Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Will T on September 23, 2010 at 10:36am

There is a huge difference between matured and just totally awful. This by far awful. Ladies and Gentlemen everyone has opinions for sure. However if you examine the deepness of this album, they tried to totally reinvent, That is great as the artist, but to the fans it can really suck. Yes some say "They are great in whatever they do" unfortunatly that is not the case. It is truelly one of the worst albums I have bought in a long time. Yes you can go outside of the box but don't forget what got you there. My sons and I listened to each song just hoping for 1 second the next would get better. It never happened. By the end our jaws were on the floor marveling at how absolutly horrible it was. Its hard to recover from suck albums "ask Bon Jovi" . But LP is a great band we will see how they do next go around.

Permalink Reply by Mark on September 23, 2010 at 11:35am

I think that while LP might enjoy working with Rubin, they should get another producer next time around.

Dorothy Frap said:

I agree with Dominique, just because people claim to be hardcore fans of LP doesn't mean only those that are, are the ones who like this album. I AM a hardcore LP fan, been promoting them since the early days, been following them online through their various social networks, one being LPC and meeting people who have a strong desire towards LP music. Saying that I don't respect LP just because I don't like this album is unfair. However if you want me to give a constructive criticism with “eloquence” then I will.

Their music has drastically changed, I don't like the new pop feel to it, it dilutes LP's sound and brand. I've passed the album on to many people who I know have loved LP since Hybrid Theory when it was just a theory and most of those people find ATS "different, yet boring". To put it into a simple context, my mum even finds the album different and she is one person who I know detests LP through and through, for her to make a comment like that I know there's something wrong here. The Catalyst only reached number 40 here in the UK Official Top 40 Chart - doesn't this show something??? I'll give one positive feedback and that is about 2 to 3 tracks on the album sound like the LP we all know. The rest sound like stuff U2, Green Day, Depeche Mode would do....NOT LP. Why should they become mainstream when they have an incredibly strong fanbase derived from their originality? Give me one thing that makes this album great. Tell me why this album should have a prime spot next to Hybrid Theory and Meteora. Name it. Because I'm telling you, I've listened to this album over 50 times now in the past week trying to see if there is anything more to like than the few I agreed with from the start, and found nothing more. The album doesn't flow from start to finish. It has a powerful start but a lousy end. The theme of A Thousand Suns, war and atomic bombs is such an overwhelming concept yet the album struggles from track to track to depict this. Some tracks like Iridescent are so bland, it's like sucking out the life out of old tracks like Crawling - we all know LP are renowned for portraying the deepest of emotions in tracks and why a range of people know them and like them. ATS has a whole range of genres rather than sticking to one or two. It has too many interludes, some being relatively pointless. The acoustic at the end is Chester and not LP. The instrumentals on When They Come For Me are nice and different but the lyrics from Mike are dreadful. To highlight a few: "try to catch up motherf*ckers" is an appalling comeback and "I am not a robot, I am not a monkey, I won't dance even if the beats funky" is poor coming from a lyricist who has been praised for his brilliance on High Voltage and Forgotten - many fans who write have idolised Mike for this. Furthermore, where are Brad, Hahn and Rob in most of the ATS tracks?

I don't know if it's because LP were on a tight budget, they didn't have enough time (though 3 years is surely enough), they couldn't focus on this album as much as the others or having R Rubin co-producing was a mistake. Whatever the reason may be, this album seems rushed, out of character and mish-mashed, doesn't reflect the theme as well it should do and is not the LP I know and thoroughly love.

There is my view, plain and simple. So try to back up your views with some clout too.

Dominique Decourt said:

It's not just the album that sounds terrible, it's the past 2 albums that have steadily gone from slightly bad, to bad, to just plain awful. A lot of people aren't just basing their dislike for the band on one album (because the last 2 sure haven't given anything memorable) , they're saying that this is the album that finally killed it for them. Now if you think it's sounds great then that's your opinion and your entitled to it, but I'm sure 97% of LP fans agree that this album is their worst.

Brendon Henderson said:

So since the album doesn't appeal to you it sucks? Are you like 10 years old? If your going to criticize something then base it on something rather then, "its not your style." Furthermore. Your in no position to say what "is" and what "isnt" Linkin Park because you are not a member of the band.
Jordy said:

Bro Sean B jump off LPs ****. Yea everyone on this website obviously likes them but their new album sucks. I started likin rock cuz of LP cuz it was my style. The new album is not them

Sean B said:

I think that you are all ridiculous. Linkin Park doesn't have to make music catered to you, and I'm glad that they don't, because all you seem to want is the same thing over and over again from them. If you want the same music go listen to the same cds. Yeah their old stuff was amazing, still is amazing, but you can definitely tell that their music has matured, and I think it's refreshing. Besides, why do you have to be so critical? "Garbage I've Ever Heard"??????? I'm sure you've heard worse music. And even if not a simple "Not for me" or "Not my style" would suffice. I'm sure you wouldn't like it if you were in their position and someone told you how much you suck (in their opinion). So yeah... calm down a bit will ya?

Permalink Reply by Lode Jersiebe on September 23, 2010 at 12:34pm

Lol... ?? Are you guys real fans, or just some metal lovers knew Linkin Park as some hard rock band?
The new album isn't bad... It's just not your taste? ... And of course, don't waste your money on something you don't want to listen to. :s But it looks like a lot of people are loving it...

Anyway, you just don't want the hole lp trip, just some of their music.. isn't wrong.
But the way you told this in this post is kind of rude... :s "Wasted 10 seconds to put it together?" WTf?
I am a musician by myself, and I can't unerstnd how it's posible to make this kind of music...
This album is the most difficult thing they did until now. MTM was for them difficult(but in fact it's easy to come up with, just recording was a little difficult.) HT and meteora was difficult to come up with it and difficult to record. but this ATS is really experimental... It's open minded... anyway, this Ats will be the mostdifficult thing to bring live and to my opnium I don't think they can do that 100% perecty, Their old songs will be better on stage... (I think.) right now, I'mjust hoping they are getting it together and proovemeI am wrong. :d

Permalink Reply by Lode Jersiebe on September 23, 2010 at 12:38pm

97% of LP fans agree that this album is their worst. ... Uhu, ut those97% will go to their live shows where they play live songs and the 97% new fans that are coming who love the new music will goto the live shows to... morepeople in front of stage... nice to know i am just in the 3 % that still is in love with the band's music.... No i feel special.

Mark said:

I think that while LP might enjoy working with Rubin, they should get another producer next time around.

Dorothy Frap said:

I agree with Dominique, just because people claim to be hardcore fans of LP doesn't mean only those that are, are the ones who like this album. I AM a hardcore LP fan, been promoting them since the early days, been following them online through their various social networks, one being LPC and meeting people who have a strong desire towards LP music. Saying that I don't respect LP just because I don't like this album is unfair. However if you want me to give a constructive criticism with “eloquence” then I will.

Their music has drastically changed, I don't like the new pop feel to it, it dilutes LP's sound and brand. I've passed the album on to many people who I know have loved LP since Hybrid Theory when it was just a theory and most of those people find ATS "different, yet boring". To put it into a simple context, my mum even finds the album different and she is one person who I know detests LP through and through, for her to make a comment like that I know there's something wrong here. The Catalyst only reached number 40 here in the UK Official Top 40 Chart - doesn't this show something??? I'll give one positive feedback and that is about 2 to 3 tracks on the album sound like the LP we all know. The rest sound like stuff U2, Green Day, Depeche Mode would do....NOT LP. Why should they become mainstream when they have an incredibly strong fanbase derived from their originality? Give me one thing that makes this album great. Tell me why this album should have a prime spot next to Hybrid Theory and Meteora. Name it. Because I'm telling you, I've listened to this album over 50 times now in the past week trying to see if there is anything more to like than the few I agreed with from the start, and found nothing more. The album doesn't flow from start to finish. It has a powerful start but a lousy end. The theme of A Thousand Suns, war and atomic bombs is such an overwhelming concept yet the album struggles from track to track to depict this. Some tracks like Iridescent are so bland, it's like sucking out the life out of old tracks like Crawling - we all know LP are renowned for portraying the deepest of emotions in tracks and why a range of people know them and like them. ATS has a whole range of genres rather than sticking to one or two. It has too many interludes, some being relatively pointless. The acoustic at the end is Chester and not LP. The instrumentals on When They Come For Me are nice and different but the lyrics from Mike are dreadful. To highlight a few: "try to catch up motherf*ckers" is an appalling comeback and "I am not a robot, I am not a monkey, I won't dance even if the beats funky" is poor coming from a lyricist who has been praised for his brilliance on High Voltage and Forgotten - many fans who write have idolised Mike for this. Furthermore, where are Brad, Hahn and Rob in most of the ATS tracks?

I don't know if it's because LP were on a tight budget, they didn't have enough time (though 3 years is surely enough), they couldn't focus on this album as much as the others or having R Rubin co-producing was a mistake. Whatever the reason may be, this album seems rushed, out of character and mish-mashed, doesn't reflect the theme as well it should do and is not the LP I know and thoroughly love.

There is my view, plain and simple. So try to back up your views with some clout too.

Dominique Decourt said:

It's not just the album that sounds terrible, it's the past 2 albums that have steadily gone from slightly bad, to bad, to just plain awful. A lot of people aren't just basing their dislike for the band on one album (because the last 2 sure haven't given anything memorable) , they're saying that this is the album that finally killed it for them. Now if you think it's sounds great then that's your opinion and your entitled to it, but I'm sure 97% of LP fans agree that this album is their worst.

Brendon Henderson said:

So since the album doesn't appeal to you it sucks? Are you like 10 years old? If your going to criticize something then base it on something rather then, "its not your style." Furthermore. Your in no position to say what "is" and what "isnt" Linkin Park because you are not a member of the band.
Jordy said:

Bro Sean B jump off LPs ****. Yea everyone on this website obviously likes them but their new album sucks. I started likin rock cuz of LP cuz it was my style. The new album is not them

Sean B said:

I think that you are all ridiculous. Linkin Park doesn't have to make music catered to you, and I'm glad that they don't, because all you seem to want is the same thing over and over again from them. If you want the same music go listen to the same cds. Yeah their old stuff was amazing, still is amazing, but you can definitely tell that their music has matured, and I think it's refreshing. Besides, why do you have to be so critical? "Garbage I've Ever Heard"??????? I'm sure you've heard worse music. And even if not a simple "Not for me" or "Not my style" would suffice. I'm sure you wouldn't like it if you were in their position and someone told you how much you suck (in their opinion). So yeah... calm down a bit will ya?

Permalink Reply by Dex on September 23, 2010 at 3:33pm

I'm sorry, where did you pull those figures from, your butt?
Because I don't see 97% of people on this forum complaining, I only see about 20%.

Dominique Decourt said:

It's not just the album that sounds terrible, it's the past 2 albums that have steadily gone from slightly bad, to bad, to just plain awful. A lot of people aren't just basing their dislike for the band on one album (because the last 2 sure haven't given anything memorable) , they're saying that this is the album that finally killed it for them. Now if you think it's sounds great then that's your opinion and your entitled to it, but I'm sure 97% of LP fans agree that this album is their worst.

Permalink Reply by bourdais olivier on September 23, 2010 at 4:08pm

Hello, I'm French so excuse my English!! I am really disappointed with this album, I think that LP would have to like Green Day and make two separate albums, an album for hardcore fans because I think LP should still love this genre as their music was their originality and a more experimental album (a double album see why not). I think that there were fewer rejections of the fans and they could show another side of their musicality. Personally I was horrified this album, nothing rattled me and I arranged the first listen this album in his closet. I'll have to wait four years for a new album and I already fear the result. In short, Album daring but not reaching his goal as musically satisfying for fans. Remember that although Lp make music they like only half way and when without people to buy their album and although they may return to play in the subway. The fans love your style of music and sell an album like this one is a kind of treason against them (against us). So, LP discover your musicality does not prevent you from worrying about the fans and I think you have lost sight of AC and I find it exceedingly bad.

Permalink Reply by Charlene McAliece on September 23, 2010 at 6:11pm

just wanted to point out i was on here a few days ago mouthing off bout how i hated a thousand suns .... then when i was playin the comp i left it playing in the background on loop ..... i now LOVE a thousand suns !!! give it a chance n listen to it a good few times then see what u think !!! its defo a grower xx

Permalink Reply by Pearlyn on September 23, 2010 at 6:41pm

It's hard for those who only enjoy music but don't appreciate it to understand the strength behind ATS. As a musician, I know how easy it is to recreate a song. Give me 5 minutes and I'll recreate a song for you. But to create something totally new from scratch is the hardest thing that a musician can ever do. It goes beyond playing music. It's taking the song, ripping it apart, and creating something you've never dreamed of making. It sounds like lies, but that's exactly what it feels like to create a totally different sound.

I'm not putting down those fans who hate the new album, I'm just saying you don't understand what it's all about. Music isn't just putting as much riffs and distortion into the song. Music is an Art.

The first time I heard the catalyst, when it was pre-released, I hated it. I gave a listen once then turned it off and never listened to it again. Why did I hate it? Because I closed my mind to it. But when the album was released, I bought it, and I opened my mind and let it sink in. And I loved it. The worst thing you can do is to put something off without seriously giving it a chance.

Give them a chance, and clear your mind of all accusations you have for the album, then listen to it. If you still hate it, then at least it's an honest opinion.

Permalink Reply by zekejammah16 on September 23, 2010 at 9:01pm

man this new album is CRAP. i dont get why people say 'why do you want the same thing as the album before' meteora and ht were sick. if you pick a band because you like their sound, why the heck would you want them to change? i loved their rap/screaming/rock sound. but now it sounds like two guys took a few minutes to put a bunch of songs together. and then just recorded random crickets and people talking and called them tracks. how is there 6 people in this band? what do the other 3-4 do??? i think change is all right if its for the better, but now they suck. blackout sounds like a buy lada gaga (chorus is good but verse sounds like crap). and the rest are owl citiesh sounding songs. wretches and kings and when they come for me rocks. but everything else SUCKS it sounds like pop. screw this album

Permalink Reply by Dawn Swales on September 24, 2010 at 12:43am

I agree with you Sean here, well said x

Sean B said:

I think that you are all ridiculous. Linkin Park doesn't have to make music catered to you, and I'm glad that they don't, because all you seem to want is the same thing over and over again from them. If you want the same music go listen to the same cds. Yeah their old stuff was amazing, still is amazing, but you can definitely tell that their music has matured, and I think it's refreshing.

Besides, why do you have to be so critical? "Garbage I've Ever Heard"??????? I'm sure you've heard worse music. And even if not a simple "Not for me" or "Not my style" would suffice. I'm sure you wouldn't like it if you were in their position and someone told you how much you suck (in their opinion).

So yeah... calm down a bit will ya?

Permalink Reply by Nick Prager on September 24, 2010 at 7:14am

After reading through this thread, I thought I'd offer a critical analysis of why I have an issue with this album and my theory as to why it was made the way it was. Keep in mind that (in general) I AM NOT STATING FACTS, JUST OBSERVATIONS.

I'll state from the beginning that I'm no hardcore fan. I think this makes my view interesting though because I'm trying to be as non-partisan as possible. I LOVED Meteora as a kid and still have strong feelings for it, and I enjoy Hybrid Theory. MTM I wasn't super wowed with for several reasons, mostly being the ballad-heavy approach. It reeked of an attempt to sell albums and didn't feel genuine to me.

It may look on the surface that I'm just a ranting fan that only likes heavy music but that isn't the case. I listen to a broad spectrum of rock/metal/industrial/etc. I love a good slow song/ballad and it makes sense to write these songs. Even artists like Slipknot go soft once and awhile, it's evidence of a more complete artist. As artists get older they can tend to lose some of that testosterone-filled angst they take towards writing music; they become more methodical and emotionally evolved when expressing themselves. ALL THAT BEING SAID, here's my opinion.

I (generally) cannot stand the use of 8-bit. I feel that it's nothing but a fad, the new auto-tune. I'd be surprised to see it accepted popularly in six years, if that. I'm very disappointed in all of the 8-bit being used here. I listened to too many songs where they stripped guitar away for electronic beats and it doesn't work for me. They went too far out on a limb in trying something new. I feel that was something that made them so powerful in their early days; the effective use of guitar.

The album doesn't feel like a group effort; it feels like Shinoda, Bennington, and Hahn and session insturmentalists. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's not great, either. The "concept" of the album isn't terribly original nor does it generate new ideas or thoughts. The songs aren't horribly written or anything, they're just not enticing for me. Linkin Park aren't using unconventional song structures or anything like that, just 8-bit, electronica and much less guitar, bass, and live drumming. It feels like a club CD and I don't have much interest in any of their new elements. They come off as no longer having an edge.

MY theory on why this album was made the way it was:

-LP are so massively successful as commercial artists, they could take this risk and people would still go out in hordes to buy it. I'm pretty sure they felt so confident that people would buy anything they make just because it's something that LINKIN PARK put out. I think they tried to do too much in being different. What's sad to me is that they'll continue to be commercially successful regardless because this type of music is becoming fad. It's not necessarily the BEST music that they could be making, but it's what seems to be in demand.

-I'd have liked to see LP evolve similar to the way the Deftones have evolved over their career. Granted their careers started in different times with different tastes, but a similar style of growth is what I'd have liked to see. Deftones had two HARD hitting albums to start with, then added Frank Delgado on turntables and went in a new direction with White Pony, their most successful album commercially. From their they've found ways to go new places in their music, slowly reinventing themselves each time while still maintaining that signature Deftones sound.

-LP won't follow a Deftones-type pattern because it doesn't sell as many records. The Deftones are never and will never be commercial blockbusters. They aren't all that radio friendly. Casual/fringe listeners typically aren't drawn in by them. These are all things LP has made apparent POST-METEORA that they care about: Sales (CD's, Merch), radio play, and capturing fans that are into pop music.


OVERALL:
-Okay release on its own, but being that it's from Linkin Park, I can't help but feel very disappointed that they'd sell this like it was another album, despite even going so far as to say it isn't an album. If they truly wanted to experiment and go new places with their music then they could have gone a route similar to the route NIN went when they released Ghosts I-IV.
-Needed to tone down the 8-bit a lot. This album will sell well but I think it's become evident that a good chunk of fans are very put off at this deviation from their origins. They could have still done their "8-bit revolution" and whatnot on the album but a few more obvious guitar, bass, and live drum lines could have gone a long way in making the album more appealing and satisfying to fans who wanted the traditional sound. Everyone who's heard the first two albums knows this band can bite. there are other ways to bite other than straight up aggression and they don't seem to have it nailed down yet. That "bite", that's what I like about the band. This album feels like nibbles, but no bites. IMO.

Now start flaming my ass for any reason you want. It's okay to like the album, I'm just stating what I feel and see. But if you're too irrational to understand that then you have problems that extend beyond your distaste for me. :-D

Permalink Reply by Dorothy Frap on September 24, 2010 at 7:24am

They are artists like any other musician, their job is to satisfy you with music. They are then proned to criticism on all their works, it's how they improve, it's how they prosper, it's how they develop into something better. There have been MANY mixed views on ATS, not just on this board but everywhere. I've seen music critics disapprove of the album, I've seen some praise it - ALL of them describing the album from their perspective, every opinion being completely valid. For everyone here who is getting upset because someone doesn't like the album and then calling them "haters", you are being incredibly hypocritical. If you saw a picture of Van Gogh's painting which you REALLY disliked but someone came over and said it looked pretty and the colours were amazing would you go telling them they were wrong? No, because everyone has an opinion, everyone sees all aspects of life differently and if you can't handle that then at least have the decency to not be so offensive towards others who are only merely expressing a view. Take both sides of the argument and accept that not everyone who is a fan (whether old or new) is going to like ATS, it's a different album from usual and will therefore warrant more opinions than the other albums did. I've read everyone's argument on this message board on the album whether positive or negative and have NEVER said to any of you that you are less/more of a fan or used abusive language against you. You are just as much in the right to have an opinion as I do. And you know what? I would actually like every one of you to explain to me maturely why you like this album, as I believe your opinion could enlighten me.

Dawn Swales said:

I agree with you Sean here, well said x

Sean B said:

I'm sure you wouldn't like it if you were in their position and someone told you how much you suck (in their opinion).

So yeah... calm down a bit will ya?

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