Qwerty: Eleven Years Later

Discussion in 'Linkin Park Chat' started by Virgocore, Jun 29, 2017.

  1. #1
    Virgocore

    Virgocore Well-Known Member

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    This upcoming August, it will have been 11 years since we first heard Qwerty, when it was debuted live in Japan. I was listening to the song today, both the live version and the studio version, both included on LP Underground 6, and I was wondering what other fans thought of the song today. I remember when it first surfaced, the fanbase was going crazy. I've always thought of it more as Meteora era track as opposed to a Minutes To Midnight era track just because it has a very similar sound to Meteora and also because it was played live in between album cycles. It's probably the heaviest sounding song that the band has ever released. I still love it to this day. What do you guys think about it?
     
  2. #2
    Blake

    Blake Leave a Trace LPA Super Member

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    Qwerty is one of my all time favorite demos from Linkin Park. I think the live version is better the studio version and I definitely view it as a Minutes to Midnight track. It definitely fits with the original vision of Minutes to Midnight.

    Just look at Across the Line, Given Up, No More Sorrow, Bleed It Out, Asbestos. Qwerty definitely fits with those 5 songs and if you re-track Minutes to Midnight that's 6 songs or half the album. Definitely fits in with what Minutes to Midnight could have been.

    While I already rate Minutes to Midnight really highly (tied with Hybrid Theory as my 3rd favorite Linkin Park album falling behind Living Things and Meteora) and enjoy every song off of MTM, the album could have potentially been the best album of all time. Not even kidding when I say that. MTM is good but a lot of the demos, especially What We Don't Know, Qwerty, and Across the Line would have made the track list that much better.

    I think the best part of Qwerty is how intense it sounds played lived. Always thought the Summer Sonic performance of Qwert was one of their best performances ever.
     
    Last edited: Jun 29, 2017
  3. #3
    Virgocore

    Virgocore Well-Known Member

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    Yeah, you're right. It does fit quite well with those heavier tracks. Never heard of Asbestos, is that a LPU song? I will check that out now. Minutes To Midnight is my favorite release from the band, but I also love Hybrid Theory and Meteora, too. The rest, not so much. I agree with you that it sounded better live compared to the studio version, but I do quite enjoy the studio version, too.
     
  4. #4
    Blake

    Blake Leave a Trace LPA Super Member

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    Yes, Abestos is a Minutes to Midnight demo from LPU12. Unlike Qwerty, Across the Line, Blackbirds (forgot that song in original post), and What We Don't Know it definitely is not a finished song but it has a very much Linkin Park sound. Mixes Hybrid Theory Linkin Park with Given Up to get the sound. Check out Chance of Rain if you haven't heard it as well. It's a MTM demo from LUP15 and it's great

    There's just something about the live version of Qwerty that sounds so powerful.

    I remember back in the day I would always make a reworked MTM track list and I decided to yesterday to update what I would make MTM again. Qwerty, Across the Line, and Blackbirds would have helped a lot of the more old school LP fans come to terms better with MTM in my opinion.

    My tracklist:
    1. Announcement Service Public
    2. Given Up
    3. Across the Line
    4. Qwerty
    5. Leave Out All the Rest
    6. Bleed It Out
    7. What I've Done
    8. What We Don't Know
    9. Hands Held High
    10. Valentine's Day
    11. Chance of Rain
    12. In Between
    13. In Pieces
    14. Pale
    15. Blackbirds
    16. The Little Things Give You Away

    I added 7 songs and only got rid of 3 but I feel MTM should have been longer anyway.
     
  5. #5
    Astat

    Astat LPA Super Member LPA Super Member

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    Cool guitar riffs...not a particularly good song in hindsight. Makes me very glad they went the direction they did with Minutes to Midnight because that song made it pretty clear there was no way they could continue with the HT/Meteora sound and not have it come off as cheesy, predictable, and uninspired.
     
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  6. #6
    Kevin

    Kevin A Pattern To Be Followed. LPA Administrator

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    For coming together in like 4 days, it’s a pretty cool song. It’s not one I would hold up as one of their best, but yeah I like it and enjoy listening to it.
     
  7. #7
    Blake

    Blake Leave a Trace LPA Super Member

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    Maybe I'm crazy but Qwert more sounds like Given Up to me than anything off Meteora/Hybrid Theory. I think it was less of the old stuff but more of when MTM was supposed to be the heaviest Linkin Park record to date but a different type of heavy.
     
  8. #8
    minuteforce

    minuteforce Danny's not here, Mrs. Torrance. LPA Team

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    Back in 2006, I thought it was great from start to finish. The riffage was/is the biggest highlight, and Chester was really killing it live as well.

    Now, I can still enjoy it, I guess, but I can't really rate it as a favourite because it's so nu-metal. It's not significantly better than the stuff LP had made prior
     
  9. #9
    Mitch

    Mitch YTB

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    I remember hearing that first live clip when it was put on here, the forums were going nuts.
    I still really enjoy the song, and I love the instrumentals in it - with the Japan live version(s) being superior imo.
     
  10. #10
    Michele

    Michele Praise Brad Delson, our Lord and Savior. LPA Addict

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    When i told some friends of mine which artist this is, they were pretty shocked that i said: Linkin Park :lol:
     
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  11. #11
    BTorio

    BTorio Well-Known Member

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    I agree, but I think he means more along the lines that they were still sticking themselves in a Hard rock/rap genre, whereas Given Up/NMS abandon rap/hip hop altogether, and of course other tracks like TLTGYA and In Pieces were very new to them.

    I still like QWERTY a lot, it bangs harder than half the stuff on THP and that says a lot. I really enjoy THP but QWERTY has its own awesome headbanging appeal. Probably around the middle of my LP track ranking.
     
  12. #12
    Iopia

    Iopia Well-Known Member

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    I'm definitely glad the band didn't stick with this style, but even with that said, I still think Qwerty's a great song. It's heavy, it's groovy, and most importantly it's just fun to listen to. To be honest I like it a lot more than most of the band's more recent 'rap-rock' tracks (LITE, Wastelands, etc.). Not really much else to say, it's pretty standard early LP, but that slow groove it has going on (more so in the live version) already gives it a leg up IMO.

    9 times out of 10 I prefer studio versions, but yep, this is definitely a case where the live version is far superior to the studio version. The drums not switching to double time for the chorus makes the song feel so much heavier.
     
  13. #13
    Atticus

    Atticus Bullets lance the bravest lungs

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    Qwerty sounds so much better live it's ridiculous. The Summer Sonic 2006 performance is arguably the single best performance in the band's history. I also think Mike's verses on this track are absolutely killer.
     
  14. #14
    kcg

    kcg Well-Known Member

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    I'm glad they went in a different direction with Minutes To Midnight, but I still fucking love Qwerty (I actually prefer the studio version, believe it or not) and I'm disappointed it wasn't released as a B-side for the album. It definitely should've been on the What I've Done single or at least on the iTunes deluxe edition. I have the Songs From The Underground CD, but still, it would've been nice to make Qwerty available for the public and the fans outside of LPU.
     
  15. #15
    Deliveranze

    Deliveranze Well-Known Member

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    It's a cool song. The live version is A LOT better.

    Overall, I don't think the song stands out tbh. Nice instrumental and Chester's vocal performance is the highlight. Mike does decently on the verses. They aren't anything he hasn't done tho before.

    A good send off nu metal track tho but I'm really happy with the MTM we got.
     
  16. #16
    LP Soldier 01

    LP Soldier 01 True LP Soldier

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    I haven't checked Qwerty, but I surely like Blackbirds, Across The Line and What We Don't Know a lot and those should have been included in MTM.
     
  17. #17
    minuteforce

    minuteforce Danny's not here, Mrs. Torrance. LPA Team

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    Damn, son - contrarian as fuck :cool:
     
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  18. #18
    Modern Guitar God

    Modern Guitar God Nets 2021 LPA Super VIP

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    Not LPA without contrarian opinions
     
  19. #19
    Virgocore

    Virgocore Well-Known Member

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    Cool, thanks for the recommendations. Just checked out Asbestos and Chance Of Rain and they're pretty good. Chance Of Rain sounds identical to Minutes To Midnight to me, there's no doubt in my mind that it was a Minutes To Midnight song. It's also a fully completed one too so that's cool. Asbestos is cool too, I like it a lot. Even though it's incomplete, it's pretty cool. Mike has some good verses on it and I can just picture Chester laying down some screaming on the chorus if they completed the song, as well as a breakdown section with him going nuts. It sounds very similar to Given Up to me, though, and I think Given Up is one of my favorite songs from Linkin Park, so I'm happy we got that song in the final sessions.

    I'm gonna download all the LPU CD's tonight and listen to them all, I didn't know there was so much stuff on them. I heard LPU16 CD earlier this year and I loved the demo of Bleed It Out but I thought I had heard them all when I looked at the stuff earlier this year. I guess the ones on YouTube didn't have the full tracklistings because there is a lot I missed. I used to be in the LPU until they did mmm cookies or whatever and then I didn't join again. But I had heard some of the unreleased stuff over the years, mostly on YouTube and what not. But I'm gonna listen to them all tonight.
     
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  20. #20
    Kevin

    Kevin A Pattern To Be Followed. LPA Administrator

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    Imagine how boring and dull this place would be if everyone had the same exact opinions and taste
     
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