar to stuff like Bleed It Out or Somewhere I Belong, etc. I think this song is a good song to keep in the setlist, it blends well with a lot of earlier Linkin Park songs.

 

UNTIL IT'S GONE: Probably the weakest song on the album, IMO. It's not a bad song, but it's not amazing, either. I really enjoyed this song when it first came out but when listening to the whole album, it's probably the weakest song, IMO. Chester does a good vocal performance but it's no where near as good as his vocal performance in Final Masquerade, more on that later. The synth part is probably my favorite part of this song. I wouldn't mind if LP got rid of it from the setlist, but they probably won't, which is fine, too. It's just an average song, IMO.

 

REBELLION: This song hits hard and fast. It's a great track. I was shocked when I first listened to this song a week or so ago. Daron did some really great work on this track, and I love the lyrics. Mike's singing is very good on this song and it fits well. Chester doing his screaming section, wow, that has to be one of the nastiest breakdown's that I have heard from Chester. I hope to see this song performed live at some point.

 

MARK THE GRAVES: This song, I don't really know how to review it. It's definitely very experimental and it kind of sounds different than the rest of the songs on the album, but this is not a bad thing. I enjoy this song a lot, but it doesn't really stick in my head after hearing it, but when I listen to it each time, I love it, it's a weird feeling. The vocals are good and I love how Chester got more aggressive towards the end. The lyrics are good and I love the guitar in this song as well. Can't see how this song would do well as part of the setlist because it's long and experimental, but you never know.

 

DRAWBAR: I really like this instrumental a lot. However, it's the only song on the album that has a complaint from me. I wish they used Tom Morello's skill a bit more on this song. It's not really a big deal, though, because I do like this instrumental a lot, it just seems like a bit of a waste of a guest, IMO. Nothing else to really say about this track except that I like it.

 

FINAL MASQUERADE: Probably my second favorite track on the album, it's just such a beautiful song and I honestly believe that it's one of Chester's best vocal performances that I have ever heard him do on any project, not just LP. It's kind of a pop rock type song but I really enjoy it, I think this song could find a home on Minutes to Midnight, which isn't a bad thing, considering it's one of my favorite LP albums. The lyrics also kind of hit a soft spot for me as well, probably one of the only songs I can relate to on the album lyrically. I could see this song doing very well on radio, but then again, it doesn't sound like a lot of current ballad type stuff that is played on the radio. I think maybe about 5 or 6 years ago, this would have been a huge success commercially.

 

A LINE IN THE SAND: This song is just plain epic and it's third favorite track on the album, next to Keys to the Kingdom and Final Masquerade. It has such an epic feel to it, it sound apocalyptic like a lot of people said in their reviews, I love the thunder and rain noises at the beginning. Probably one of the best vocal deliveries I have ever heard from Mike, and the lyrics have great meaning, I love them. Chester's vocals are probably my favorite part of this track, he goes all out and I can see that maybe in a few months time, this could become my favorite song on the album, it's that good. I thought it was going to be a slow song at first, but I was wrong, Rob's drumming and the guitar just got bananas and then it explodes into an epic long rock song, I love it.

 

Overall, this album would get a 9/10 for me, it's almost perfect. The only small complaint like I said was that I wish they used Tom Morello's skill a bit more, but that really isn't a big deal for me because I love the track. I also would say that they didn't really need any of these guests, but they all do good work on this album, I love it. I'm surprised how much I enjoyed this album, I was a bit skeptical about it up until today. Another solid LP release. It seems they just get better each time they release an album.

[Jesper]

After listening also to the itunes stream, I still think it needs to grow more on me as a whole. Sometimes I feel that Mike's singing parts would have sounded even better with Chester handling certain portions. But oh well Mike does a great job and with probably 3 more album listens I am sold completely.

[Southpaw262]

Is it me, or does Mike's singing just doesn't pack a punch? His rapping is great, but I've yet to hear a song that Mike sings that totally blows you away. No Roads Left is probably the best we've got. His singing just seems so quiet. I do like how LP has had Mike sing since MTM, but his singing just doesn't stand out.

[Geki]

If Chester did all the singing, people would be complaining that we didn't get enough vocals from Mike on this album. I think Mike stepped it up on this album with his singing.