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First, the rumors in the hallway, then a fake countdown on the band's social media, which ultimately led to nothing. A few days of silence and then the news: Linkin Park is back.
Seven long years have passed, during which the band remained silent, immersed in the memory of Chester Bennington. A memory that came to life with the release of the box set for the twentieth anniversary first of "Hybrid Theory", the historic debut album and best-seller, then of "Meteora", the second release from 2003, accompanied by some b-sides that were kept archived at the time.
The band from Agoura Hills, California, returns partially reworked after the departure of Rob Bourdon, drummer and co-founder (who decided not to continue the journey without Bennington), replaced by Colin Brittain, who is also a songwriter and producer (Papa Roach, Dashboard Confessional, Basement). Just a few hours ago, it also became official that Brad Delson, also a founder, would leave, but only in the live dimension, replaced on stage by Alex Feder. Delson will handle all the backstage work, thus continuing to be part of the lineup. Remaining firmly in their positions are Mike Shinoda, the mind and spokesperson of the project, Joe Han, and Dave "Phoenix" Farrell.
But the real revolution comes behind the microphone that once belonged to Chester Bennington, with the arrival of Emily Armstrong, leader and founder of the "Dead Sara", an alternative rock band also from the City of Angels.
It had already been rumored for some time that Mike Shinoda and company were considering a female voice, to more or less appropriately cope with the loss of Bennington's powerful and unique timbre. Several hypotheses had been considered in recent months. Among the names mentioned were Amy Lee (Evanescence) and Lzzy Hale (Halestorm), with increasing odds for the latter, given that just a few days earlier Hale had released a studio video showing her performing a personal piano version of "Crawling".
All a pleasant hoax, even if it's not coincidental that Emily Armstrong's vocal cords convincingly remind one of the Halestorm frontwoman's.
Choosing a woman was an interesting decision with a relative degree of risk. A female timbre cannot be completely equated to a male one and, in this case, cannot be compared to one of the most iconic voices of rock in the last twenty years. But it can bring quality, melody, and power, thereby being useful to the cause.
Beyond any consideration, the test, for now, seems to have been convincingly passed.
During a surprising live streaming held at the Red Studios in Hollywood, in front of a few hundred lucky people, the new single "The Emptiness Machine" was unveiled, and the release date of a brand-new album, "From Zero" (slated for November 15), was announced, accompanied by the imminent "From Zero World Tour", initially covering five cities across the United States and Europe.
In an hour of performance, with a bit of emotion, Emily showed everyone what she's made of. On stage, there was a bit of rust, given the band's long absence, but after a couple of tracks, the planets aligned.
Armstrong's voice, who is not a novice of the last minute, having twenty years of career behind her, while scratching, comes very close to Chester's aggressive scream. It becomes apparent during the performance of historic pieces, with a nu-metal origin and offspring of the period when they became absolute protagonists of the scene.
"The Emptiness Machine", with its compositional simplicity, encapsulates Linkin Park's trademark and paves the way for the new vocal approach. The timid singing of Shinoda slowly rolls out the red carpet and welcomes the voice of the new frontwoman, initially vibrant, then aggressive and engaging on the refrains. Mr. Han's plates and synthesizers are not lacking, and the chorus of the first and second voice creates a blend that reaches our ears as something unprecedented.
The snare drum and riffs make the notes flow quickly, and by the end of the piece, we can't help but be convinced of what we've heard.
Without prejudices, speculations, waves of nostalgia, even on the first listen, we can give more than one opportunity to this project.
It's year zero, as the title of the new album will remind us, which by assonance also wants to remind us that everything began with "Xero", then "Hybrid Theory" in its embryonic stage, before becoming "Linkin Park".
As Mike Shinoda declared, the new path wants to celebrate the origins, recalling where it all started, while winking towards the future. We start from zero, once again, to try to reach one hundred as soon as possible.
Emily Armstrong said she does not want to replace Chester Bennington; her goal is to make him proud. It's hard to think he isn't already.
For everything else, as often happens in life, we will have to trust time. But we know, a good start…
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