Linkin Park – Toyota Center – Houston, TX February 26, 2004
Concert Reviews
1 Comment
Written by Jesse Flores
Feb 26, 2004 at 08:00 PM
ImageLinkin Park is tired. Not from touring or playing, they’re just tired in general. The music is so formulated and predictable; every rap, every chorus line, every sample from the DJ, every lick from the guitarist, every fill from the drummer… everything can be foreseen. Even if you’re hearing the songs for the first time. It’s sickening. This formula worked for Hybrid Theory, but only because it was their debut album and no one had heard this type of sound before. With their follow up, Meteora, they practically tried to recreate the first album. They didn’t branch off and try anything new. They stuck with the same formula’s, right down to the intro’s, pre-chorus’, vocal lines and chord progressions. Meteora should have been titled “Hybrid Theory II.” Where Linkin Park is at right now, is beyond boring. And it bleeds through with their live show.They opened the show with the third song off of Hybrid Theory, “Without You,” which is actually a good song. It’s explosive, heavy, and it has great vocal lines from Chester Bennington (the best part about the band, without him, they wouldn’t amount to jack shit). They would go on to play about five songs from Hybrid Theory before even touching the material from Meteora. This was a good thing.

Well, sort of. After they started mixing in the new songs with the old songs, the show went downhill. There was simply just zero energy radiating from them when they played the new stuff.

Watching the band perform, I felt as if they were literally trying to have fun. Imagine that. Thousands of people there to see them, and they have to try to have fun. They seemed uninspired. The entire show, they looked as if they were just running through the motions.

Rock stardom should not be a routine. When it has comes to this, either make a huge change or get out.

The saddest part of the show was when Bennington surprisingly picked up the guitar. He was so stiff. Never moved a muscle. His eyes never left the neck of the guitar where his fingers held the chords he was playing. He came off as a complete amateur. I don’t know how long he’s been playing guitar, but it seems to me that it would never be a good thing, if you’re just learning, to get on stage in front of thousands of people and choke (stick with the vocals).

The show dragged. The best performance of the night was during the encore. They played a song called “My December,” which isn’t on either of their albums (it might be on that damn re-mix album they made of Hybrid Theory, but I wouldn\’t know because I never bought it… it just wasn’t worth it). The song showcases Bennington singing softly over a slow, well constructed song with light drums and piano.

It was almost beautiful. They should have ended the show right there. But the song would only be sadly forgotten when predictably, they finished with “One Step Closer.”