Why are Linkin Park's Lead Singles Such Average Choices?

Hm, maybe more people who were fans of the old LP would enjoy it, but certainly MANY people who enjoyed BID from hearing it on the radio or random places would not feel the same about LITE from the moment Chester starts screaming. I feel like it wouldn't quite reach the same heights. At least the band has kept LITE around on the setlists though.

 

I agree with you, I just think Rebellion would be a better choice than GATS to promote THP. It's a better song imo and the collab with Daron makes more sense to represent the "heavy shit" on the record.

Also, Heavy was a good choice for a lead single (I would preffer Sorry For now over it). Everybody was loosing their minds about the poppy sound of it, risky but smart marketing move. I think nothing on OML will chart higher than Heavy.
LITE would only please the old LP fanbase and should not have been the lead single for LT. BID screams commercial success and it's super catchy! The thing about LITE: It deserved better promotion and a better music video, not that guy giving you some random photos of our facebook friends. WORST SHIT EVER

 

It´s true that most if not all singles represent the core sound of each album, I just feel like the choices could have been better and I´ll present my list with equal number of singles as there are in each record, just with some modifications according to my personal likes and what I consider to be songs which could have boosted the album sales even more because that´s one very important goal of making music while either retaining the core sound of the album or adding a different blend of singles which presents the album in different perspectives (singles listed from top single to secondary ones):

HT
#1 In The End (just an iconic song)
#2 Crawling (such a great aggressive tone, great rap)
#3 A Place For My Head (this one would clearly be a single)
#4 Runaway (wouldn´t be good for mainstream radio, but has a lot of power, for me works better than One Step Closer and Papercut)

I´d like the track My December to be on the standard album version I have, that is one of my favourites.

M (choice of singles is perfect for me, but just in a different order)
#1 Numb (just an iconic song)
#2 Faint (a song to get the crowd jumping)
#3 Breaking The Habit (most emotionally intense song of the album, really described Chester´s hard times perfectly)
#4 From The Inside (full of angst, very powerful song)
#5 Somewhere I Belong (great conjugation of softer parts and screams)

Breaking The Habit is in my view the core song in terms of meaning, but still Numb and Faint have more commercial potential

MTM
#1 What I´ve Done (best song of MTM)
#2 Leave Out All The Rest (very underrated)
#3 Valentine´s Day (for me it´s a must, just unsure if it should rank #2 or not)
#4 Bleed It Out (kickass song to wrap up the show, but could be changed someday)
#5 Shadow Of The Day (one of the most underrated in terms of views and fan reception)

If New Divide hadn´t been chosen for Transformers and appeared on this record, it would probably be #1 single
I just miss Brad´s guitar solos like thoseValentine´s Day, In Pieces and Little Things Give You Away so much, such a rarity in LP discograohy

ATS
#1 The Catalyst (the line "lift me up let me go" sang by Mike and followed by Chester is astounding)
#2 Blackout (another kickass song, probably not to good for mainstream radio, but still)
#3 Waiting For The End
#4 Iridescent (one of the songs that showed that Mike can sing very well)

LT
#1 Burn It Down (great electronic opening and power)
#2 Castle of Glass (also Mike´s singing is great and also all the atmosphere of the song)
#3 Lost in the Echo (some poweful screams intercalated with softer part from Chester, better layered than Victimized)
#4 I´ll Be Gone
#5 (doesn´t exist in record but has to be) Roads Untravelled

#4 and #5 are probably my top songs of LT, followed closely by #2

THP
#1 Final Masquerade (definitely top song of THP)
#2 Rebellion (one of the most powerful LP songs, even on the lyrics, Mike´s line John with no Yoko is sad, but just amazing)
#3 Until It´s Gone (other very underrated song, with great pace and singing)
#4 Wastelands (also very powerful, but lacks more layering)
#5 A Line In The Sand (perfect Mike Shinoda singing (should be even more used in albums, even more than in OML) and some very aggressive screams which blend in perfectly with Mike´s singing, they could do a record 1/2 Chester singing/rapping, 1/2 Mike singing/rapping as well)

Guilty All The Same isn´t there because I just don´t like Rakim´s rap, otherwise very powerful song

Sorry, @Blake, no Mark The Graves, but that´d be #6 if there was #6

One More Light (most discrepant choice of singles as I see it, wikipedia says it´s just Heavy, but I´ll list 6 as there is are a lot of songs with similar quality and many different and new things explored with this album)

#1 One More Light (absolute standout and for me best slow song LP has ever made, that song really spoke to me (both musically, emotionally and lyrically), unbelievable in live shows as well)
#2 Sorry For Now (great Mike singing and nice swap of roles this time with Chester rapping, something to explore in further records and also good chipmunk sounds)
#3 Invisible (great idea to have Mike singing the entire song, great lyrical content and rythm)
#3 Talking To Myself (thank God there´s guitar on this one and a lot of energy as demonstrated live)
#4 Nobody Can Save Me (perfect chipmunk sounds, Alvin did a great job, one of the best pieces of singing I´ve heard from Chester)
#5 Sharp Edges (fun acoustic tone, pretty good guitar work from Brad, good lyrics and sing along potential)
#6 Good Goodbye (had to be because of the innovation of having 3 rappers, but PushaT is a bit disappointing and it could be better with Mike doing the 3 verses although I like Stormzy´s part. One of the best choruses from LP in my view, good backing vocals by MIke and Alvin as also done a good job on this one )

No Heavy and no Battle symphony since they are too generic and One More Light and probably Sorry For Now could do more than 50M views on Youtube and contribute to increase the sales in a larger scale.

 

@LP Soldier 01

Bro, the Crawling rap is 2 lines. They are fine 2 lines but I wouldn't call it a great rap

Also Wastelands is the John with no Yoko line, not Rebellion, and it's more of a metaphor for Mike's badassery. Not a tribute to John Lennon.

 

My mistake, it´s on Wastelands, it´s badass and also kinda sad, but one of Mike´s best lines. Crawling´s rap being short doesn´t make it bad, or does it? Could be longer, but it´s still good.

 

did you guys ever hear the demo version of Crawling? It had a rap from Mike that wasn't on the Hybrid Theory CD version. It was like a rap breakdown, it's on YouTube, it's pretty good.

 

I have to agree with u. Except for Somewhere I belong. Whenever I listen to meteora I always overlook that song idk why. I feel like LP could have done so much better on that song because the lyrics and the actual instrumentals are good. It’s just that they arranged it like every other song, it has almost the exact format of in the end. Other than that song ye, much better songs to choose as fronts