Nick Takes On: Linkin Park's A Thousand Suns

When I first heard the single The Catalyst of off Linkin Park's latest release A Thousand Suns, I had high hopes. It sounded very much like the LP of old to me, albeit a little more industrial.

After listening to the album in whole, I can see why they chose that song as the lead single. It was essentially their only choice.

The rest of the disc comes off more as a Kraftwerk meets Pink Floyd with some unnecessary MF bombs thrown in for good measure. It flows, almost seamlessly, from one track to another without breaks and gives the impression of a themed or conceptual album. Unfortunately, it does not work. The songs all have the same slow, plotting pace with the sole exception being The Catalyst.

Fans will hope that this was just a sidetrack project and that they return to the rock/rap style that gave them their popularity in the early aughts. If not, this could be the beginning of the end for the California sextet.

1."The Requiem" 2:01
2."The Radiance" (featuring an interview portion of J. Robert Oppenheimer)0:57
3."Burning in the Skies" 4:13
4."Empty Spaces" 0:18
5."When They Come for Me" 4:53
6."Robot Boy" 4:29
7."Jornada del Muerto" 1:34
8."Waiting for the End" 3:51
9."Blackout" 4:39
10."Wretches and Kings" (featuring an interview portion of Mario Savio)4:10
11."Wisdom, Justice, and Love" (Linkin Park, Martin Luther King, Jr.)1:38
12."Iridescent" 4:56
13."Fallout" 1:23
14."The Catalyst" 5:42
15."The Messenger" 3:01