For years, the idea of a Linkin Park without Chester Bennington seemed unfathomable. When the singer with the titanic voice and breathtaking emotional range passed away in 2017 at the age of 41, the band had just released their seventh studio album, One More Light, two months earlier, and the sorrowful pop album became what amounted to a swan song for one of the best-selling rock acts of the 21st century. Years passed, early albums were reissued, cutting-room-floor tracks were scavenged — but for all intents and purposes, Linkin Park had finished.
And then in September 2024, they roared back with stunning vitality.
With new co-vocalist Emily Armstrong and drummer/co-producer Colin Brittain in the fold, guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave “Phoenix” Farrell, turntablist/producer Joseph Hahn and singer/rapper/producer/sonic architect Mike Shinoda revived their once-mighty band, with arena shows that included their many hit singles and hints at what a next era could become. While longtime supporters will likely (understandably) approach new album From Zero with hesitancy and a range of feelings, Linkin Park have proven time and again that they deserve to have their creative instincts trusted.
Throughout their run with Bennington, the band changed its sound from its rap-rock beginnings, explored new sonic ideas and often presented rewarding full-lengths that harnessed the boundaries of their aesthetic. Now with Armstrong’s voice front and center, Linkin Park use From Zero (a play on their pre-Linkin Park band, Xero) to press the restart button and let their artistry roam into new, often thrilling territory.
This was always the upside of bringing in a new vocalist that wasn’t simply a Bennington impersonator: Armstrong, formerly the singer of Dead Sara, can scream with towering fury and croon with fragile beauty in a way that recalls Bennington at times, but she brings different musical sensibilities and a singular point of view to the band’s palette, her wrath more pronounced and her melancholy finely drawn. Shinoda, who’s spent the past half-decade developing his voice as a solo artist and producer, sounds reinvigorated working in a band setting once again, and raps, sings and occasionally yells with an urgency that suggests that he understands how unique this new chance can be.
Fans of different eras of Linkin Park will find favorite moments on From Zero — A Thousand Suns supporters will adore the woozy “Overflow,” for instance, while Meteora diehards will wrap their arms around the breakneck speeds of “Heavy is the Crown” and “Two Faced.” Yet on the whole, From Zero imagines a new beginning for one of the biggest bands of the past few decades in a way that any fan can appreciate. Most of us never thought we’d be pressing play on a new Linkin Park album. In that sense, From Zero is a gift that sounds as special as it deserves to be.
While there may be no skippable tracks on the new album, here is a humble, preliminary opinion on the best songs on Linkin Park’s From Zero.
