Hybrid Theory (Special Edition)

Linkin Park | Format: MP3 Download

Product Details

• Original Release Date: August 29, 2006
• Label: Warner Bros.
• Copyright: 2000 Warner Bros. Records Inc. for the U.S. and WEA International Inc. for the world outside the U.S.
• Total Length: 49:01
• Genres:
• ASIN: B0011Z76RS
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,791 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #602 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)
  • #14 in MP3 Downloads > MP3 Albums > Hard Rock & Metal

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Rock-rap's (not generic) best, August 1, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Hybrid Theory (Audio CD)

Whether rock-rap or rapcore is going to live on for awhile or die off and fly into history next to other music genres that were short-lived remains speculated over constantly. I, personally, think that rock-rap will live on as long as it wants if talented artists like Linkin Park stay behind the wheel of it's driving force. Before anyone dares to stereotype this and throw it on the shelf next to their dust-growing albums of the same type, or their "got way too old, way too fast" Limp Bizkit CD's, this album DEFINITELY deserves several listens, although just one spin should get you hooked. How, you might ask? It's as simple as the fact that this is one of those rare albums where there simply is not a bad song on the entire thing. One can spin the entire CD without coming across a skippable track or a gut-wretching, space-filling interlude, which can't be said about too many groups in this style of music. Strictly no-BS here.

Leading the front of the group are Chester Bennington, with an amazing voice that would make Maynard James Keenan of Tool jealous, but with enough ferocity to scream his heart out on the level of some of today's loudest metal bands. Such a contrast is rare. Putting forth just as much contribution, and an equal frontman along Chester, is Mike Shinoda, strictly in charge of rap lyrics, who has the flowing ability, if not better, of most hip-hop artists. The crunching guitars of Brad Delson bring the rock part of the album to life, while Rob Bourdon's steady and fast-paced drums keep the beats so in check and so hip-hop oriented that one would swear it is a drum machine at points. However, the most bragging rights go to Joseph Hahn, the band's DJ. He can mix sound effects, cut records, and tear into his turntables with the same level of skill as DJ Lethal, among numerous others, all of which is gloriously reflected in the song "Cure For The Itch", performed only by Mr. Hahn. Strangely, the band didn't even have a permanent bass player during the recording, and had to hire a bassist for each song, but now, thankfully, a permanent bassist by the name of Phoenix has solved those problems.

But that's just where the band lies. The music itself is no typical rapcore. The emotionally charged lyrics on all the songs take the music to a level that Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst can't even dream of achieving. Adrenaline-pumping hard rock songs such as "Papercut", "With You", "One Step Closer", "Crawling" and "Runaway" will silence the skeptical on the heavy metal matter. Mike Shinoda gets a chance to show off his flowing skills on "Points Of Authority", "By Myself", and co-operates on the rock vocals on "Forgotten". More melodic, but by no means quieter or calmer songs include "In The End", "A Place For My Head", and the album's finale "Pushing Me Away". The band's sound itself has influences from A Perfect Circle, Deftones, House Of Pain, Nine Inch Nails, Papa Roach, Videodrone, and numerous others.

Fortunately, this version of the album has two added tracks attached to it. "My December" and "High Voltage", which were originally released on the band's no-longer-available EP, are gracefully added onto here for some extra touch. Although "High Voltage" doesn't exactly fit the mood of the rest of the album, "My December" should have made it onto "Hybrid Theory"'s final cut, ranging as one of the groups best songs, amazingly moving and talented. The implemation of the keyboards in the tune are something not seen very often in Linkin Park's work, aside from "In The End". This is not to mention that Chester Bennington's voice is absolutely beautiful and amazing on "My December". "High Voltage" in itself is a decent song, although it is completely hip-hop and un-parallelled with the rest of the album. Definitely deserves a listen though, especially for the added DJ effects and whatnot.

In my opinion, the best songs on the album are "In The End", "Papercut", "My December", and "Pushing Me Away", although it's next to impossible to choose favorites, as every track is equally amazing. Don't stereotype this album with the rest of it's genre and forget about it. This is a must-have.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars TWO BONUS TRACKS MAKE A GREAT CD BETTER, BUT WORTH THE $?, November 22, 2001

By 

Tim Goodson (McHenry, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hybrid Theory (Audio CD)

Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory is one of the greatest albums I have ever heard. I think that putting High Voltage and My December on Hybrid Theory and adding 20 dollars, is not a waste of money,(especially if you have the original album, you should) but I think your money could be better spent. I have attended a concert of theirs and seen exactly what they're capable of. Not only have I heard Hybrid Theory about a thousand times, I have searched for other songs of theirs. When I saw they released Hybrid Theory with two bonus tracks, I was a little amazed. High Voltage and My December are great songs, but the greatest was left out. "And One," a song that they played at the concert I attended, is a GREAT song by them; I believe this song should have been on the original album. The band played this song when they were called Hybrid Theory, not yet Linkin Park. I believe that other songs like Part of Me, Step Up, High Voltage, My December, Carousel, and And One, should be all on a seperate import. Since this hasn't been released yet, these songs can be found and downloaded. I suggest that if you're a TRUE Linkin Park fan, you should track down these songs. If you're someone who just likes the song Crawling and wants the cd, these two bonus tracks won't do much for you! I would give a 5+ for the original Hybrid Theory album, and their other unreleased songs, but for the two bonus tracks for 20 more dollars, I will give an overall rating of 4.

77 of 92 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars from a Skeptic..., September 28, 2001

By 

J. Brittman "The Bottom Line" (Long Island, New York) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hybrid Theory (Audio CD)

I am 27 years old. I grew up with metal like Black Sabbath, Napalm Death, Megadeth, (early)Metallica, TOOL, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden. I avoided Linkin Park like the plague thinking that their all too friendly MTV image would not satisfy my most primal metal urges. I was wrong. It is indeed rare to find a debut album of such complexity and richness. Hybrid Theory plays as a complete album, there are no throw away tracks here. I wasn't sure I liked Chester Bennington's voice at first but after hearing "Crawling" a few times I came to realize that he's got a great voice. He's no Rob Halford or Bruce Dickinson but he's up there amongst today's vocalists (except for Serj from System of a Down). This cd is a true "hybrid" of metal and hip-hop influences. Linkin Park uses two vocalists, one singing and one rapping along with a dj and the results are spectacular. The best two tracks are A Place for My Head and Forgotten but all of the other tracks are way above average. So if you've shown slight interest into this band but have shyed away because of their link to commercial interests, I say take the plunge it's well worth it. Hybrid Theory will be the first of many important releases from this band. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.