Tuesday, May 26, 2009

"Falling In Love Again With Alejandro"

Taylor Swift / Colbie Caillat - Breathe

Sunday, March 22, 2009

"What's cooking David Cook?Nice Name Huh!"

David Cook - Biography

When David Cook traveled to Omaha, Nebraska to be his younger brother's moral support at the American Idol auditions, he never could have imagined where his journey would take him. Only auditioning himself after his mother and brother's prodding and encouragement, David made it through the first
round and then into the top 24.



David's knack of choosing and arranging songs that fit his vocal style, along with his consistently strong performances, kept him out of the bottom three and earned him praise from the judges. Despite being something of an underdog next to favorite David Archuleta, David won over the fans and the competition, receiving 56% of the final vote. Born December 20, 1982, David grew up in Blue Springs, Missouri, and started singing in school pageants in the second grade. In high school he played sports, acted in school plays and musicals, and started a band, Axium, with his friends.



He received a musical theater scholarship at the University of Central Missouri, but decided it wasn't for him and got his degree in graphic design instead. David was still playing with Axium until the band was peacefully dissolved in 2006, the same year that he released his first solo record, Analog Heart. Before he auditioned for American Idol, David was working as a bartender in Tulsa, Oklahoma, playing bass with the band Midwest Kings (MWK), and finishing up his second solo record.



Now that he has released a new album on the 19 Entertainment / RCA Records label, it is not clear whether that album will be rel
eased. Notable Statistics For the Billboard chart week of June 7, 2008, a week following Cook's American Idol victory, Cook broke several Billboard chart records. Most notable was his record shattering feat of having eleven songs debut on the Hot 100 that week, beating the previous record set by Miley Cyrus in 2006 when she had six songs debut on the chart. Cook's first single, "The Time of My Life" led the pack, debuting at #3 on the Hot 100.



Cook's eleven charting songs also gave him the most songs by one artist on the Hot 100 of any week in the Nielsen Music era (which began in 1991), and the most of any era since The Beatles placed 14 songs on the chart the week of April 11, 1964. In addition, that same week Cook also broke the record for the most debuts on Billboard's Hot Digital Songs chart, where he placed 14 debut entries, the record of which was previously six, set by Bon Jovi in 2007.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

"Techno Music Rules"

Techno Music

Techno music came out of Detroit in the 1980's, and carried the influences of popular electronic music of the 1970's to the dancefloors. The music features regular, pouding beats coupled with distorted synthesized sequences.

The best known early techno producers are Juan Atkins, Derrick May, and Kevin Saunderson, sometimes known as the Belleville Three. They made music for clubs that was a urban take on the music of German musicians like Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream were making. While Techno made it to the clubs in Chicago and New York, it was a largely underground style throughout the eighties.

What is Techno?

Techno is pure electronic music, originally designed for dances, that combines the sound of classic German electronica with an american Urban feel. The music emphasizes the machine sound of electronic drum machines, especially the Roland TR-808, and often is based around repetitive riffs played on bass line sequencers like the Roland TB-303.

The history of techno starts in Detroit. The style emerged there when musicians took cheap, used electronic instruments and abused them in ways never intended by their creators. Early techno artists drew on science fiction and futuristic themes in their music. The techno sound depicted a place unlike the aging Detroit city where it was born. The music and the themes of the songs were intended to sound like something from the future. “It’s an attitude to making music that sounds futuristic,” according to techno pioneer Juan Atkins, “something that hasn’t been done before.”

One of the best known early techno songs is "Alleys of your Mind", by techno artists Cybotron. Works from Atkins, May and Saunderson didn't make the charts, but were very influential because they were played in major clubs in the US. In 1988, a compilation called Techno! The New Dance Sound helped define the style.

In the 90's, artists in Europe began to take the Detroit sound of early techno songs and morph it. New variations were created, including acid, ambient techno, hardcore, and jungle. The techno style has gained more popularity in Europe than it has in the United States, because electronica has been popularized more in Europe than in the US.

Techno has been associated with raves since the nineties. The idea of a rave is just a techno party where like-minded techno fans can get together and dance to continuous dj mixes of electronic music. These have been particularly popular in Europe. In 2000, the Detroit Electronic Music Festival became one of the largest and most significant electronica events in the world. It was free and attracted hundreds of thousands of techno music fance from all over the world.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

"Snow Patrol-Eyes Open"


s n o w p a t r o l

Snow Patrol are a Northern Irish and Scottish alternative rock band which formed in Dundee, Scotland.[1] They are based in Glasgow and are signed to Polydor Records. Originally formed as an indie rock band, Snow Patrol have sought a more alternative rock and powerpop sound in recent years on the heels of mainstream success with the songs "Run", "Chasing Cars" and "Signal Fire" from the Spider-Man 3 soundtrack.

The band's first three records, including their last EPStarfighter Pilot, Songs for Polarbears and When It's All Over We Still Have to Clear Up—were commercially unsuccessful and were released by independent labels Electric Honey (for their first EP) and Jeepster (for their first two albums). When the band moved to a major record label Polydor Records they released their 2003 album Final Straw which crossed 4x platinum sales in the UK.[2] The band achieved worldwide success due to 2006's Eyes Open, which sold 4.7 million copies worldwide. Snow Patrol have been nominated for three BRIT Awards and have won five Meteor Ireland Music Awards. Worldwide, the band have sold over 7 million albums.[3]

Contents

[hide]

History

Early years and development

Originally formed in late 1994 as "Shrug" by students Gary Lightbody, Michael Morrison and Mark McClelland (all from Northern Ireland) at the University of Dundee in Dundee, Scotland,[4] the band started by performing gigs at the university and surrounding pubs such as Lucifer's Mill. They recorded an EP funded by DUSA Music Club, called the "Yoghurt vs Yoghurt debate" which was a rousing success. In 1995 they changed their name to Polar Bear (or Polarbear) and shortly afterwards drummer, Mike Morrison left the band, returning to Northern Ireland with health problems.[4] In mid 1997, they again renamed, this time to

Snow Patrol,[1] and released a three-track EP, Starfighter Pilot, on the Electric Honey label.[5]

Gary Lightbody, Snow Patrol frontman, during the January 2005 Tsunami Relief Cardiff concert in aid of the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake

At this point, Jonny Quinn, from Northern Ireland, joined as permanent drummer. With him the band released their next EP "Little Hide" on Jeepster Records while still living in Dundee (its cover was a blurred photo of a football crowd watching [Scotland v Estonia] at Celtic Park, taken by Gary Lightbody and the video included a number of their friends). A follow-up single "One Hundred Things You Should Have Done in Bed" was a minor independent chart hit. Both of these early singles were heavily promoted by Jeepster - with videos included as computer files on the CD singles, and Snow Patrol starting to appear on television. Their first MTV interview was in 1998, and they briefly appeared on a Channel 4 documentary about Jeepster Records (which concentrated mostly on Belle & Sebastian) that same year. Two albums on Jeepster followed: Songs for Polarbears in 1998 (including a slightly remixed version of their debut single "Starfighter Pilot") and When It's All Over We Still Have to Clear Up in 2001 (both recorded while the band lived in Glasgow). Also in 2001, Gary collected a group of Scottish musicians, from such acts as Mogwai and Belle & Sebastian together to perform as a "supergroup", The Reindeer Section, who have so far released two CD albums. Gary also performed vocals on a single by Cut La Roc.

The band's website addresses the naming question in their FAQ, item #6:

SP were originally called Polar Bear but had to change their name due to the Jane's Addiction bassist also having a side project called Polar Bear.

The name Snow Patrol came from a friend of the band who while called Polar Bear always referred to the group as Snow Patrol.

When the time to change the name came, it was a logical step.[6]

After the critical successes but commercial failures of the band's two albums on the Jeepster label, the band became increasingly disillusioned with their relationship with their label. The band began to feel that Belle & Sebastian got all the attention from the label, and little effort was being made to promote Snow Patrol. Since the band was not making much money, the members were under financial pressure, with Lightbody having to sell off his CD collection in order to pay for his rent.[citation needed]

Musicians like Bono from U2, Michael Stipe from R.E.M., Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee from Mötley Crüe declared in interviews their admiration for Snow Patrol.[7][8][9]

Final Straw and breakthrough success

After being dropped by Jeepster, guitarist Nathan Connolly joined, and the band signed to the mainstream Polydor label. They gained mainstream success with their song "Run" (which debuted at No.5 in the UK singles chart), as well as the album it was from, the 2003 release, Final Straw which was produced by Jacknife Lee and written by Matthew Drake of Seattle, WA. The record peaked at #3 in the UK albums chart. Archer's final date with the band was September 27, 2003 in the St Andrews Students' Association. They followed the success of "Run" up with three more singles from the album: "Chocolate", as well as a re-release of "Spitting Games", both reaching the top 30, and "How to Be Dead" reaching number 39.

The release of Final Straw in the United States in 2004 saw the album notching up well in excess of a quarter of a million sales and becoming the 26th most popular album in the UK of that year.

Jonny Quinn, drummer, performing at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida.

On March 16, 2005, McClelland left the band, with Lightbody stating 'a whole new set of new and unexpected pressures... have unfortunately taken their toll on working relationships within the band, and it was felt the band could not move forward with Mark as a member.' Former Terra Diablo member Paul Wilson replaced him on bass. In April 2005, Snow Patrol declared longtime touring keyboardist Tom Simpson an official member of the band.

In mid-2005, during their tour to support Final Straw, the band toured with U2 as an opening act on U2's Vertigo Tour in Europe. The band returned to the United States afterwards to continue touring in support of Final Straw. That summer also saw Snow Patrol playing a small set in London at the worldwide benefit concert Live 8. After finishing their opening act duties and extensive 2-year tour of Final Straw in late July, the band took a few weeks off and began writing and recording songs for a new album. Snow Patrol's new version of John Lennon's

"Isolation" was released on December 10, 2005 as part of the Amnesty International campaign, Make Some Noise. The song was later issued on the 2007 John Lennon tribute album, Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur.

Eyes Open


The band completed recording Eyes Open in December 2005, with Jacknife Lee returning for production, and this album was released on April 28, 2006 in Ireland, and the UK on May 1, 2006, with the first UK single "You're All I Have" having been released on the April 24, 2006. The album was released in North America on May 9. While "Hands Open" was the first American single, "Chasing Cars" pushed its way onto the download and pop charts after it was heard during an emotional and (plot-wise) huge scene in the second season finale of the television show Grey's Anatomy on May 15, 2006. Due to the song's surprise popularity, it was released as an overlapping single in early June and the video was re-recorded to include clips from the show. On December 30, 2006, it was voted by virgin radio nyc listeners to be the #1 song of all time.

On July 30, 2006, Snow Patrol appeared on the finale of the long-running BBC music show Top of the Pops, performing "Chasing Cars". The band was the last act to ever appear on the show.

Snow Patrol recorded a live session at Abbey Road Studios for Live from Abbey Road on October 4, 2006. The performance was included on an episode shared with Madeleine Peyroux and the Red Hot Chili Peppers and shown in the UK on Channel 4 and the US on the Sundance Channel.

The band was forced to postpone a majority of the American Eyes Open tour after polyps were discovered on Lightbody's vocal cords, and failed to heal after initial postponement of three dates on the tour. Dates were rescheduled for August and September. The year would continue to be difficult on the band for the U.S. legs of their tours, as they were also forced to cancel two west coast festival appearances in mid-August due to the threat of terrorist attacks on U.S.-bound flights from the UK. Two band members made it to the U.S. while two were stuck in London. Subsequently, they all made it to the lone U.S. tour stop in Boston days later but failed to recover any of their luggage, forcing them to shop for clothes on Newbury St. that afternoon. Their gear arrived hours before show time, just in time for sound check. The band also had to cancel appearances in Germany and France after bassist Paul Wilson injured his left arm and shoulder.

On November 26, 2006, Eyes Open had become the UK's best-selling album of the year, overtaking previous leader Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys. Despite very strong sales for Take That's comeback album Beautiful World, Eyes Open marginally earned the title of the UK's best-selling album of 2006, with 1.6 million in sales. The album reached platinum certification in the US as well, selling over 1,000,000 copies, and it maintained a spot in the upper quarter of the Billboard 200 list for over fifteen weeks, on the heels of the popularity of "Chasing Cars". The band also holds the distinction of having one of iTunes' top downloaded albums and songs of 2006. Ahead of the band's February tour, Eyes Open topped the Australian charts some eight months after its release on January 22, 2006. Back home in Ireland, Eyes Open became one of the best selling albums of all time, staying at the top of the charts from the end of 2006 to early - mid 2007, and remaining in the charts to the present.

Snow Patrol live in Madison Square Garden in 2007

Snow Patrol appeared as the musical guest on the March 17, 2007 episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. They performed "You're All I Have" and "Chasing Cars". The band toured Japan in April, followed by European festival dates, Mexico, and the US in the summer. They ended their tour in Australia in September 2007.

The band contributed the song "Signal Fire" to the Spider-Man 3 soundtrack, as well as the film. The song was the lead single from the soundtrack and was featured in the credits to the film.

On July 7, 2007, the band performed at the UK leg of Live Earth at Wembley Stadium, London. Shortly after the band's performance, Simpson was arrested at RAF Northolt for missing a court date in Glasgow after having been charged for possession of a Class A drug (cocaine).[10][11]

September 1, 2007 saw Snow Patrol headlining a "home coming" mini-festival in Gary Lightbody and Jonny Quinn's home town of Bangor, County Down. Around 30,000 people came to see the band.[12] [13]

On November 25, 2007, Snow Patrol performed an acoustic session for the charity Mencap, in a small chapel in Islington. They were one of the main bands to take part in the project, called "Little Noise Sessions" which was curated by Jo Whiley.

A Hundred Million Suns

Gary Lightbody stated that recording for the follow-up to Eyes Open was to begin in Autumn 2006, with Jacknife Lee returning a third time for production.[14] Since then the band stated that they wished to take a year off after the back-to-back tours of Final Straw and Eyes Open and intended to emerge at the end of 2008 with their next album. Gary Lightbody is also set to release an album as part of a solo project called "Listen... Tanks!" but a date for this has not yet been publicly announced.

A post, dated May 23, 2008 on the band's official website stated that recording for the next album had been under way for a week; they began on May 19, 2008. The new album, entitled A Hundred Million Suns, was released on October 24, 2008 in Ireland and October 28 in the UK and US. The first single entitled "Take Back the City" was released in Ireland on October 10, 2008. Filming for the music video to "Take Back the City" took place on the week of August 11, 2008 in Central London, as one of the band members was getting married the next day. The music video was directed by Alex Courtes.

The band kicked off their 2009 UK/Irish/Australian tour at Bournemouth International Centre, Bournemouth, southern England on Sunday 22nd February 2009. For this tour, tha band have been joined by the former front man of well known band The Alleycats, Kieran Dooley. The final date of this tour will be at Claremont Showgrounds, Perth on April 5th. This will then be followed by a tour consisting of mainly German dates but starting in Stockholm, Sweden on May 18th and ending in Stuttgart on May 31st.

Band members

Current members

Former members

Linkin Park

Linkin Park
Linkin Park performing at 2007's Nova Rock Festival held in Nickelsdorf, Austria.
Linkin Park performing at 2007's Nova Rock Festival held in Nickelsdorf, Austria.
Background information
Also known as Xero (1996–1998)[1]
Hybrid Theory (1998–1999)[1]
Origin Agoura Hills, California, USA
Genre(s) Nu metal, rap rock, alternative rock
Years active 1996–present
Label(s) Warner Bros., Machine Shop
Associated acts Dead by Sunrise
Fort Minor
Grey Daze
Jay-Z
Relative Degree
Tasty Snax
Members
Chester Bennington
Rob Bourdon
Brad Delson
David "Phoenix" Farrell
Joe Hahn
Mike Shinoda
Former members
Mark Wakefield

Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Since its formation in 1996, the band has sold more than 50 million albums[2] and won two Grammy Awards.[3][4] It achieved mainstream success with its debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005.[5] Its following studio album, Meteora, continued the band's success, topping the Billboard 200’s album charts in 2003, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work around the world.[6] In 2003, MTV2 named Linkin Park the sixth greatest band of the music video era.[7]

Having adapted the nu metal and rap rock genres to a radio-friendly yet densely-layered style in Hybrid Theory and Meteora,[8][9][10] the band explored other genres in their next studio album, Minutes to Midnight.[11][12] The album topped the Billboard charts and had the third best debut week of any album that year.[13][14] They have also collaborated with several other artists, most notably with rapper Jay-Z in their mashup album Collision Course, and many others on Reanimation.[9]

Contents

[hide]

Band history

Early years (1996–1999)

Originally consisting of three high school friends, Linkin Park’s foundation was anchored by Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, and Rob Bourdon.[1] After graduating from high school, the California natives began to take their musical interests more seriously, recruiting Joe Hahn, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell, and Mark Wakefield to perform in their band, then known as Xero. Though limited in resources, the band began recording and producing songs within Shinoda’s make-shift bedroom studio in 1996.[1][15] Tensions and frustration within the band grew after they failed to land a record deal.[1] The lack of success and stalemate in progress prompted Wakefield, at that time the band's vocalist, to leave the band in search for other projects.[1][15] Farrell would also leave the band to tour with Tasty Snax and other bands.[16][17]

After spending a considerable time searching for Wakefield's replacement, Xero recruited Arizona vocalist Chester Bennington. Jeff Blue, the vice president of Zomba Music, had referred him to the band in March 1999.[18] Bennington, formerly of Grey Daze, became a standout among applicants because of his unique singing style. The band changed its name from Xero to Hybrid Theory.[16] The newborn vocal chemistry between Shinoda and Bennington helped revive the band, inciting them to work on new material.[1] The band’s renaissance culminated with a change in name; from Hybrid Theory, the band changed its name to Linkin Park, a play on and homage to Santa Monica’s Lincoln Park.[1] However, despite these changes, the band still struggled to sign a record deal. After facing numerous rejections from several major record labels, Linkin Park turned to Jeff Blue for additional help. After failing to catch Warner Bros. Records on three previous reviews, Jeff Blue, now the vice president of Warner Bros. Records, helped the band sign a deal with the company in 1999. The band released its breakthrough album, Hybrid Theory, the following year.[18]

Hybrid Theory (2000–2002)

Linkin Park released Hybrid Theory on October 24, 2000.[19][20] The album, which represented half a decade’s worth of the band’s work, was edited by music producer Don Gilmore.[1] Hybrid Theory was well received by music fans; the band sold more than 4.8 million records during its debut year, earning it the status of best-selling album of 2001, while singles such as "Crawling" and "One Step Closer" established themselves as staples among alternative rock radio play lists during the year.[16] Additionally, other singles from the album were featured in movies such as Dracula 2000, Little Nicky, and Valentine.[16] Hybrid Theory was also nominated for three Grammy Awards, including best new artist, best rock album, and best hard rock performance (for "Crawling").[21] MTV awarded the band their Best Rock Video and Best Direction awards for "In the End".[1] Through the winning of the Grammy for best hard rock performance, Hybrid Theory’s overall success had catapulted the band into the mainstream's attention.

During this time, Linkin Park received many invitations to perform on many high-profile tours and concerts including Ozzfest, Family Values Tour and KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas.[16][22] The band also formed its own tour, Projekt Revolution, which featured other notable artists such as, Cypress Hill, Adema, and Snoop Dogg.[18] Within a year’s stretch, Linkin Park had performed at over 320 concerts.[1] The experiences and performances of the precocious band were documented in its first DVD, Frat Party at the Pankake Festival, which debuted in November 2001. Now reunited with former bassist Dave Farrell, the band began work on a remix album, dubbed Reanimation, which would include works from Hybrid Theory and Hybrid Theory EP.[16] Reanimation debuted on July 30, 2002, featuring the likes of Black Thought, Jonathan Davis, Aaron Lewis, and many others.[23] Reanimation claimed the second spot on the Billboard 200, and sold nearly 270,000 copies during its debut week.[24]

Meteora (2002–2004)

Following the success of Hybrid Theory and Reanimation, Linkin Park spent a significant amount of time touring around the United States. The band members began to work on new material amidst its saturated schedule, spending a sliver of their free time in their tour bus' studio.[25] The band officially announced the production of a new studio album in December 2002, revealing its new work was inspired by the rocky region of Meteora in Greece, where numerous monasteries have been built on top of the rocks.[26] Meteora featured a mixture of the band's previous nu metal and rapcore styles with newer innovative effects, including the induction of a shakuhachi (a Japanese flute made of bamboo) and other instruments.[1] Linkin Park's second album debuted on March 25, 2003 and instantly earned worldwide recognition,[1] going to #1 in the US and UK, and #2 in Australia.[15]

Meteora sold more than 800,000 copies during its first week, and it ranked as the best selling album on the Billboard charts at the time.[27] Music videos for some of the album's singles, including "Somewhere I Belong", "Breaking the Habit", "Faint", and "Numb", received significant radio attention.[28] By October 2003, Meteora sold nearly three million copies.[29] The album's success allowed Linkin Park to form another Projekt Revolution, which featured other bands and artists including, Mudvayne, Blindside, and Xzibit.[1] Additionally, Metallica invited Linkin Park to play at the Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003, which included well-known acts such as Limp Bizkit, Mudvayne and Deftones.[30] The band released an album and DVD, entitled Live in Texas, which consisted of audio and video tracks of some of the band's performances in Texas during the tour.[1] In early 2004, Linkin Park started a world tour titled the Meteora World Tour, supporting bands on the tour include Hoobastank, P.O.D. and Story of the Year.

Meteora earned the band multiple awards and honors. The band won MTV's awards for Best Rock Video ("Somewhere I Belong") and the Viewer's Choice Award ("Breaking the Habit").[31] Linkin Park also received significant recognition during the 2004 Radio Music Awards, winning the Artist of the Year and Song of the Year ("Numb") awards.[31] Although Meteora was not nearly as successful as Hybrid Theory, it was the third best selling album in America during 2003.[16] The band spent the first few months of 2004 touring around the world, first with the third Projekt Revolution tour, and later several European concerts.[16]

Side projects (2004–2006)

Bennington appears on the band's behalf at MTV Asia Aid

Following Meteora's success, the band postponed working on a new studio album for the next few years. Instead, Linkin Park continued to tour and work on many side projects. Bennington appeared on DJ Lethal’s "State of the Art" and other work with Dead by Sunrise, while Shinoda did work with Depeche Mode.[16] In 2004, the band began to work with Jay-Z to produce another remix album, entitled Collision Course. The album, which featured intermixed lyrics and background tracks from both artists' previous albums, debuted in November 2004. Shinoda also formed a new band, Fort Minor, as a side project. With the aid of Jay-Z, Fort Minor released its debut album, The Rising Tied, to critical acclaim.[32][33] At the same time, the band's relationship with Warner Bros. Records was deteriorating rapidly on account of several trust and financial issues.[34] After months of feuding, the band finally negotiated a deal in December 2005.[35]

Linkin Park also participated in numerous charitable events. Linkin Park helped raise money to benefit victims of Hurricane Charley in 2004 and later hurricane Katrina in 2005.[16] The band donated $75,000 to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation in March 2004.[36] They also helped relief efforts for the 2004 tsunami victims by staging several charity concerts and setting up an additional fund called "Music for Relief".[37] Most notably, however, the band participated at Live 8, a series of charitable benefit concerts set up to raise global awareness.[38] Alongside Jay-Z, the band performed on Live 8's stage in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to a global audience.[38] The band would later be reunited with Jay-Z at the Grammy Award Ceremony 2006, during which they performed "Numb/Encore", en route to winning a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.[39] They would later go on to play at the 2006 Summer Sonic music festival, which was hosted by Metallica, in Japan.[40]

Minutes to Midnight (2006–2008)

Linkin Park in Prague, 2007

Linkin Park returned to the recording studios in 2006 to work on new material. To produce the album, the band chose producer Rick Rubin. Despite initially stating the album would debut sometime in 2006, the album was delayed until 2007.[11] The band had recorded thirty to fifty songs in August 2006, when Shinoda stated the album was halfway completed.[41] Bennington later added that the new album would stray away from its previous nu metal sound.[42] Warner Bros. Records officially announced that the band’s third studio album, entitled Minutes to Midnight, would be released on May 15, 2007 in the United States.[43] After spending fourteen months working on the album, the band members opted to further refine their album by removing five of the original seventeen tracks. The album’s title, a reference to the Doomsday Clock, foreshadowed the band's new lyrical themes.[44] Minutes to Midnight sold over 600,000 copies in its first week, making it one of the most successful debut week albums in recent years. The album also took the top spot on the Billboard Charts.[14]

The album's first single, "What I've Done" was released on April 2, and premiered on MTV and Fuse within the same week.[45] The single was acclaimed by listeners, becoming the top-ranked song on the Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks and Mainstream Rock Tracks charts.[46] Later in the year, the band won the "Favorite Alternative Artist" in the American Music Awards.[47] The band also saw success with singles such as "Bleed It Out", "Shadow of the Day", "Given Up", and "Leave Out All the Rest", which were released throughout 2007 and early 2008. The band also collaborated with Busta Rhymes on his single "We Made It", which was released on April 29.[48]

Linkin Park's touring and live shows have, among other things, included a performance at Live Earth Japan on July 7, 2007.[49] and headlining Download Festival in Donington Park, England and Edgefest in Downsview Park, Toronto, Canada. The band completed touring on its fourth Projekt Revolution tour before taking up an Arena tour around the United Kingdom, visiting Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester, before finishing on a double night at the O2 arena in London. Bennington stated that Linkin Park plans to release a follow-up album to Minutes to Midnight.[50] However, he stated the band will first embark on a United States tour to gather inspiration for the album.[50] In an interview with Rolling Stone, Bennington said that the band had already begun writing new material for the album, and Shinoda too stated that the album could well be released in late 2009. Mike Shinoda also announced a live CD/DVD entitled "Road to Revolution: Live at Milton Keynes", which is a live video recording from the Projekt Revolution gig at the Milton Keynes Bowl the 29th June 2008, which was officially released on the 24th November, 2008.[51] In October 2008 Shinoda revealed on his blog that he, Farrell and Hahn had begun working on two song ideas at Hahn's home, with studio recording to begin in earnest soon.[52]

Future direction (2008–present)

In 2008, Bennington announced that Linkin Park's fourth studio release will be a concept album.[53] The band has not released many specific details about the album.[54] In an interview with MTV in November 2008, Bennington stated, "It sounds a little daunting to me, so, I think my confidence level will drop, but when it was presented to us by this friend of ours, we liked the idea. It was an inspiring idea, and it was something we could relate a lot of the things we like to write about to."[54] He also added that the band planned to begin recording in December for a six-week session. He expects the album itself to be released in mid 2009.[54]

Style

Both Hybrid Theory and Meteora combined the nu metal[55][56][57][58][59] and rap rock[60][59] sound with influences and elements from hip-hop, alternative rock,[61] and electronica, utilizing programming and synthesizers. William Ruhlmann from Allmusic regarded it as "a Johnny-come-lately to an already overdone musical style,"[62] whereas Rolling Stone called "Breaking the Habit" "risky, beautiful art".[63]

In Minutes to Midnight the band experimented with their established sound and drew influences from a wider and more varied range of genres and styles, a process Los Angeles Times compares to a stage in U2's work.[64] In it, only two of the songs feature rapping, and the majority of the album can be considered alternative rock,[65][66] rather than nu metal or rap rock. It also is their first studio album to feature guitar solos.

Linkin Park's use of two separate vocalists has become a large part of their music. Chester Bennington is most known for using screaming vocals common in various forms of metal, while also using more melodic singing, and has placed 46th in Hit Paraders list of "Heavy Metal's All-Time Top 100 Vocalists".[67]

Mike Shinoda is the group's MC, and does all of the rapping. Mike has also done all of the backing vocals live, and in their latest album, Minutes to Midnight, he sings lead vocals on "In Between", "Hands Held High" and the B-side "No Roads Left". Shinoda has also been placed in Hit Parader's list of "Heavy Metal's All-Time Top 100 Vocalists" at number 72.[67]

Band members

MTV Thailand interviews Mike Shinoda in 2006
Current
Former
  • Mark Wakefield – vocals (1996–1998)
Session