Jobie Reviews Music 77: Meteora (album) by Linkin Park
- ChemicalSkylines
- Apr 4, 2021
- 3 min read
Meteora is a 2003 nu metal album by the band Linkin Park. It spans 13 tracks, totaling 36 minutes of music. The album’s lyrics focus on anxiety, depression, anger, and other negative emotions. This can be seen in the amazing vocals that Chester Bennington delivers on this album, which channel the emotions brought forth by the lyrical themes.
Aside from that, this album has plenty of moments where it gets to shine. Linkin Park has gone on record to say that the main focus of the album’s composition was to make everything sound unique. You can definitely feel this in the composition and overall feel of the tracks on this album, with some tracks having a feel which no other album has. Such with the track “Nobody’s Listening”, which incorporates a sample of a Japanese bamboo flute into its instrumentation. Overall, some really unique stuff is packed into this album.
Something that I’ve yet to elaborate on in this review are the powerful vocals that Chester Bennington delivered on this album. Not only do they enhance the instrumentation, which would be good on its own, but they make the song. Without the vocals, these tracks just wouldn’t be the same. You really can’t go wrong with the emotionally charged vocals on this album, which range from less aggressive vocals to full on screaming vocals (see the track “Session” to fully get what I mean). This album also includes raps done by Michael “Mike” Shinoda, which, even though I’m not a huge rap fanatic, don’t subtract to the greatness of the album. They seem to blend right in with the vocals done by Bennington, and never feel out of place.
With a wide variety of elements that make this album great, it’s no surprise that it did very well back when it first released. It sold millions of copies, and is one of the best selling albums of this century. This, as can be inferred by what I’ve said thus far in the review, is not undeserved in the slightest. The band’s dedication to making this album is incredible, with the album taking an entire year to record. Several takes were cut from multiple songs in the album, and the end result reflects the band’s perfect composition of the tracks.
But of course, we can’t talk about Meteora without addressing the track. Yes, that one. The absolute staple of the album. The song that you probably recognize without even having listened to the album. That’s right, I’m talking about “Numb”. “Numb” is a masterfully done nu metal track with a thick instrumentation and incredibly done vocals which make the song, on its own, a solid 10/10. It’s one of the must-listen to tracks of the entire album, being one of the album’s stronger songs. For this reason, it’s no wonder that it’s one of the most recognizable tracks in the music world in general. Definitely listen to it if you want to get a feel for how the rest of the album sounds.
Some of my favorite tracks from this album include “Numb”, “Breaking the Habit”, and “From the Inside”.
Overall, Linkin Park delivers a unique, powerful sound which is a must-listen for the unique feel and tone of the album alone. The vocals, instrumentation, and overall composition of the tracks on this album make it a high quality album. Even 18 years later, Linkin Park’s Meteora is still a great listen all around. Incredible.
Overall rating:
9.5/10
LINK TO ALBUM:
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