@Christøffer your write-ups really are excellent In terms of this track, it's a nice change of pace to get a very specific meaning and reasoning behind the lyrics, as opposed to the usual vague and 'it means what you want it to mean' style You can kinda see why this was never performed live pre or post Chester passing for that exact reason
Halfway Right is a song that has grown on me more recently than when it first came out. I always felt like the very real and honest lyrics were at odds with the more bland pop production, but I've softened on that take. It's a good track.
Honestly this is a highlight for me off the album. Chester’s verses are so bluntly specific to the situations at hand, that it is lyrically some of the best writing on a song they’ve done. Even the chorus of “I don’t lose, I don’t win, if I’m wrong, then I’m halfway right” is some really clever writing to highlight the rationalizing of choices. I always loved the “Oooohhh ooohhhhh”s in the background (from Mike?) too. The production isn’t necessarily my favorite but that permeates a lot of the songs in general, so it doesn’t bother me. Overall, a very poignant track and really highlighted the potential of them marketing “lyrics first, music second” approach they were doing during the era.
I really like the lyrics, they feel different from everything else the band had written before, especially the verses. The chorus is catchy and I love those bells in the "na na na" parts haha.
I don't listen to Metallica personally, but a member of that band once said that you can't really sing about anything over metal. It has to be grandiose, otherwise it doesn't work. In that vein, I don't know why someone would decide to sing about a dark drug-related life episode over some bland, trendy pop production and a facepalm-inducing "na na na" hook. I had not paid much attention to the lyrics before, so it's interesting to learn what the song is about. Just because lyrics are on a meaningful subject, though, doesn't make them quality lyrics, and "Halfway Right" remains representative of that which plagues the songwriting on One More Light: an overarching vapidity that, needless to say, has no lasting artistic value. As for "Sorry for Now," this is certainly a highlight on the album that particularly benefits from a strong chorus melody, though again, the production, which seems to be an attempt to echo previous Top 10 fads and Awolnation's "Sail," together with Chester's verse, which I won't comment on, mean the song cannot rise too high above the rest of the record.
The verses of Halfway Right have a similar issue to Heavy's verses for me (Chester singing in that poppy style sounds really weird to me) although much less pronounced. Overall I really enjoy the song though; solid lyrics, great melodies in the intro and choruses (and I like the whooaaaaaoooooohhh part by Mike in the chorus as well) and the pop production isn't an issue for me, in fact I'm quite entranced by the soundscape. I'd rate this song 8.5/10
This song was from the beginning one of my least liked tracks and sadly it doesn't grew a lot either. The chorus is kinda ok i guess, but the way Chester is singing the verses annoys the hell out of me. Especially annoying for me that this song seems to be one of Chesters more personal ones and i wont get into it.
This pretty much exactly. Halfway Right is SO close to greatness, but it's plagued by the same emptiness the rest of One More Light suffers from. The autobiographical lyrics put us in Chester's shoes more intimately than ever, but they sound completely out of place against the hollow, glitzy pop production and the "nah nah nah" bridge is so uninspired.
Man, it's 2024 and people are still acting like the "glitzy pop production" of One More Light is any less artistically valid than the glitzy nu metal production of say, Meteora. I think you could make a strong argument that the first two LP records are far more "vapid" (to borrow an adjective used above) than One More Light. That being said, Halfway Right is probably my least favourite song on the album. I don't dislike it, I just think the other 9 songs are stronger. The bridge is the highlight of the song for me, and I agree with whoever mentioned that the bells should have been louder.
I agree with the first sentence, but I think the second was maybe too much of a free attack to the good old days. HT is far from vapid. Sure, it has less production know-how, which is logical given the leap in experience (and technologies available to the band) between 2000 and 2017. But still, every powerchord, every scratch, every beat, every synth, every glitch, every melodies, every vocal performance, heck every sound, blends so well together on HT, that it created a landmark album not only for Linkin park, but for rock music as a whole. Which is something that, and I don't mean it bad, doesn't hold true for OML. The intricacies in HT should not be underestimated due to it being "nu-metal", as much as OML should not be dismissed due to it being "pop". I don't include Meteora in this reasoning because it comes second and to some extent dumbs down a few aspects of HT, but I wouldn't call it vapid either ^' And to go back on topic, I can't wait for the session thread to dive back into those old songs
I think you both make good points. Meteora definitely has some nu metal production sheen to it that loses some of the magic there was on Hybrid Theory, if you ask me. But I definitely don't think you can say that about HT as a whole. It's such a deliberate blend of styles and production choices. I don't know if I'd use "vapid" to describe any of their songs...even if I'd really like to with songs like Figure.09 or Lies Greed Misery. I think production choices hold back several songs throughout LP's career, but I don't think they've ever flat-out ruined a song. Halfway Right has a spark in it that shines through even with what I find to be okay production.
I'm not against Linkin Park doing pop, and I'm certainly not one to gatekeep their nu-metal albums as anywhere near untouchable either. I do think Linkin Park has done more impactful, "artistically valid" pop in their careers than what is mostly represented on One More Light.
What disappoints me most about One More Light is that the sound has absolutely no bite. It sounds like an album made to play for kids, which is cool and it matches the album cover very beautifully. It's like, dad-pop. You could throw most (all?) of these songs into a playlist along songs from recent Disney movies like Encanto and it wouldn't sound out of place at all. The lyrics might be darker, but even then they don't tend to be that explicit. None of this makes it *bad*, I just don't want to listen to it very much. With that said, I can always put on Nobody Can Save Me, Invisible, and Sorry For Now.
Toca, I specifically said I wouldn't call them vapid, even if some days I want to. I'll save it for the Figure.09 re-post. Back to Halfway Right: I guess this track is bound to cause more division on its execution due to its subject matter, given the retrospective context now. It seems to be mostly down to the production choices, which is a very common theme with this album. Hopefully we don't have as much disagreement for this next one. I'm cooking extra hard for it!
One More Light "Who cares if one more light goes out, in a sky of a million stars..." "One More Light" is the title track and emotional core of One More Light. One of Linkin Park’s most significant compositions, the penultimate song and namesake for the album was released as the third and final single from One More Light. As the album’s final single, "One More Light" was also the band’s last studio album single with Chester Bennington. It was written by Mike in collaboration with British songwriter Eg White, known for his songwriting credits with Adele and Florence + the Machine, among others. "One More Light" was an unplanned turn in the writing sessions of the album, born from a moment of grief for Linkin Park. The band’s co-write with Eg White was overshadowed on their first day together by the devastating news that Amy Zaret, a longtime friend and pivotal figure of their early career, had suddenly passed away after a rapid battle with cancer. Amy Zaret had played a crucial role in helping Linkin Park during their formative years. A Warner Bros. Records executive at the time of her death, in Linkin Park’s early days she was part of the band’s radio promo team, driving them to radio spots and supporting them as the band’s success grew. The band members maintained a close relationship with Amy, and her sudden passing shook them deeply. Rather than abandon the remaining time with Eg White, Mike decided to make the session about what was at the forefront of their minds—grief. As Brad and Mike had both scheduled to write with Eg, Mike stayed while Brad attended their friend’s funeral. While Brad was at the funeral, Mike opened up to his raw emotions in the writing session, and his time with Eg White became a period for processing grief. The result was "One More Light," a song about loss and the helplessness that accompanies it. The song received a very strong emotional reaction from the other band members, as well as Warner staff, who the band decided to preview the song for during a regular company get-together. These reactions pushed the band to make it a foundational song of the album, and they named One More Light after the song, marking the first time the band decided to have an eponymous track. Musically, "One More Light" is very stripped-back and deeply poignant, focusing on Chester’s emotional delivery of the lyrics. Driven principally by a fingerpicked guitar, it includes very few instruments, also featuring a subtle bass guitar and an acoustic piano, the latter entering toward the end of the song. These instruments all layer over a warm, pulsing synth loop, almost reminiscent of a heartbeat as it underpins the melodic movement of the guitar. A guitar solo follows the second chorus to lead into the final chorus and emotional peak of the song, where the piano enters to add additional weight. These instruments are used sparingly, and the simplicity of the arrangement allows the lyrics, sung with delicate, aching emotion by Chester, to stand front and center. The lyrics of "One More Light" reflect on the fragility of life and the inevitable pain of loss. The opening lines, "Should've stayed, were there signs I ignored? Can I help you not to hurt anymore?" express regret and helplessness, tapping into the internal dialogue that often accompanies loss. The chorus wrestles with the pain of losing someone, questioning the impact of one loss in a vast world filled with countless lives. But in this place of despair, the song turns to emphasize the impact of a person’s life on another: "Who cares if one more light goes out? Well I do." The simple yet moving chorus brings home this point with profound simplicity, making it a unifying anthem for those who are grieving. Linkin Park debuted "One More Light" in live format in March 2017, at a private Warner Bros. Records showcase, along with "Talking to Myself" and "Heavy." This featured Chester on vocals, Mike on keyboard, and Brad on electric guitar. Mike and Chester also performed the song in a further stripped-down format before a May Q&A at Spotify's New York City office, with Mike on acoustic guitar. It would go on to make its tour debut in Santiago, Chile, eight days prior to the album's release, set in a more reflective and soft section of the setlist, between "Breaking the Habit" and a piano rendition of "Crawling." The song was played at nearly every show for the tour, only being dropped on occasion for festival time constraints. "One More Light" became a staple of their live setlist during the One More Light cycle, where the band used it as an opportunity for fans to connect intimately with Chester during the performance. When performing the song, Chester frequently either went to the end of the stage to lean over the crowd, or descended into the crowd, embracing fans as he sang the song with a spotlight upon him. Although "One More Light" was initially written in memory of Amy Zaret, it would take on new meaning and recontextualization leading up to and following the release of the album. The first of these shifts came with the death of Chris Cornell, who was a good friend of the band and especially Chester. As one of Chester's idols, he took the time to get to know Cornell when Linkin Park and Chris Cornell toured together during Projekt Revolution in 2008. This time spent on tour turned into a deep friendship that lasted over the years, so much so that Chester was the godfather to Cornell’s son. Following the news of Chris Cornell's death the previous night, the band decided to play "One More Light" for their album promotion spot on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, where Chester gave an emotional performance dedicated to their friend. Mike later said that Chester had broken down during soundcheck, and was just barely able to make it through the live performance. Tragically, just two months later, "One More Light" took on a new layer of meaning, as it became an anthem of mourning for Chester himself. Following his sudden death on July 20, 2017, and the shockwaves across the world and in the fanbase, the song immediately became a point of unity for fans as they mourned the loss of Chester. "One More Light" became synonymous with fans' mourning in the wake of Chester’s passing. The track Linkin Park had written for their longtime friend Amy took on a very new meaning, and became a way for the band, their friends, their family, and their fans to share in collective grief. The song was sung at memorials around the globe—New York, London, São Paulo, Johannesburg, Jakarta, and countless others—with fans gathering to remember Chester by sharing in the sorrow expressed through the song’s lyrics. On September 18, 2017, Linkin Park released a music video for "One More Light," pairing it with an announcement of a special one-off celebration concert, held on October 27 in Los Angeles to honor Chester Bennington. The video came in response to the outpouring of grief from fans worldwide, many of whom created their own tribute montages featuring images of Chester and personal reflections set to the song. Footage of Chester's live performances, from their days opening in small clubs in 2000 to the One More Light world tour—especially his performances of "One More Light" in Milano and London, where he sang the song in the crowd—were edited together with other moments on the road and in the studio captured by the band’s longtime videographer, Mark Fiore. "One More Light" was promoted as a single, the last for the album with which it shared its name. The single release came on October 3, following on from the music video release. In keeping with the new context for the song, in promoting "One More Light," the band featured the hexagonal Linkin Park logo adopted for the album cycle, with one of the six sides missing. In an interview with Los Angeles radio station KROQ-FM, Mike explained the motivation behind the promotion of the song and its music video: Several remixes and covers of the song were also released following Chester’s passing, as people used "One More Light" as a way of remembering and honoring his legacy. The most prominent of these was by longtime Linkin Park collaborator Steve Aoki, who released a remix of "One More Light" on October 25, 2017, as a tribute to Chester. The band promoted this remix leading up to their Hollywood Bowl performance in Los Angeles, and sent it directly to fans who had purchased tickets for the upcoming memorial show. On October 27, 2017, the remaining members of Linkin Park performed a show at the Hollywood Bowl with many of their friends and collaborators in music, entitled Linkin Park and Friends Celebrate Life in Honor of Chester Bennington. "One More Light" was featured midway through the set of this show, performed by Brad, Dave, and Mike, pitched a half step down for Mike to sing in place of Chester. Following this performance, Mike would go on to perform "One More Light" only one time during his solo tours. He explained that the song had too many connotations, and that it would create a "black hole" in his setlist. His one performance of the song came during his London show in 2019, the same show where he performed "Nobody Can Save Me" and "Battle Symphony," two other songs he cited as difficult to play following Chester’s death. He was joined on stage by Eg White, who performed the guitar parts while Mike sang and played piano. Notably, he sang the song in its original key rather than the adjusted key he used in 2017 for the Hollywood Bowl performance. "One More Light" was included on Linkin Park’s Papercuts compilation in 2024, giving the song one last boost of promotion past the One More Light album cycle. Despite its significance due to its inseparable tie to Chester’s passing, "One More Light" is possibly the purest embodiment of the band’s commitment to writing songs about their lives during the writing of One More Light. This vulnerability and unfiltered emotion created a track that now stands as an icon in Linkin Park’s discography. What began as a song for a friend became a source of consolation for many. "One More Light" serves as a reminder that even in the vastness of life, each person's light is unique and irreplaceable, and that it’s okay to grieve and remember. This is a sentiment that can resonate with anyone, from Billboard chart-topping rockers to teenagers listening to their favorite band.
Definitely my favourite song on the album. However, ever since Chester passed, I haven't been able to listen to the song without crying. Even when I'm listening to a playlist on shuffle and the song starts, I have to skip it every time because I need to have a certain space of mind in order to listen to it.