Customer Reviews

Meteora

5 star:		(822)
4 star:		(275)
3 star:		(117)
2 star:		(87)
1 star:		(202)

 

 

Sure, they may not have the most complex guitar out there and their songs are very structurally similar, but really, Linkin Park's "Hybrid Theory" was one of the catchiest, most energetic, and innovative cds to come out in quite a while. I loved their first release, loved the remix album just as much, and have been salivating over this new album. So, does it live up to their past two records? Lets go track by track-

1. Foreword- a short intro with speeding up percussion (the sound of a cd burner being beaten up) erupting into the sound of shattering glass and launching you into the next track.
2. Don't Stay- An aggressive guitar driven track with some really awesome dj scratching. Chester Bennington (singer) mixes up the verses with some awesome screaming.
3. Somewhere I Belong- The first single of Meteora sounds like it was constructed from the ground up to be a radio hit in the vein of In The End. That said, the interesting sampling and really beautiful piano part make this track a very memorable in its own right.
4. Lying From You- Heavy, sample laced guitar riffs and thunderous vocals make this one of the most mammoth tracks on the album
5. Hit The Floor- One of my favorites, Hit The Floor features some spectacular samples, skull crushing riffs and screaming, and some real tricky rapping from Mike Shinoda (emcee). I love the bridge, and the chorus has the same sort of weirdly catchy syncopation as By Myself (off Hybrid Theory).
6. Easier To Run- Ugh, my least favorite. Everything about this track smacks of an ill fated attempt to recapture the awesome grandeur off their old single, "Crawling". Though the rapping part is alright, Chester's chorus is revoltingly sappy and boring. Actually, his voice reminds me of Creed in this song (if that's good or bad, you decide).
7. Faint- Fast, furious, slick, and raging, the quick rapping and funky violin samples make this song an instant classic.
8. Figure 9- A straightforward rap-rocker with some clanking sampling and a bridge lifted right off of By Myself, this one is a solid head banger.
9. Breaking The Habit- A really weird sample, featuring Spanish guitar, live orchestra, and -I think- coin chinking sounds from a Mario game plays behind Chester's tortured, magnificent lyrics. A rather large departure from traditional LP (no rap, for one thing), this song really is quite beautiful, though the chorus could be seen as a little corny.
10. From the Inside- A solid ballad with a furious bridge, I think this song is a better Crawling sequel than Easier to Run.
11. Nobody's Listening- A cool hip-hop track with some unique flute samples, clips of High Voltage (another Linkin Park rap song), and some singing in the chorus. Though I'm not a big straight rap fan, I like this track quite a bit.
12. Session- An awesome instrumental, this is actually one of my favorites on the cd. Though its conceptually evocative of Cure for the Itch, the layering of sounds and seriously wicked dj solo make this far better than any of Linkin Park's past instrumentals.
13. Numb- The crowning achievement of the cd, Numb is one of the few tracks on Meteora that not only captures the energy and emotion of Hybrid Theory, it expounds upon it. A beautiful chorus, splendid piano and keyboard parts, and unforgettable lyrics make this my favorite song on the cd.

Overall, this album is musically more advanced and distinguished than Linkin Park's past attempts. However, it is not as gripping, powerful, or focused as Hybrid Theory or even Reanimation. Though a number of songs seem attempt to duplicate past successes- Don't Stay and Ones Step Closer, Somewhere I Belong and In The End, Lying From You and With You, Easier to Run and Crawling, Figure 9 and By Myself, Numb and Pushing Me Away- they seldom capture the elements that made Hybrid Theory such an outstanding album. Nowhere is there the frenetic razor beats of Papercut, the infamous "Shut up!"s of One Step Closer, or the emotional meltdown of A Place for My Head. Meteora excels in other ways, however. The tracks are more diverse, from the techno pop of Breaking the Habit to the ingenious hip hop of Nobody's Listening to the grinding elements of Hit the Floor, the songs on the album are on a whole more different from each other than they were on Hybrid Theory. Newcomers to LP won't be disappointed, but I think long time fans will find them selves yearning for the band's former punch. In fact, its probable that Meteora will not commercially match Hybrid Theory- though a lot of the tracks are soft and catchy, not as many just scream to be heard again. Another gripe is that this is one very short cd- though there isn't a lot of filler, you feel like they keep working up to something grand and never quite achieve it (though Numb, the best track, is last, one amazing song tacked on at the end does not make the rest of the cd monumental). Don't get me wrong, this is a good album and is well deserving of your money, I just think that there is something missing that prevents it from being a 5 star album.

How does linkin park do it. meteora has excelled all my expectations as I could not believe they could match the brilliance of hybrid theory....But they did.
Track overview.
01.This is an awsome start to any album and blends perfectly with track 2.

02.Don't Stay- A great opener, fast and hard. The chourus grows on you but it is the brigde which stands out and you find yourself yelling with chester. 3.5/5

03.Somewhere I Belong- The single. The intro to this song is so addictive i find myself playing it over and over again. Good song, not the best. 4/5

04.Lying from you-Chester's voice in this song is so powerful and it is impossible not to yell with him. The chorus is again awesome but is let down by the rap. 3.5/5

05.Hit the floor- the major dissapointer of the album. The rap is to similar to previous efforts and the chourus offers very little. 2/5

06.Easier to Run- this chorus is one of the best in the album and blends perfectly with the brige at the end. One of my favourites. 4.5/5

07.Faint- The best song on the album. The intro is incredible and the rap blends so well with chester's chorus. A hard song with the best yelling bridge on the album. 5/5

08 Figure .09- Good song. the chorus isn't as catchy as others but the rap is a stand out. Not original enough. 3/5

09 Breaking the habit- An original an unlike any of their other songs. A quiet song in comparison and the opening scratch with the strings is awesome. Good for a change. 4/5

10.From the Inside- A major stand out. I love this chorus. It has awesome lyrics and is easy to sing with. The best mix of rap and singing to date with an awesome brige. 5/5

11.Nobody's Listening-Again very different.the intro with the pipes sounds sweet. Good rap. Good Chorus. 4/5

12.Session- Dissapointing. Nothing compared to track 11 on hybrid theory where Mr Hahn went off. 1/5

13.Numb- Another great song, easy flowing and again good to sing with. Great lyrics, another favourite, good closer. 4.5/5

*** An awsome album...linkin park has created another masterpeice with every intro being different from the next but being so effective.

Best songs- 03,06,07,10,13

A lot of people have asked me what I thought about Linkin Park's 2003 Sophmore Release 'Meteora' and the first thing I would tell them was that it was a nice follow up with some songs that can push them in a newer direction. Now, a lot of you Linkin Park 'haters' who think this album was terrible won't agree with what I am about to say, and that's fine. Linkin Park has a style that, whether you 'love em' or 'hate em', is catchy and it works. They succesfully have combined hip-hop, rock, and electronica to make something that most of us enjoy hearing and they ACTUALLY care about their fans, unlike most bands out there. Now, back to what I was saying before about a 'newer direction'. Meteora was a necessity in Linkin Park's career because they hadn't finished experimenting with their style to a point where they could go into a 'new direction'. Sure 'Meteora' had its moments where it seemed that it was trying to repeat some of the songs from 'Hyrbid Theory' like (Easier to Run=Crawling, and Somewhere I Belong=In the End), but there were other songs such as 'Faint' and 'Breaking the Habit' that helped push thier style to a new point. 'Breaking the Habit' especially is the key song that was the most diverse of all the songs from any of their albums, and because of it they plan to head the way 'Breaking the Habit' helped push them for their next album. I am a Linkin Park fan, yes, but I'm not gonna lie; I like their music and I liked all their albums so far, but I really hope they bring something different forward for their third album, because that is where true artists make/break it. But Meteora is worth buying; it's short, sweet and to the point. No filler songs and a very nice expansion upon Hyrbid Theory. Even if you're skeptical about buying it because you have heard it was bad, buy it anyway because why base your decision off of someone elses OPINION. You won't know for sure until you have heard it yourself.

Why did it take me so long to write a review? I bought this album the day it came out and was so worried about what I would hear. Sophomore efforts from incredible debuts kind of work like movie sequels- they tend to not be as good. Linkin Park revive their sound, and mold it like true art. And at first I didn't like it at all. But extended listening has this rivaling "Hybrid Theory". It grows on you.

1. FOWARD (-) No score, so song.
2. DONT STAY (A) Wakes us up into what we know, and what we like. A very strong track.
3. SOMEWHERE I BELONG (B+) Honestly, the reason I was worried about this CD was because of this song. The bridge is awesome, though.
4. LYING FROM YOU (B) Back to business with this one. But somehow I'm still feeling alienated...
5. HIT THE FLOOR (A) This is very fresh! agressive, resistant- this song fights you!
6. EASIER TO RUN (A) Soaring with vocals, this is Linkin Park's rock ballad.
7. FAINT (A-) Love flowing to this, Linkin Park's answer to pop anthems.
8. FIGURE.09 (A-) At this point in the CD we are hearing a blend of what we've heard, and never heard before. This is good.
9. BREAKING THE HABIT (B+) What is this?! It's super funky?! It's mellow?! It works!
10. FROM THE INSIDE (A-) I'm feeling alienated from this disc. I can't tell this one from the three before it. Yay for screaming bridges!
11. NOBODY'S LISTENING (A) Straight rap. Hated it at first. But I still couldn't get those "eastern" flutes out of my head. Now a fave, and good for break-dancing battles.
12. SESSION (C) Yes, Mr Hahn is talented- No, we don't care.
13. NUMB (A+) Redeams the whole album. One of the best songs I've ever heard. Makes me cry- almost.

I am an older fan, being over 40. I have a fairly ecclectic taste in music and generally I can find something I like in almost any genre. I am not big on old style country music or rap music, but other than that I have favorites in just about every music style.

To me a good album is one where you don't feel like you have to skip songs because you just can't stand them. There are very few albums that are chock full of good songs. Most have one to three songs that I like and the rest of the album ranges from bad to aweful.

Having said all that I have to say that this album is fantastic! There is only one song that is merely good, and the rest are very well done. You can tell that more than one of the band members like to engineer as much as play. I find it interesting that the soul of the band are the two engineers (Shinoda and Hahn) that met each other in art school. I think that says alot about what this band is about. They love what they are doing and it comes through in their music.

Despite the heaviness of the guitar-work in most of the songs, it is one of the cleanest and most precise sounding albums I have ever heard. The lyrics are probably meaningful to the younger crowd, but they are well thought out. The songs are different enough from each other to stay fresh and they are all very melodic and energy filled. Many of the songs are filled with in your face power and several are quieter and more thought provoking. The players in the band are maturing with life experience and it is showing in the feel of the songs.

It is a great sophmore effort and I can't wait to see what comes out of the next studio collaboration.

I enjoyed this album better than 'Hybrid Theory'. Its a short CD with 13 songs and goes for 47 mins or there abouts. But it has many great songs layered in their successful blending of rock with rap and comes out with a good effort. This is the enhanced CD version that comes out with great multimedia content. The video of 'Somewhere I Belong' was the highlight and shinoda has a great voice almost reminiscent of Aaron Lewis from Staind.

The hit song from this album became and for good reason, 'Somewhere I Belong', it shows Linkin Park at their full potential with gritty lyrics and a delivery that is amazing. My other favourite songs from this album were 'Faint', 'Breaking the Habit' and 'Sessions'. Sessions is one of the better instrumental songs I have come across recently.

First let me start off saying Linkin Park is a truly awesome and unique band. But as I've been looking over everyone else's reviews on both Meteora and Hybrid Theory, people confuse Linkin Park with so many genre's. It's either "If you want REAL pop rock get Justin Timberlake" or "If you want REAL rock get Alice in Chains," or "If you want REAL hip hop get 2pac".
Wake up, LP isn't just one genre. It's a mixture of all of those above plus the synthesizers used frequently. I guess because this is one of the only bands to combine all of these, not many like it.
It's either the rap fans hating the screaming/rock to it, or the rock fans hating the rapping part. And to those who think they're too much like Justin Timberlake, lets try hearing JT with his high squeaky voice belt out those songs.
And as for sounding too much like Limp Bizkit, try giving Fred Durst a dictionary and see if he can actually think up half decent lyrics without using the "F" word every other line, so that you actually have an idea what he's singing about in the first place.
This band is all about opinion, on whether or not you like changes or appreciate many different types of music. You got to appreciate many types of instrumentals and vocals to appreciate LP. Sure it takes some gettng used to, but dare to be different. Too many bands have the same music lately, don't you want to hear something unique and different for once? LP is just what your looking for then. Try it, you might enjoy what you hear.

This is Linkin Park's third full length album, but it's only the second one that features new material. That is to say, Park fans have been waiting a long time for this CD. Does it live up to the hype? Let's look at the CD Track by track...

1. Foreward: It's about 10 seconds of nothing. A beat that gets progressively faster with a glass shattering sound. Whoopdeedo.

2. Don't Stay: A heavy guitar combined with excellent sratches makes a good, rage-filled opening.

3. Somewhere I Belong: This is the first radio single. It's a bit slower then most LP songs, but that doesn't take away from the music. Excellent rapping by Mike.

4. Lying From You: Probably the worst song on the CD. Brad's guitar doesn't go anywhere special; and the backround loop gets a little annoying. Fortunatly, the chorus doesn't include it.

5. Hit the Floor: A good old angry song. Mike raps espcially fast, and Chester screams espcially loud.

6. Easier to Run: The boys bring it down a bit. Chester does the singing. Really nice, harmonical sampling.

7. Faint: A strange loop comes in at the beginning, but Brad does some nice guitar work to match the loop exactly. Put together nicely, includes a screaming bridge.

8. Figure.09: This is one of those songs that only LP fans will like. Nothing special, but a good song none the less.

9. Breaking the Habit: The CD booklett says this song took 6 years to finally complete. It shadows the eariler 'Eaiser to Run', with Chester singing the majority of the song. Magestic.

10. From the Inside: Again, only a song LP fans will enjoy. Nothing really special, except it's in 6/8 time.

11. Nobody's Listening: A Japanese flute humms in the backround while Mike raps about the band. It's not bad, but most people will probably skip the track.

12. Session: Meteora's answer to Hybrid Theory's 'Cure for the Itch'. Except insead of Joe, Mike takes his turn in the studio. Apparently, says the Booklett, it sounded unfinished until Pheonix, Joe, and Rob put some stuff in it. A nice turntable solo at the end, but it's not as good as 'Cure'.

13. Numb: Arguably the best song on the CD. Numb reminds one of 'Pushing me Away' from Hybrid Theory. A nice piano chimes in the back while Chester sings. Mike provides little backround rapping. It all comes together.

All in all, Meterora sounds like Linkin Park. They've defined their own sound. If you didn't like Hybrid Theory, then Meteora is not for you. If you like LP's distinct sound, then pick up Meteora it's incredible.

This album simply defies the laws of music. Hybrid Theory proved to be an incredible debut album, and somehow, Linkin Park has followed it with an album of even more incredible sound. Meteora bears a resemblance to Hybrid Theory in some of the song structure, but when you break down the album song by song, you can see why Meteora is vastly superior to its predecessor.

1. Foreward: This track is merely a 13 second intro, but the beat blends perfectly into the second track.
2. Don't Stay: 9/10 alone; 10/10 with Forward intro. This song proves to have some similarities with One Step Closer, but the song is refined to an extraordinary amount. The layers of multiple sound make this song one of the best on the CD.
3. Somewhere I Belong: 10/10. The first single, Somewhere I Belong, is a standout on the album. It contains much more melody and lyrical poetry than any of the songs on Hybrid Theory except for In the End (That song is God). Somewhere I Belong is a clear sign of LP's foreward progression.
4. Lying From You: 10/10. This song is a perfect blend of the three elements that make up LP: Rock, Hip-Hop, and Electronica. The song has an electronic bounce with a hip-hop beat, and Brad chimes in typically incredible guitar riffs. Amazing!
5. Hit the Floor: 7/10. Not a bad song, but the sound seems relatively underdeveloped compared to the first three. Reguardless, it is not nearly bad enough to hinder the album.
6: Easier to Run: 8/10. Another standout track, Easier to Run, is very melodic and harmonious. It is fitted with somewhat of a dark feeling that makes the entire song unique.
7: Faint: 10/10. Anoth single, Faint, is arguably the best song on the album. The pace is fast, the rap is swift, and the chorus is elevating. This song is essentially a perfect alternative rock song.
8: Figure .09: 8/10. This track is quite good, but, like Hit the Floor, this song seems somewhat underdeveloped. It still sounds good, but it can't compete with some of the other songs on the album.
9: Breaking the Habit: 10/10. Any and all knowledge of Linkin Park's initial sound should be thrown out the window before listening to this incredible song. It simply blows listeners away with its excellent lyrics and profound melody. This song is perhaps the most intriguing song on Meteora.
10: From the Inside: 7/10. My least favorite song, From the Inside, just lacks melody to me. It may possess good lyrics, but other parts just don't flow properly.
11: Nobody's Listening: 10/10. This song is pretty sweet. It uses a flute for the base sound, and Mike's signature rap just carries this song. Chester's addition in the chorus doesn't hurt either.
12: Session: 9/10. An incredible instrumental, Session, may not be as good as Cure for the Itch, but it has a certain dark atmosphere to it that makes it very listenable and almost danceable.
13: Numb: 10/10. I don't see how anyone could dislike this song. It has such intricate melody and great vocals. This is great song to use for the conclusion.

All in all, this is a must for all: LP fans, modern rock lovers, and music lovers. This album runs at a tight 36:41, but you will listen to this album dozens of times. I sure have. Besides, it's quality, not quantity. This album is a perfect 36:41, and the songs flow smoothly from one track to another. Purchase of this CD is not just recommended, it is demanded!

This CD will be familiar territory if you loved the first CD. If you didn't like it, or got tired of the original songs really fast, you won't like this.

Now, to go into my description of the words "familiar territory." A friend told me it sounded exactly like the first one, and he's right in the respect that "Numb" sounds a lot like "Pushing Me Away." I think he was disillusioned by the fact that Linkin Park has a hugely distinct sound, and anything they do will sound like they've always sounded. He mentioned that the CD had the "same beats and riffs" but I strongly disagree with that. Perhaps the same beats, but how many different tempos can you arrange? All of Linkin Park's songs have a darkness, half-insanity edge to them, and there's no way to avoid that.

I've also been told that for the amount of time they were given to put out a new CD, the shortness of the CD is unacceptable. I know this is not relevant to the CD itself, but it may help console those who are bitter. If you buy the limited edition, the CD will be accompanied with a DVD called "The Making of Meteora." This shows the time and work put into each song, including the 6 years in-the-making that "Breaking the Habit" went through. I hope this will help those who think the CD is too short realize how confused they are.

Personally, I love this CD. I still love the old one. If you don't like their sound, you won't like this CD. But I strongly recommend it, and it will remain up with Hybrid Theory and Reanimation as my top CDs. The songs remain on the same level as older ones, and indeed have the same style. That's Linkin Park style, man.