Hit Parader - April 2001
Set To Explode!
Linkin Park
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Life is a whirlwind for the members of Linkin Park. Their debut album, Hybrid Theory, was released only a few months ago, yet that disc's immediate and overwhelming acceptance by the rock and roll masses has already changed the lives of vocalists Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda, guitarist Brad Delson, drummer Rob Bourdon and samplemaster Joseph Hahn. Thanks to songs like One Step Closer and A Place For My Head, Linkin Park are well past platinum, and they've already toured Europe - twice. Not bad for a bunch of So Cal kids who are still getting used to the notion that they are rock and roll stars. When we caught up with guitarist Delson, he was stranded in New York, a victim of circumstance.
Brad:We were all in New York. Now I'm alone in New York. The band flew home yesterday. We were here to do Conan O'Brien Show, and I got some kind of ear infection in Europe. My ear was bothering me when we flew to New York and I was told I couldn't fly to LA until my ears cleared up.
Hit Parader:Well, at least this gives us a chance to learn what's uo with the band. How was Europe?
Brad:It was the first time any of us had been to Europe. That was veyr intense. We were only there for a week, and we tried to pack in a month's worth of stuff. We did these showcases. We went to three countries - France, Germany and England. We played in Paris, Hamburg and London, and we filled the rest of our time there with as much press as we could get done.
HP:What was the highlight?
Brad:The Highlight for me was our show in London. It was a magazine sponsored show at King's College. All the kids were diehard Linkin Park fans, so it was really cool gig to play.
HP:Are you surprised at how quickly you've achieved success?
Brad:It's not even surprise, it's shock. I can't even really process it. It's like, "We got certified platinum, oh cool!" I didn't even have a reaction. How do you even begin to think about something like that? It's just so bizarre to me! But believe me, we're not complaining!
HP:What has been the most surprising thing to happen to you this far?
Brad:The most surprising thing to happen to us has been Europe. It's amazing that we could go to another continent, on which we've never stood before, and play a show to a sold-out audience who know all the words to songs we wrote a year ago here in the United States. Like, how does that happen? How do these kids know my name? I've never met them before! It's so surprising how quickly our music has spread all around the world in such a short amount of time.
HP:Do you think having two vocalists makes you unique?
Brad:Good Question. There are other bands that have two vocalists, 311 are a good example, so it's not something entirely new. But it differenciates us. Also our two guys - Mike and Chester - collaborate on everything together, their lyrics, their delivery, and their presentation. Linkin Park is the hybrid theory - combinign different elements together - Like hip-hop, electronic and heavy alternative music. Our two vocalists embody that concept. They're combinign from two different backgrounds and what you hear vocally on the record is theyr hybrd theory - their collaboration and their cooperation. That's what makes this album exceptional.
HP:And that's why you call the album Hybrid Theory?
Brad:Hybrid Theory was the original name of the band. The term was first used to describe the kind of music we were playing, but it's come to mean alot of different things for us. Like on the cover of the record, Mike designed the soldier with butterfly wings. What that embodies visually is the concept of the soldier, which is a forceful, violent image, with wings, which are very delacate and vulnerable. On our album we played very aggressive at times, but we also wrote melodies that are really beautiful, so that's another interpretation of Hybrid Theory.
HP:You guys have done a great job getting exposure - youve been on movie sound tracks, gotten on MTV, your early career has been very well masterminded. Who is responcible for that?
BradWe have alot of great people working on our team. From our management, to our record company, our attourney, our business manager. Really, there are a whole team of people around us, helping us to run Linkin Park. But, keep in mind we were signed to Warner Bros before we even brought on a manager. The focus and the vision of Linkin Park comes from withing the band. We started doing our music for fun, just as freinds in Mike's bedroom. We didnt even plan on being a band but eventually we got a publishing deal and things just started to happen. When we realised this was more than just a hobby, we decided - just like everything else that you really are passionate about- let's do the best job that we can. That doesn't mean we don't make mistakes, we're obviously learning, but we wanted to pay attention to people and read up on stuff and really take an active roll in not just our creative life, but also our business life. When you relinquish too much control to other people, they can really pervert and destroy your goals and your artistic vision, so it is important to have your business life in order.
HP:How do you like the multimedia approach to making music?
Brad:Mike Shinoda and Joe Hahn met at an art center in Pasadena, a very prestigious art school, and theyr'e extremely talented. I did art in high school, and Chester has done painting so we're very visually oriented guys. Our visual presentation isn't something we think of after the fact; we're concious from the get-go of what we can do visually to broaden what Linkin Park means to people. When You create visual elements you want them to stick in people's heads. You want them to work cohesively with your vision musically so that everything is unified and elements aren't fighing with each other. We look forward to anything we do visually.
HP:Like you headlining tour?
Brad:Our first headlining tour was increadible. It's the first time we were able to put on a Linkin Park show and not just be an opening element in someone else's show. We treid to integrate everything Linkin Park is about into a live setting. We had the soldier backdrop as well as some other visual elements that Mike and Joe had created. We took out taproot and the LA rap group called Styles of Beyond. Thye were signed by the Dyst Brothers label. Thye are freinds of ours that are extremely talented and progressive MCs.People were really stoked to see them.
HP:What would you like to happen next?
Brad:I would like this album to be a really secure introduction to the world - not just the US. We want the world to know who we are and what we're trying to to do creatively. We want them to understand our vision. So I hope this album will clearly establish a foundation for our blend of different musical elements. And at the same time we do that, we wat to have a lot of fun, show a positive attitude and have a close relationship with our core fanbase. That's what we focus on at shows, meeting people and talking to the fans. We're not about being rock stars - we're about sharing with people.
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