BIOGRAPHY OF LINKIN PARK

Linkin Park is an American alternative rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Formed in 1996, the group was initially composed of Mike Shinoda, Dave Farrell, Joe Hahn, Brad Delson, Rob Bourdon and Mark Wakefield, the latter as the main voice. The band began in the same year his first musical works independently and back this way they recorded their first material called Xero; however they had no success in finding a record label since no one showed interest in his work, which caused the resignation of Mark Wakefield. Shortly after, Chester Bennington joined the band as a vocalist; the group made ​​its first appearance at a club in Los Angeles and being backed by Jeff Blue, then a vice president of Warner Bros. Records, managed to sign with the label in 1999. The band 's name is a pun that refers to Lincoln Park in Santa Monica. In 2000 the group released their debut album, Hybrid Theory; This singles "Crawling" extracted, "Papercut", "In the End" and "One Step Closer"; the last two, obtained certification of gold in Australia. Hybrid Theory reached number two on the Billboard 200, it was the seventh best-selling album of the 2000s, and certified with diamond disc in the United States and multiple platinum in Europe. The fourth single from the album, "In the End" reached its better position in second place on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed in it for thirty-eight weeks. In 2003, the band released their first live album entitled Live in Texas, recorded at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas. The album won multiple gold certifications in Germany, New Zealand, United Kingdom and Austria. Later, in 2008, they released another live album entitled Road to Revolution: Live at Milton Keynes. His next studio album, Meteora, was published in 2003. With sales in the first week of 810,000 units, the album entered the Billboard 200 at number one spot, and became the third best-selling album of the year. From the album six singles, among which include "Somewhere I Belong" and "Numb" is extracted; the latter, received gold certification in the United States and Australia. That same year, MTV2 named Linkin Park the sixth "best band in the era of the music video" and the third "best band of the new millennium 'behind Oasis and Coldplay. Also, Billboard ranked the group in nineteenth position of the best artists of the decade. After Meteora, the band postponed for a couple of years later his next record material; in that time some members embarked on side projects. The band also released two albums certified remixing between those two years, Reanimation (2002) and Collision Course (2004), the latter with contributions from rapper Jay-Z on the song "Numb / Encore". Said single received gold and platinum certifications in many countries, and both albums were certified platinum. The group is known for its distinctive musical style that blends rock, rap and electronic sounds, but from the beginning it was considered as nu metal, until it was their second album Meteora, then opting for this genre and rap metal, however on their third album Minutes to Midnight decided to explore other genres, changing more "soft" a style oriented alternative rock. Later with his album A Thousand Suns recorded a much more experimental style, this production became the fourth consecutive album of the band to reach number one on the charts in its first week of sales. The band has sold 60 million albums and won two Grammy awards. History Formation and early years (1996-1999) Originally founded by three classmates, the group beginning around 1996 in Los Angeles a mixture of nu metal ,hardcore and hip hop . After graduating from high school, the young Californian Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon and Brad Delson taken more seriously his musical interests, and shortly after the band and Joe Hahn Dave Farrell joined (dubbed "Phoenix"). And having five members and to complete the training, they enlisted Mark Wakefield as lead vocalist and although limited financially, recorded their first material in 1996 in a makeshift studio owned by Mike Shinoda under the name "Xero". However they failed to obtain a contract, therefore the project was unsuccessful, and Wakefield, frustrated, decided to abandon the training to continue their studies. Because Wakefield declined the project, Shinoda was in the need to hire a new vocalist, among the applicants said Chester Bennington, a young native of Phoenix, Arizona, who until 1998 belonged to a band called Grey Daze with whom there were gained experience making records since he was 16. Shinoda sent him some songs performed by the former vocalist and instrumental versions for Chester record his voice over the past, once the work is completed, Chester contacted Shinoda phone to show your own recording, members were impressed by his voice , so they decided to convene a meeting immediately. Following the integration of Chester, the group was renamed "Hybrid Theory" and working under their independent label the band recorded the album Hybrid Theory EP . But due to legal problems with a European group called "Hybrid", were forced to change their name again, Chester suggested "Lincoln Park" (in honor of the Park Lincoln Park, located in Chicago), however due to the dominance "LincolnPark .com "changed the spelling to Linkin Park, its current name. Bassist Dave Farrell had to stop training temporarily as previously had a commitment to make a series of presentations with another band called The Snax, so they hired Kyle Christener, Scott Koziol and Ian Hornbeck as bearish for the time she was absent. Despite these changes the group could not find a place in a record label, so Jeff Blue, then a vice president of Warner Bros. Records, supported the young band and after having faced repeated rejections, managed to sign a contract in 1999 . Hybrid Theory (2000-2002) The first album of Linkin Park, called Hybrid Theory, was published on October 24, 2000, the product of half a year of work, the album was edited by Don Gilmore. Hybrid Theory had a positive trade reception, having sold 5 million copies during his debut year so he could claim the status of best - selling album of 2001. it was the most sold in theUnited States and New Zealand during the year, by the successes "Crawling", "Papercut" album, "in the End", " One Step Closer "and" Points of Authority ". The latter two were used as background movies Dracula 2001 , Little Nicky , and Valentine . The album is composed mostly lyrical themes that address the problems that crossed Chester Bennington during adolescence, as the divorce of their parents, and problems with alcohol and drugs. The album was number two on the Billboard 200 , reaching important positions in the world. The album has sold over 30 million copies worldwide today, of which 10 million copies were sold in the US alone, making it the best selling album in the XXI century. At that time the group received invitations to renowned music festivals, including Ozzfest to be part of the Family Values ​​Tour and KROQ Korn Almost Acoustic Christmas. They decided to start their own tour called Projekt Revolution, which was attended by invited artists like Cypress Hill, Adema, DJ Z-Trip, Xzibit, Mudvayne, Blindside and Snoop Dogg. A year later, Linkin Park had performed over 320 concerts. In November 2001, the band released their first DVD titled Frat Party at the Pankake Festival where performances were documented in the group's concerts.Dave Farrel rejoined the band and thus work on the remix album Reanimation , recorded during his tour in 2001 and put on the market on July 30, 2002, it contains modified songs Hybrid Theory EP and Hybrid Theory . The album featured the participation of numerous artists among which Black Thought, Jonathan Davis and Aaron Lewis.Although this record was made ​​of old material the group, it went platinum in the United States where it sold a million copies. In its first week Reanimation sold nearly 270,000 copies and reached number two on the Billboard 200 . Linkin Park released a special edition of their album Hybrid Theory on March 11, 2002, this album contains all the disc Hybrid Theory , plus three songs ( "Papercut", "Points of Authority" and "A place for my head") live from Docklands Arena, London. Hybrid Theory , received a Grammy in 2002 for best interpretation of hard rock by the song "Crawling". He was also nominated for two Grammys for best new artist and best album of rock . In addition ,the disc is in the RIAA's Top 100 Albums , on the other hand the magazine Billboard placed it at number eleven on the list of the 200 greatest albums of the decade. Meteora (2002-2004) After Hybrid Theory and Reanimaton , Linkin Park continued to perform concerts in the US, and at the same time began to work on his next material on the tour bus on a tight schedule and in their spare time. The band worked almost around the year 2002 and finally in December of that year the production of his new studio album was officially announced: Meteora . According to the band, for the same name were inspired by the rocky region of Meteora in Greece, where numerous monasteries are built on top of the stones. Musically this album resembles her previous work, Hybrid Theory , however this album is distinguished by the addition of new instruments such as the use of a shakuhachi (a Japanese flute made ​​of bamboo) and new sound effects. The producer of Meteora was once again Don Gilmore. The second album was released worldwide on 25 March 2003. The date of its publication won worldwide recognition, being number one in the US and UK and number two in Australia. The band sold 810,000 copies in its first week according to SoundScan and is considered as the best selling album in the list Billboard at the time. "Somewhere I Belong", first single from Meteora, ranked first list ofalternative songs and counting Mainstream Rock Tracks of Billboard . The singles "Breaking the Habit", "Faint" and "Numb" received significant attention from the radio. By October 2003, Meteora managed to sell 3 million copies.The achieved success allowed Linkin Park carrying out one second Projekt Revolution tour which featured artists like Mudvayne, Blindside and Xzibit, in July of that year Chester was hospitalized because of abdominal pain so the band was forced to cancel twelve dates of their European tour, the following month, the band Metallica invited Linkin Park to Summer Sanitarium Tour in 2003. later that year they released their live album entitled Live in Texas , which contains performances the band 's live in Texas during this tour. In early 2004, Linkin Park started a world tour titled Meteora World Tour that included Hoobastank, POD and Story of the Year as support groups. On June 29 of that year they released a new album: Meteora Tour Edition , which contains the songs of Meteoraalong with live versions that were recorded during the Meteora World Tour and also the DVD Meteora: The Making Of. His second studio production gave the band multiple awards among which are the MTV award for best video rockby "Somewhere I Belong" and a Viewer 's Choice Award for "Breaking the Habit", also received major awards in 2004 on the Radio Music Awards where they were awarded the prize artist of the year and song of the year for "Numb". The band spent the first months of 2004 in concerts around the globe to mark the Meteora World Tour before carrying out the third Projekt Revolution in late July to early September, for it counted with the presence of bands and soloists Korn, Snoop Team and The Used. It should be noted that although Meteora was not equally successful as its predecessor, was the third best selling album in the United States in 2003. Alternative work (2004-2006) After Meteora , the band decided to leave for a couple of years later his next record material, in that time some members undertook various projects. Chester collaborated with DJ Lethal and integrated its own project: Dead By Sunrise, a band that released its debut album, Out of Ashes, in October 2009. Meanwhile, Shinoda worked with the British band Depeche Mode. In the same year Linkin Park began work on another remix album, Collision Course,along with Jay-Z rapper, the album was released in November 2004, he held first place in the Billboard 200 selling 368,000 copies in the US . Shinoda also formed his own band of rap called Fort Minor as alternative work and along with Jay-Z released their studio album, The Rising Tied in November 2005, receiving positive comments from critics.At the same time in those years the band's relationship with Warner Music Group was deteriorating significantly due to financial disputes and budgetary decisions of the directors of the company, so that the group tried to leave Warner Music Group. In a statement the band said: " We feel the responsibility to have good music for our fans, unfortunately we do not believe that we can actually achieve with the current Warner Music." After months of wrangling, the band finally reached an agreement in December 2005. Linkin Park also worked at various charity events, largely to raise money to benefit victims of Hurricane Charley in 2004 and after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The group donated $ 75,000 to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation Foundation in March 2004. He also collaborated in efforts to help after the earthquake of 2004 in the Indian Ocean and the creation of a new organization, Music for Relief, responsible for raising funds for the victims.Finally, they participated in Live 8, a series of concerts to benefit the charity to create global awareness. Along with Jay-Z, the band performed in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania to a global audience. Later the band would meet again with the rapper at the 2006 Grammy awards, during which "Numb / Encore" won the Grammy for best collaborationrap / sung. Minutes to Midnight (2006-2008) The band returned to the recording studios in 2006 to present his new album. For the production of the album the band chose producer Rick Rubin, and although the album was confirmed for that year was postponed to 2007. Subsequently Chester said his new production moved away from its previous style of nu metal . Warner Bros. Records officially announced the third studio album by the band, entitled Minutes to Midnight, which was released on May 14, 2007 in the United States. After fourteen months of work on the album, the group members opted to further refine their work by removing five of the seventeen tracks that were planned. The album name is a reference made ​​to the doomsday clock. This album sold over 624,000 copies in its first week, reached the top of the charts in 32 countries, including France, Belgium and the United States, the latter being certified platinum by the RIAA after selling a million copies in four weeks, becoming one of the most successful albums in its debut week in recent years. The album also reached number one on the charts of Billboard . The first single, "What I've Done" was released on April 2, 2007 and released the same week on MTV and Fuse TV.The song was also used as the main theme for the soundtrack of the movie Transformers . The single was well received, becoming the top - ranked song on the list alternative songs and counting Mainstream Rock Tracks ofBillboard . At the end of the year, the band won the favorite alternative artist award at the American Music Awards.The album shows a rock more "soft" alternative compared to the previous albums adding an evolution in their sound. The following singles from the album released in 2007 and early 2008 also had a good reception, the theme of "Bleed It Out", one of the few songs on the disc containing rap , "Shadow of the Day" and "Given up" by Finally the fifth single was "Leave Out All the Rest", one of the many melodic ballads included on the disc, so this last song is from the soundtrack of the 2008 film Twilight . Minutes to Midnight has been number one in thirty-two countries, and to date has sold over 12 million copies, of which 2 million were sold in the United States, earning double platinum, Billboard also ranked at 154 of the top 200 albums of the decade. Linkin Park began a series of concerts, among which included a performance at Live Earth in Japan in July 2007, also he topped the Download Festival at Donington Park in England and Edgefest in Toronto, Canada. On 25 November 2008 the band released their CD / DVD Road To Revolution: Live at Milton Keynescontaining the songs performed on June 29, 2008 at the National Bowl in Milton Keynes in England as part of the Projekt Revolution tour 2008 in Europe, which was the rapper Jay-Z to perform songs "Numb / Encore" and "Jigga What / Faint" album Collision Course . Transformers , philanthropy and other projects (2009-2010) Parallel to work with the new studio album in May 2009, the band again was part of the soundtrack of the film of the saga Transformers . Therefore gave advance to know the single "New Divide" released on May 28, 2009, thecentral theme for the film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen , with a more electronic sound, showing a somewhat more commercial side compared to its previous work. After completing the work for the film, the group returned to the studio to finish his album. January 2010, was released the song "Not Alone", a subject that is part of the album Download to Donate to Haitialong with other artists such as Dave Matthews Band, Peter Gabriel, Alanis Morissette, Slash, The All-American Rejects, Hoobastank, among others; produced by the organization Music For Relief, which donated all proceeds to victims of the Haiti earthquake of 2010. Moreover money, Shinoda designed two shirts, with sales of them were destined equally to the foundation, in order to provide support to survivors of earthquake and tsunami in Japan occurred in early 2011. the foundation published Download to Donate: tsunami Relief Japan , a compilation of songs whose benefits are for the organization Save the Children. On March 27, came to light a trailer for a game under the title of Linkin Park: 8 Bit Rebellion , by which unveiled a new song called "Blackbirds", then the issue was put as a bonus track for iTunes Deluxe Edition bonus tracks . Linkin Park: 8 Bit Rebellion is a massively multiplayer online based band, designed by themselves and being available for iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad, it can be seen six members the band designed in a way 8 bits. Each level is based on one of the group members. In it they are included some of his main themes, taken from his entire discography. The game was released on April 26, 2010, debuting on iTunes in number three in the category of best selling action games. A Thousand Suns (2010) In 2008, Chester announced in an interview for MTV that the fourth studio would be a "concept album." The band returned to the recording studio in 2009, thereafter and as proof began publishing information frequently as a puzzle in a not very clear way which revealed something about the new album band. Shinoda told the magazine IGN that the new album would be a "genre-busting" also mentioned that it would be more experimental and avant-garde. On July 7, 2009, Chester confirmed that Rick Rubin would return as producer on the new album. Ululame Festival on MTV, MTV interviewed Chester and said the new album by Linkin Park may be on the market by June 2010. A Thousand Suns was confirmed on July 8, it was announced that would leave the 14 September 2010 in the United States on the official website of the band, whose first single "The Catalyst", which was officially launched on 2 August of the same year. In July 2010, the video game developer Electronic Arts announced that this simple form part of the soundtrack of the game Medal of Honor . To already be available in the market, A Thousand Suns topped the charts in several countries, including the Billboard 200, as it sold more than 241,000 copies in its first week. The album debuted at number two in the UK , having sold 46,711 copies being surpassed by the album Science & Faithband The Script. To promote the album, the band began a concert tour that began in Los Angeles on September 7. On October 5, 2010 was published in iTunes the second single, "Waiting for the End". In addition, a documentary called A Thousand Suns: the full experience about the album's release, which was available in the MySpace of the band. In France, the album reached the fourth position, which is however less than the two previous albums. The third single from the album, "Burning in the Skies" was released on February 24, 2011. The music video premiered on MTV on March 21, 2011 and was directed by Joe Hahn. On April 13, 2011, Shinoda confirmed the album 's fourth single, "Iridescent". He also said he would have a slightly shorter version of the song for the soundtrack of the movie Transformers: the dark side of the moon . The music video was also directed by Joe Hahn and premiered on June 3, 2011 on the website of MTV and little later on YouTube. Linkin Park peaked at number eight on the Social Billboard 50 , a list of the most active artists on the major social networks in the world. In the graphics end of the year, the band reached number ninety-two in the list of top artists and also reached number fifty-three on the list Billboard 200 and number seven on the list of albums of rock , not However, "the Catalyst" obtained the number forty in the list of songs of rock , all belonging to the magazineBillboard. In 2010, they began their tour A Thousand Suns World Tour, starting first concerts in South America, where theyvisited Argentina and Chile on 7 and 9 October respectively. They were also on October 11 in Brazil, where they had played only once in 2004 during the tour of Meteora . They also conducted performances in Europe, Asia and Oceania. In 2011 the group was nominated in six categories in the awards Billboard , which were: top duo / group, album rock , artist rock , alternative artist, alternative song for "Waiting for the End" and alternative album, but did not win any awards . Living Things (2011-2012) In June 2011, Chester revealed to the magazine Kerrang! That Linkin Park had begun working on new material for their next album. He explained: "We have been working on a new album. The music is great and we are much more advanced than we expected to be. Not many noises, but there are many good songs. Probably generated a polarized reaction. Which pleases me. As an artist I expect a reaction. " The singer added that what they wanted on the album was to address controversial issues, instead of [deal] personal issues that touched on his first studio albums. "We have learned to write songs and serious lyrics, we have learned to deal with politics, faith and other things." Rick Rubin was the producer of the material again. This said, "Once a week we meet to hear all the material we have and discuss about it, this not make some mistakes made ​​in the process of recording the last two albums." In July 2011, Chester told the Rolling Stone Linkin Park aiming to produce a new album every eighteen months, and that he would be surprised if the new album is not ready for 2012. The band continued recording and producing the material even while they were on tour, something similar to what happened in the process of recording her album Meteora . In March 2012 the lead singer of the band spoke to the magazine Kerrang! About the new album saying, "We were so excited on our previous album, A Thousand Suns, was an experimental album that long Polarized followers of Linkin Park, but the group is aware of their actions. " This production did not have those characteristic musical elements of the band, which led to a series of disappointments for some. On the new album we will incorporate a lot of work with guitars, many choirs and a heavier electronic sound. The band revealed on March 28 on their official website that the album 's first single is called "Burn It Down"; which it was launched on 16 April 2012. Mike Shinoda confirmed on April 15 on its official blog that the fifth disc is calledLiving Things, which was the result of the mix of all the sounds and tastes of each Member of the group, referring to is the return to "authentic Hybrid Theory , " referring to the taste of the band when mixing sounds. This album was released on June 26, 2012. The first video of the album was the single "Burn It Down". The second video was the second single, "Lost in the Echo", which premiered on August 29, 2012, while the third was the "Castle of Glass" in conjunction with the video game Medal of Honor: Warfighter , released the October 10th. Recharged and The Hunting Party (2013-present) In May 2013 Bennington confirmed his collaboration with the band Stone Temple Pilots in a series of presentations, and record the EP High Rise serving as a new member of the same; however said that Linkin Park "remains a priority", that album was released on October 8, 2013 under the name "Stone Temple Pilots with Chester Bennington", this album contains the singles "Out of Time" and "Black Heart" . On October 29, 2013 Linkin Park released their second album remix, Recharged , in which his predecessor versions include Living Things , this material was released in different formats; CD, vinyl and digital download. In March 2014, Linkin Park released a new single titled "Guilty All the Same". The issue has the support of Rakim and is the first single from her last studio album, The Hunting Party , which premiered on June 17. On May 30, Linkin Park during a concert in Rock in Rio, released some CD The Hunting Party and with this, attendees who went to the concert published online single titled "Wastelands" then the band on their official website publish, becoming third single from the album. Just a few days later, on June 3, the band released through its YouTube channel song "Rebellion", which has the support of Daron Malakian (guitarist of the band System of a Down). In an intervention with AltWire on May 4, Shinoda said of The Hunting Party and the future of Linkin Park said; "I'm really happy with the reaction of The Hunting Party , and I think we're ready to move to a new place on the next album, which we expect for 2016". Blizzard Entertainment announced on October 20 that Linkin Park will be performing at the closing ceremony of BlizzCon 2015, Blizzard's video game convention. Style and composition Musical style After its publication, Hybrid Theory was appreciated for its innovative style and being key piece to mark the popularity of nu metal . His successor, Meteora , has a similar style, it has been described as the continuation of the first album. Both Hybrid Theory and Meteora had a sound metal alternative and rap metal with small influences ofrock industry, elements of hip hop and rock alternative, using programmers and synthesizers. In the latter magazineRolling Stone described the song "Breaking the Habit" as "bold and beautiful". In the remix album Reanimation the band shows a sound rap alternative, using many more electronic sounds and less guitars, conviertiendo many songs in unabridged issues hip hop . In Collision Course you can hear a sound of hardcore and pop rap because they recorded together with rapper Jay Z. In the album Minutes to Midnight , the band underwent a radical change in its sound representing a departure from rap rock , and that this album only two songs feature rap and most of the album are considered rock alternative. On the other hand the magazine NME criticized the approach of the band saying that Minutes to Midnight is "the sound of a band trying and failing to forge a new identity." In the review of the album in Allmusic , Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that the band sounds tense and nervous, making a rock rapwithout malice Limp Bizkit, the newspaper Los Angeles Times compared them with the work of U2. Using two types of song Linkin Park has made ​​feature the music of the group. The voice acting between Chester Bennington who serves as lead vocals and Mike Shinoda (vocals rap ) are important part of the music of Linkin Park, however in the third album, Shinoda sings lead vocals on the song "In Between" , "Hands Held High" and "No Roads Left" on the other side on their next album A Thousand Suns in four tracks from the same both Bennington and Shinoda sing. In most of the tracks on the album the band uses mainly electronic drums and a more industrial sound. Unlike his previous productions the album has been regarded as a turning point in the career of the band according to critics. James Mongomery of MTV compared this album with Kid A Radiohead. Musically the band has been influenced by other groups and singers. Mike Shinoda once explained that he and other members of the group have been greatly influenced by Chuck D and the band Public Enemy, Shinoda said: "Public Enemy is very three - dimensional and although they seemed political, there was also a lot of things out there that also made ​​me think how three - dimensional and so wanted it to be our record, without imitating, of course, and show that we are in a creative way. " themes Linkin Park has been characterized from the beginning by interpreting his songs in various topics covering different aspects from the personal to the social. Mostly lyrical themes that relate to the feelings, and social conflicts. The band has talked about various issues, changing throughout his discography. Hybrid Theory and Meteora speak mostly about conflicts in relationships, internal disorders and personal problems. The album Minutes to Midnight is generally much more "dark", as indicated by the name. First, it addresses the political sphere: Mike Shinoda expressed personally about the war in Iraq with the song "Hands Held High" and the closing song, "The Little Things Give You Away" refers to Hurricane Katrina which hit New Orleans in 2005. Similarly, the music video for the song "what I've Done" shows images of Gandhi, Hitler, Mao Tse Tung, Fidel Castro, among other prominent figures in history, he theme wars, riots addresses, testing nuclear destruction, environment and hunger. "Shadow of the Day" it is also based on public disturbances and death of innocents, also the subject of separation is played on the songs "In Pieces" and "Valentine's Day". His album A Thousand Suns covers topics that deal with nuclear war, "the concept of this album is about a nuclear war and generally any kind of war. In this production, the concept of human ideas is mixed with technology, ie, fears that humans have to imagine what will happen to the world in the future. " Mike Shinoda said in an interview on MTV. The disc name is a reference to the explosion of an atomic bomb. Include the group stands out for the reason that there are few insults in his lyrics. However Minutes To Midnight and A Thousand Suns are still marked with the Parental Advisory label by words that are considered inappropriate.