"Session" - Song by Song, Let's Talk Linkin Park

Discussion in 'Linkin Park Chat' started by hawk, Jul 2, 2014.

  1. Evan

    Evan Well-Known Member

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    Sooooo is this ever happening?
     
  2. Tocaraca

    Tocaraca A part of me screams away silently

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    Soon the new Linkin Park album will come out and we won't even have discussed The Hunting Party. lol.
     
  3. Michele

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

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    Yeah i think too that we could start this soon.
     
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  4. Iopia

    Iopia Well-Known Member

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    I think it would be better to wait just a few more months, just until the band announces a single or something and traffic on here increases. It's always going to be more fun when more people are around, IMO. Even giving 3 days per song, it'll only take a month to get through it all, so we're not exactly pressed for time before the album comes out. :lol:
     
  5. Atticus

    Atticus Bullets lance the bravest lungs

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    I've completed The Hunting Party. All that's left is to make the posts.

    A problem with the thread has always been that it moves too quickly and the discussion either gets cut off before it gets good, or people come in complaining that they've missed a song. My thinking is to extend each song to a week of discussion rather than 3 days. That gives us almost 3 months of content rather than a few weeks.

    Just waiting on LP to post something exciting to bring the forums back to life, otherwise it'll just be 4 people discussing an album.
     
  6. Captain-EO

    Captain-EO Also Prog Nerd Now, Thanks Gibs LPA Super Member

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    The fewer dissenting voices the better. :kappa:

    In all seriousness, I agree with your idea and I think it's the best course of action for the thread we've proposed.
     
  7. minuteforce

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

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    Do you feel that you've done as much as you can for the posts? :) Maybe sit on them for another week, start it up in June
     
  8. Captain-EO

    Captain-EO Also Prog Nerd Now, Thanks Gibs LPA Super Member

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    Screw you Tony, I'm traveling to go do volunteer work all of June. :cry:

    Nah, that sounds fine. Even though I'll miss the shitstorm for the All for Nothing post. :kappa:

    I'm assuming you picked June because the end of school for a lot of people would pick up a little more traffic? Or is there something else I've missed?
     
  9. minuteforce

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

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    I just think it'd be neat. Easy for everyone to remember. :shrug:
     
  10. AThousandLivingTheories

    AThousandLivingTheories Mark The Graves

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    It's June. Can't wait for this to start up, sadly I wasn't around for all the others. :( Still can't wait to do it this time! :D
     
  11. minuteforce

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

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    Yeah, so, whoever wants to pick it up is welcome to. :)
     
  12. Tocaraca

    Tocaraca A part of me screams away silently

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    I agree that each song should have a week of discussion rather than just 3 days. That would mean that I would be less likely to miss my favourite songs.
     
  13. Atticus

    Atticus Bullets lance the bravest lungs

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    If everyone can hold on, let's start it up July 1st. That way Captain EO gets to participate. That would conclude the album at the end of September.
     
  14. AThousandLivingTheories

    AThousandLivingTheories Mark The Graves

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    Are we gonna start this up soon?
     
  15. minuteforce

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

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    Feel free to send a sternly-worded private message to Faint into Pieces. You know, to encourage him to deliver
     
  16. TEGCRocco

    TEGCRocco The LPL Invader

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    I feel like we should wait until after the downtime this weekend.
     
  17. Michele

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

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    We should wait for "real" album news. So next year.
     
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  18. Filip

    Filip god break down the door LPA Contributor

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    Hah. :devil:
     
  19. Michele

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

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    Shut up :kappa:
     
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  20. Atticus

    Atticus Bullets lance the bravest lungs

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    It Begins

    KEYS TO THE KINGDOM
    [​IMG]
    “NO CONTROL! NO SURPRISE! Tossed the keys to the kingdom down that hole in my eye”

    The screams of “No control! No surprise!” are the first sounds delivered in Linkin Park’s sixth studio record, The Hunting Party. In fact, void of any infectious electronic synth, haunting piano line, or scorching guitar riff, the album begins without any of the Californian band’s introductory calling cards. Instead the hysterical howls of lead vocalist Chester Bennington raise the flag, his fury enhanced by robotic effects. Halfway through the screaming, Rob Bourdon’s jackhammer drumbeat joins the sonic assault. A brief second-long silence ensues where the tension rises before Keys To The Kingdom launches on all cylinders – just twenty-four seconds into the album.


    Striking with a colossal guitar riff accompanied by a thunderous drumming barrage, Keys To The Kingdom ignites with little remorse to subtlety. Seconds later, the storm dissipates as co-vocalist Mike Shinoda’s serenading verse forewarns of an arising skirmish. His calming grace brings tides of A Thousand Suns’ cosmic dreamy soundscape that soon shatters from the adjoining, rampaging guitar riff.

    The sonic divergence of A Thousand Suns is literally cut-off at Shinoda's last word as the relentless chorus strikes back. Beckoning the same vicious intro vocals, Bennington screams with anarchy over a wall of aggressive, distorted power chords. Stripped of the opening's digital effects, the vocalist has arguably never sounded more wretchedly furious, as his bitter screams delve into an unsettling post-hardcore territory. In nearly two decades of screaming, he’s arguably never sounded so close to the edge of control.

    Shinoda rebounds for the second verse, this time sending the track spiraling into another direction as he is reacquainted with his rapping persona. His delivery is unruly over the discordant verse, fueled with a crunching, pulsating guitar riff. His message invokes a sense that Linkin Park is well aware of the lack of aggression in their recent years, and he wants to remind the audience that this fury and desire to play rock music hasn’t been lost.

    Following the malevolent second chorus, Keys To The Kingdom falls into a brief atmospheric fallout. A crystalline guitar riff accentuates Bourdon’s clashing drums to create a restless tension. Finally, guitarist Brad Delson ascends from the shadows of predictability and stretches his fingers for a galvanizing, electrifying solo that sends Keys To The Kingdom barreling into overdrive. Stunning vocal harmonies layer the burning soundscape as Delson’s performance intensity increases. Bennington’s fury reawakens for a final, climatic chorus as he howls over the vocal harmonies and Delson’s sweeping solo, reaching a riveting conclusion.

    Keys To The Kingdom’s final minute and a half is a brilliant showcase of musicianship, demonstrating every member of Linkin Park reaching for a higher level of technicality. The outcome is pure, malicious, barbaric, post-hardcore pandemonium.

    Embracing the experimentation of A Thousand Suns, a brief and jarring interlude cuts into the final seconds of Keys To The Kingdom as an aftermath to the instrumental warfare. It features a frustrated young child yelling, “I’m not allowed to say certain things!” Shinoda is then heard in a studio setting, announcing, “try and do the other thing, real quick” possibly in reference to the next song on the album.

    Keys To The Kingdom is the first song featured on Linkin Park’s latest record, The Hunting Party. It was one of six songs Warner Bros. revealed in early previews to the press. It never went on to become a single, however this was probably a wise decision as the track is mercilessly aggressive, even compared to their heaviest nu-metal material that found its way onto the airwaves.

    Structurally, Keys To The Kingdom follows a rather standard three-minute pattern, but within this structure is something entirely unorthodox. The vicious screamed intro is completely surprising, followed by a solemn singing verse that brings a relaxing tone. Just when the song seems figured out, a rap verse breaks the mold after the first chorus, bringing another element of Linkin Park’s repertoire. Finally the guitar solo churns Keys To The Kingdom into a relentless metal showcase. Overall the song never fails to surprise.

    Lyrically, Keys To The Kingdom is completely and utterly directionless. Mike’s opening solemn warning dictates an ensuing conflict, or “final war” that can no longer be avoided. His rap meanwhile is a swagger-injected battle cry, essentially stating adamantly that he cannot lose the coming fight. It’s a much more personal piece of the song (including an odd line about his Anglo-Panko-Japanese-Asian-American heritage). The ferocious chorus that holds the song together however, is actually void of any cohesive substance.

    Another deeper theory is that The Hunting Party is in fact an album that rebels against the music industry, with each song serving as a messenger. In which case, Keys To The Kingdom’s lyrics could be advocating for Linkin Park’s evolution from their one-dimensional nu-metal roots. Shinoda’s rapping verse explains how the track sounds similar to their past, but at the same time is something matured. He also argues how fans of their origins or even the music industry are “stuck in that same flow” while he is reaching for something higher. In that regard, Bennington’s chorus could be interpreted as him suggesting today’s music is not allowed to have a soul, as artists are no longer in control of their music. He’s a casualty in his own rightful success and fame found in Hybrid Theory and Meteora. Those albums will follow Linkin Park throughout their career, always standing as a shadow to whatever they say or release in the future. No matter what they come up with, it will always be a futile fight against their most successful past endeavors.

    LPA’s own remixed album of The Hunting Party, Viscera, features a gritty electronic reimagining of Keys To The Kingdom. Confetti Parade and MKH banded together and created a stunning remix that focuses on the digital effects found in the track. For those invested in HBO’s crime-drama Dexter, the introduction also humourously features Sergeant James Doakes’ overly confrontational and meme-worthy line, “surprise motherfucker”, cutting off Bennington’s screams.


    LPA’s September 2014 “Monthly Mix-up” community competition also brought out some unreal remixes of Keys To The Kingdom. Xefuzion’s remix took inspiration from A Thousand Suns in using a historic political speech. Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator’s Speech is a passionate outcry that rallies the entire remix together before throwing it into a symphonic electronic soundscape. The entire track spans just over 6 minutes and constantly builds to a satisfying conclusion.

    Unfortunately, Keys To The Kingdom has never been played in a live show. Linkin Park has stated they had rehearsed each and every song on The Hunting Party prior to their promotional Carnivores Tour in 2014, yet the song remains to be seen on stage. Admittedly, the song may prove difficult with the jarring transitions and the vocals would be incredibly demanding on Bennington, but there’s no denying the insane energy the song would bring live to the stage. Imagine the crowd impatiently waiting for the show to begin. The stage is pitch black until a spotlight reveals Bennington at the front before he begins screaming the intro vocals. Another spotlight reveals Bourdon once the drums begin and then finally the entire stage lights up with the guitar riff, opening the set. Sounds absolutely epic.

    STUDIO SECRETS
    - The interlude at the end of Keys To The Kingdom was apparently supposed to feature a snippet from Disney’s Frozen, however the band was unable to gain the rights to the movie. Hence the words “I’m not allowed to say certain things”.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 10, 2016
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