gorast

I'm thinking The Summoning is going to be a quick buildup that absolutely explodes right into War.

How reliable is LPA's LP Wiki considered? I was browsing through it today and came across stuff like Session being confirmed to be an evolved version of the secret track from the HTEP, and that Carousel is "most likely" derived from So Far Away based solely on the chorus.

When I look at those track times individually, 45 minutes seems too short, but then again, one track looks like an intro, and two others are under three minutes. A Line in the Sand feels like it's going to be like a heavy version of TLTGYA - an epic, soaring track that could only be at the very end of the album.

I actually just found that out (from the thread you mentioned it in, incidentally)! I'll fix that now.

That's that hype train gaining speed. It'll probably only get more insane from here.

Version 1 here. My list has changed significantly in the past two years, so here I am with a (mostly) brand new list. It's not numbered, but it's done by release order instead. FRGT/10 - FRGT/10 is a repeat from the first list I put together, and with good reason. I talked about how Reanimation was a fantastic remix album, almost an album in itself, with many of the songs being completely reinvented, far beyond what remixes usually entail in today’s music environment. FRGT/10 is one of the best examples of that on Reanimation, taking the original song’s structure and retaining it while substituting in reworked, re-recorded verses, a completely redone beat, and, of course, Chali 2na’s guest appearance. All in all, FRGT/10 is the best remix on Reanimation, easily. Leave Out All the Rest - Minutes to Midnight’s enormous shift in musical style through us all for a loop when it came out, and LOATR was one of the biggest culprits, one of the most obvious examples of Linkin Park’s “new” sound. But that’s what’s great about it - LOATR may be softer than most of the band’s catalogue up until that point, but its lyrics are powerful, the music behind it is beautiful, and the chorus’s melody is one of my all-time favorites. LOATR, and the rest of Minutes to Midnight along with it, ushered in a new era of Linkin Park, one where the barriers of nu-metal surrounding the band were smashed down in earnest. The Little Things Give You Away - Ah, this one. Another repeat from the previous list, TLTGYA, aside from having a stupidly long name, was also stupidly long when it came out. But not actually “stupidly” long - this song is fantastic, with a slow build that takes several minutes to get to the soaring, gorgeous solo from Brad. It’s a simple solo to be sure, but that doesn’t matter - the emotional core of the song is encapsulated in that solo, lasting all the way through the fantastic intertwining vocals at the very conclusion of the song. And plus, dem drums though. Rob really outdid himself on this one, something he wouldn’t do again until Guilty All the Same, I’d say. She Couldn't - She Couldn’t is a peculiar anomaly in the Linkin Park canon - soft and quiet, it doesn’t fit in with its 1999 brethren the way other 90s demos do. It feels a lot like a Grey Daze track, with Chester’s soft, beautiful vocals, accented by the acoustic guitar and Mike’s few repeating lines throughout. Even the breakdown is subdued - a sole synth line above sparse percussion. It’s also unique due to the prominent sample during Mike’s lines, and this sample is often cited as the reason the track has never officially seen the light of day, only existing on a single internal demo disc. I’m gald that disc leaked, though, because She Couldn’t is just a gorgeous song, offering some fascinating insight into the band’s songwriting process during the HT era. When They Come for Me - A Thousand Suns featured Mike in a different way compared to previous albums, in that, on ATS, Mike sung way more than he had before. This, naturally, cut down on the number of verses he did for the album, but on here, in his first proper rap on ATS, Mike came out swinging, throwing down a verse with more venom than anything he’d done in years, possibly ever. And that led into a vicious, percussion-heavy chorus laced with taunts of “try to catch up, motherfucker.” WTCFM quickly became a live staple, a shout into the night when compared to the relative quiet of much of the rest of the album. Mike is in his element here, and it was clear that he was at the top of his game, too. Waiting for the End - The last repeat from the previous list, WFTE still rocks hella hard. Mike’s vocals sound weird and unfamiliar, but they still have the same bite that they’d had for years. Plus, Chester’s vocals are as clean and strong as they’ve ever been, something that occasionally can’t be said for tracks coming after this album. This track is unique for me, though, because the music video is really what sells it. WFTE’s music video is the best Linkin Park music video ever made, no strings attached. The effects were incredible, absolutely phenomenal. All in all, WFTE is a great rocker, and the experimentation Mike did in it is top notch. The Catalyst - The Catalyst was the first new LP song in which I was engaged enough with the fandom to be there for. And I remember people flipping shit over it. It’s long, it’s heavily electronic, and it was fucking weird in 2010, especially compared to what the band had released before. Nevertheless, it was hard-hitting, with Mike and Chester’s distorted vocals slicing through the minimal instrumental, as it built on itself, building up to the synth solo all the way to part 2, where it all came crashing down into a gorgeous vocal from Mike. The Catalyst has one of the best climaxes of any Linkin Park song, and it’s easily one of the best opening singles, especially when it came out. It’s a shame it sounds like trash in a live setting. Slip - Slip is weird. It’s from the 90s, but it doesn’t feel like a 90s track - the music is unusually subdued during the verses, kind of in the same vein as She Couldn’t. Of course, it ramps back up into the usual Linkin Park sound for the choruses, but it’s not as intense. It’s nice and heavy, but not overly heavy the way Hybrid Theory and Meteora were. Mike’s vocals are great, though - he’s really throwing down on this track, and it’s awesome. It’s a shame they didn’t do anything with this track before LPU 11 - I think it would’ve made for a great album track, and it would’ve sounded amazing in a live setting. UNTIL IT BREAKS - UNTIL IT BREAKS is just a fucking monster. Literally, really - a Frankenstein’s monster of four demos sewn together. The first two feature Mike slapping the shit out of the listener with three unbelievable verses; they’re easily my favorite ones he’s ever done. Add to that the way Chester breaks through with his chorus, only to be knocked out of the way by yet another insane Mike verse, and you’ve got a truly amazing song. And Brad, too - Brad’s vocals have a feeling of imperfection, and yet they also have a really great sense of confidence as he brings the song home. LIVING THINGS disappointed me in retrospect, but this song truly blew me out of the water. Primo [i'LL BE GONE - LONGFORM 2010 DEMO] - Primo’s a weird one, too - a longform demo of I’LL BE GONE that was rejected in favor of the shorter, heavier version on the album. Though I think the album version is a better fit for that album, this version is easily the definitive version of the track, and I’m glad that it saw the light of the day. It’s got the same sort of slow build that TLTGYA has, with great dual vocals from Chester and Mike, showcasing the range the two of them have, and how well they do when singing in tandem during the verses. The guitar line is particularly great here, too, and I love when it takes over towards the middle of the song, leading into its second half. The second half is reminiscent of ATS, in a way - the electronics take over as the backdrop for Chester’s beautiful solo vocal line. This is the high point of LPU XIII, and one of the best LPU tracks ever released. And the tally: Reanimation: 1 Minutes to Midnight: 2 8-Track Demo: 1 A Thousand Suns: 3 LPU Eleven: 1 LIVING THINGS: 1 LPU XIII: 1 Honorable mention: (I wrote this before I decided to go with She Couldn't, so I'm posting it anyway.) Dedicated (demo 1999) - Dedicated just has this feel to it, where it’s one of the few pre-Fort Minor tracks where Mike goes all out in regards to his craft, both in his lyrics and the way he delivers them. The Xero and HTEP sessions had a lot of songs like this; Reading My Eyes, Step Up, High Voltage, and likely more that we haven’t heard yet. This is some of my favorite material from Mike - you can tell that he’s got plenty of passion for what he does. The piano and string lines are great, too. It’s a shame it never made it onto a proper release, though Songs from the Underground is a decent consolation prize. Other honorable mentions: Issho ni, Reading My Eyes, Fuse, High Voltage 2000, Pushing Me Away, Lying from You, Standing in the Middle, Across the Line, Blackout, Iridescent, Burning in the Skies, Blackbirds, Pale, So Far Away

Man, this thread took a shitty turn.

Catalyst is an incredible song in the studio, but it loses its balls live. I'll give you Iridescent, I forgot about that one. WFTE is unbearable for me to listen to live because Chester insists on doubling Mike's vocals. Like, what the fuck are you doing? Let the rapper rap.

This is a great list. WTCFM and Blackout are easily the best live tracks from ATS.

An o-card is this thing: http://ninblogs.files.wordpress.com/2010/1...5_3123351_o.jpg The plastic sleeve over the case. It could go over a jewel case or a digipak, but I think this one might be a digipak.

What was on Living Things+ ? I can't remember.

The DVD is probably going to be one of those live shows from last year or something like that. What else could it even be? Music videos? They would release that here if it was something cool like that. Gonna buy digital again for this one.

That's a nice stance to take, but we have two of those twelve right now, so we're going to focus on them. I'm glad I came back now from that hiatus I took at the beginning of the year. LPL's at its best when a new album is on the verge of coming out.

Regarding LFY vs. SOTD: I think some of you are getting caught up in the fact that LFY is on Meteora and SOTD is on MTM. SOTD is incredibly simplistic lyrically, and while it's got a great instrumental track, LFY is just as interesting. Plus, it does have better lyrics, IMO. It's not a matter of hard vs soft for me - LFY is more interesting. Distilling it down to "nu-metal sux alternative rock is top tier" is elitist and stupid on both sides.

Chester's voice really sounds weak here, just like through most of GATS. It's not a bad song by any means, but I was a little underwhelmed by it.

It's starting, kids. Chester's on the line.

Usually I think people that bitch about Zane Lowe's style are being obnoxious whiny babies, but his hype man shtick during OSC was a bit much.

It's been like three whole pages of time zone talk, holy shit. The song'll be all over the Internet immediately afterwards anyway, if LGM's premiere is any indication.

If this is done as a traditional single premiere, then Tuesday with a pre-order sounds likely. It's around the time a pre-order would come out.

Yeah, the HTEP was an official release, so those are the 'default' versions of the tracks.

Rob hasn't been known for really intense drumming before this album, so he's probably just not used to it, whereas a lot of drummers in heavier bands have been doing that kind of drumming for so long that they're used to it. If they keep going in this direction, Rob will get used to it too.

Gonna have to prop that dude up in a back brace for the tour.

Shit, it's like staring right into a time machine.

Yeah, Mojave/Coming Home Soon is in the archive. I remember the song pretty well. I'll add Ben's new EP to the post as a separate link, but not to the archive for obvious reasons. Are the links not working? I can rehost them if necessary through another website. (Yes, I'm still here, sort of. Once in a while.)

Why is a 36-minute album being pressed on two records? That's dumb as hell.