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.


Is this their second album of PERFECTION?   May 9, 2003
 62 out of 68 found this review helpful

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


Give this band some credit.   November 17, 2003
 54 out of 80 found this review helpful

Some of the Linkin Park reviews on this website are ludacris. Linkin Park has a sound all their own. Chester's vocals are amazing, and Mike has a distinct rap style. To compare this band to Limp Bizkit is idiotic. Limp Bizkit has the worst singer/rapper in the biz. Fred Durst cannot hold a candle to Chester Bennington. Chester Bennington's vocals remind me of the young James Hetfeild from Metallica. Even though the songs are short, they are all trememdous pieces of art. The guitar riffs are not plain, and a person has to be extremely talented to play their music. This band is probably the most talented rock band right now. This band deserves more credit than they are getting on this website!


!!!!   May 21, 2003
 45 out of 73 found this review helpful

Ah, Linkin Park. After their long and respected career that has so far consisted of an album and their remix album, Linkin Park returns to us with Meteora, a majestic opus that lasts a breathtaking 36 minutes, leaving the listener in awe at how this incredible group could have packed so much music on just one cd.

The album starts out strongly with Foreword, which consists of some random noises that only add to the staggering length of
this album. Foreword smoothly transforms into the first "real song," Don't Stay. After the incredible talents of "Phoenix" and the guy who always wears earmuffs in his videos, Chester mourns soulfully. A few seconds later... uh oh, what happened here? Chester is ANGRY. Open about his teen angst, Chester screams about his broken relationship with his mother, presumably about how she forgot his birthday party.

The next track, Somewhere I Belong, turns up the angst full volume. It starts with some sound effects courtesy of the DJ and

some beautiful piano a la "In The End." There's the standard nu metal riffage for a few seconds, and the rapper comes in, with
Chester wailing ocasionally, like a girl, about how confused he is.

Somewhere I Belong is a track that illustrates one of the things I love most about Linkin Park: BEAUTIFUL PIANO. The beautiful piano piece found here is incredible, the work of someone who has played countless years. However, I can't help but wonder : who is this pianist, this genius, this modern-day Chopin? My money is on Chester. It seems fit that Chester, who aside from being a vocalist extraordinaire, is also a gifted musician.

While the rest of the album is equally a tour de force, the last two tracks deserve special mention. On track 12, the mystery
pianist we met on Somewhere I Belong is back to blow minds as he resumes his position on this two minute epic, easily one of
the most complex instrumentals of all time. Thankfully, he sticks around for the last track, Numb. Numb ends Meteora in all
Linkin Park's splendor. Chester doing his best Justin Timberlake imitation. The expert pianist at his finest, playing a piano piece with such depth and complexity that it only rivals a one-handed Mary Had A Little Lamb. The drummer pounding his drum kit so fast it has to be heard to be believed. The guitarist showing us that he is truly the Jimi Hendrix of our generation.

Beautiful.


Linkin Park Raises the Bar of Perfection Even Higher   September 28, 2003
 43 out of 56 found this review helpful

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!