"Erase myself, and let go of what I've done," croons Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington halfway through his band's third studio album. OK, but why?
If any rock act should stay impervious to musical shifts and tastemaker commentary, it's Linkin Park, the band that brought arena rock sensibilities and emo angst to the rap-metal world. While their peers dwindle (seriously, did you buy the last Korn album?), Linkin Park steadily churn out hit after hit.
But every band needs that "we're artists, dammit!" moment, and "Minutes to Midnight" is Linkin Park's attempt at respectability. It's appropriately downbeat, more experimental, surprisingly free of hip-hop (save for two tracks) and—thanks to producer du jour Rick Rubin (of Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Stadium Arcadium")—far less reliant on digital manipulation and squeaky-clean production. For the first time in the band's history, when the drums hit, there's an actual percussive kick to it.
While they won't threaten Arcade Fire for blogosphere cred, this new, more mature approach works reasonably well. The symphonic power ballad "Leave Out All the Rest" deftly mixes orchestral pop and three-chord rock—for better or worse, it's the makings of a great Kelly Clarkson song. "Shadow of the Day" veers toward the electro-rock majesty of Depeche Mode, with a chorus that should haunt the airwaves for, oh, the next six months. And, while most of the record plays with softer tones, the whiplash-inducing "No More Sorrow" stands out as the song Metallica has been unsuccessfully trying to record for the last decade.
Erase what they've become? Hardly. But Linkin Park does prove that a little self-examination, subtle re-invention and the right producer can result in big creative pay-offs.
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