In their newest release, Linkin Park retakes the stage for the first time in over seven years following the tragic suicide of their legendary lead singer Chester Bennington. From Zero puts a new spin on Linkin Park’s twenty-plus year discography to remix the band’s constantly shifting musical identity.
From Zero is more than an album though, it’s a hard reset for Linkin Park, a narrative forefronted by M.C. Mike Shinoda, and new lead singer Emily Armstrong; Linkin Park also recruited new co-producer and drummer, Colin Brittain. “From Zero… like, from nothing?” kicks off the album with The Emptiness Machine. The production on this song really shines through, Shinoda’s verses are sharp, and Brittain’s diluted drum fills pace the track; furthermore, the track serves as an amazing introduction to Armstrong’s vocal talent, and to this new iteration of Linkin Park as a whole.
The majority of tracks on this record pull from the band’s late 2000s style, such as Cut the Bridge’s snare drum tempoed flows from Shinoda, and Heavy Is the Crown’s 15 second scream from Armstrong. The energy in these three tracks runs through the blood of my favorite track Two Faced, which lets letting turntablist Joe Hahn and guitarist Brad Delson shine on its glitchy, guitar heavy backing track that sounds straight out of the early 2000’s Meteora, complete with Shinoda’s catchy raps and Armstrongs emotional chorus.
Unfortunately, one major downfall of this album is its constant shifts in energy due to tracks such as Over Each Other, a downbeat alt-pop track that nearly put me to sleep; that is, until Shinoda’s outro: “You got it, get your screamy pants on,” a relieving albeit shocking whiplash into the most energetically exaggerated track on the album, Casualty. With gritty vocals, vinyl scratching, and distorted riffs, this track reignites an fiery energy only Linkin Park could stoke.
However, this energy is quickly put to rest by musically outdated obligatory alt-pop filler tracks such as Overflow and Stained, which crumble the fragile consistency of the tracklist. It’s fun to see Armstrong slowly grow into the mold of a lead singer throughout the album, and even with the relatively un-notable ending tracks IGYEIH and Good Things Go, it’s been a blast to watch one of my favorite bands defy Memento Mori and start a new legacy. Linkin Park isn’t disregarding their origins as an opener band going by Xero, or replacing their members. Linkin Park is starting from zero, again: “…in the role of Chester Bennington this afternoon, is each of you.” I can easily recommend both new and old Linkin Park fans go listen to this album, but as for my scoring, From Zero gets a strong 3.5 out 5 stars.
