For most of my life, to see Linkin Park perform live felt like something that belonged to another world.
Growing up in India while the band was releasing the music that defined my teenage years, it never crossed my mind that I could one day travel to another country to watch them perform. And yet, on the night of January 20th, 2026 at Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi, that dream turned into reality.
I attended with my brother - who discovered Linkin Park alongside me all those years ago - and my wife, who has seen how deeply this band’s music has stayed with me over the last decade, through Chester’s passing, the band going silent, and then slowly finding their way back.
From the moment we arrived, the atmosphere was charged. The crowd was buzzing. It felt like thousands of people had brought pieces of their younger selves with them. It was the energy of people reconnecting with a soundtrack that shaped entire phases of many of their lives.
The arena was sold out, but it never felt overcrowded. The design of Etihad Arena deserves real credit. The steep, vertical seating makes you feel closer to the stage while keeping sightlines completely clear. From our front-row upper-tier seats just off centre, we had an uninterrupted, panoramic view of the entire production — something I definitely wouldn’t have had if I’d chosen standing.
Given how Linkin Park’s studio tracks are polished and layered, I expected the live versions to feel rawer. They did — but not in a way that felt lacking. Instead, the band poured everything into performance and production. The show was divided into chapters with cinematic interludes, massive laser sequences, and seamless transitions that made it feel more like an an immersive audio-visual experience than just a rock concert.
The sound was phenomenal. Even from the upper tier, it was crystal clear. The bass had weight without being muddy, vocals cut through beautifully, and there was none of the echo you often get in big venues. It genuinely felt like the music surrounded us rather than blasted from one direction.
It was great seeing Mike on stage, clearly enjoying himself. Emily brought a fresh dynamic that worked very well live. But for me, the real standouts were Colin Brittain and Alex Feder. Every drum hit and guitar riff felt physical. I could feel the energy rising up through my legs into my body. Their playing wasn’t just tight — it was visceral. They gave the songs a live urgency that made it a true concert experience.
The classics, of course, hit hardest. In the End, Numb, and Faint turned the arena into one giant choir. But it was Bleed It Out, the closing song, that detonated the place. At one point, the entire arena was clapping in rhythm — thousands of hands in perfect time, echoing through the building. It was communal. You could feel it.
I have to say that the newer material held its own. The setlist integration was smart — the tour is clearly doing what it’s meant to: bringing casual fans and the nostalgia crowd into the band’s new era.
Being up high turned out to be a gift. The lighting design was stunning, especially the intro to Act I and the transitions between Acts III and IV. From above, you could see the full geometry of the lights, the stage, and the crowd — the full architecture of the performance unfold.
I do wish they’d used side screens; the overhead cubes and backdrop were great, but side screens could have made it even more immersive.
Still, I have zero regrets about choosing seats over standing. One of the most beautiful parts of the night was realising just how global this fanbase is - people from everywhere, different languages, different backgrounds, all singing the same lyrics. As someone who grew up in India loving this band from afar, being in that mix felt surreal in the best way.
But ultimately, the concert for me was emotion over everything else. The intro alone sent chills down my spine. Faint and Bleed It Out did it again later in the night.
There’s also a layer of complexity that comes with seeing Linkin Park now. Hearing these songs without Chester is something you can’t ignore. His voice shaped so many of these tracks and so many of my memories. There’s a strangeness in knowing I’ll never see him perform with them live. But I’m also grateful that Mike, Brad and the team chose to keep going, to evolve, and to give fans like me the chance to experience this music in a new way rather than not at all.
When the show ended, I felt hyped, emotional, and greedy for more. I’ll definitely see them again. Maybe next time in a massive open-air European stadium, or hopefully one day back in India where fans like me grew up loving them from afar. I still wish I could have been at their first India show — representing that fan base would have meant a lot.
But this night was still something I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life. This is a night that lived up to years of anticipation, a dream turned into reality.
