Review: Linkin Park's 'One More Light' Is A Pop Album

Linkin Park's debut album 'Hybrid Theory' remains to be the band's best selling album worldwide.

It came out in the year 2000 around the same time that "nu metal" was in style. Over the years though, the band changed up their music to include electronic elements too.

Even though Linkin Park changed up their style, they still remain to be a very popular band.

It's hard to judge album successes anymore as nobody buys CDs as often as they did several years ago. Alas, their recent album 'The Hunting Party' had elements of both the old and new Linkin Park.

It's been three years since the release of 'The Hunting Party' and fans have been eager to see what the band has been up to in 2017.

Well, they have released 'One More Light' and it's by far the band's most polarizing album to date. The band decided to ditch the nu metal and electronic sound for a more contemporary pop sound.

Before I begin talking about my thoughts on 'One More Light, I will say that this album is very short.

There are only 10 tracks in total and the album only lasts for 35 minutes! I thought Paramore's 'After Laughter' album was short when it came out earlier this month, but Linkin Park's album is two minutes shorter than that.

The album 'One More Light' itself is a mixed bag.

I admire the fact that Linkin Park want to experiment with new sounds, but this album fails to feature many songs that are memorable or catchy.

Not to mention the 'Hybrid Theory' fans are likely going to pretend that this album doesn't even exist.

Let's start off by talking about the songs that I thought were "good". The first single 'Heavy' is decent as it has a memorable chorus and the addition of Kiiara as a guest singer is a nice touch. It may not sound "heavy", but I think it's a good pop song.

The other good song in the album is called 'Good Goodbye'. This features raps from Mike Shinoda, Pusha T and Stormzy. It has hints of the old Linkin Park in there.

The rest of the album is okay, although there are still several songs that stay unmemorable no matter how many times I have listened to the album.

You won't remember many of the songs if you listen to the album for the first time. The album gets slightly better with multiple hearings, but the new sound is likely going to irk long time fans.

Chester Bennington (the main lead singer) even takes a backseat in favor for Mike Shinoda to sing. Shinoda actually has a better singing voice than Bennington, but most fans expect him to rap not to sing.

The rest of the album sounds like the usual pop songs that feature on the radio. It appears as if Linkin Park want to attract the same crowd that listens to the likes of Chainsmokers and/or Twenty One Pilots.

In terms of comparing this album to older songs, "One More Light" is like a whole album of songs that sound like 'Iridescent'. That being said, 'Iridescent' is a decent song because it was featured in an album that wasn't full of only soft pop songs.

When the whole album sounds soft, it gets monotonous when all of the songs start to sound the same. I prefer albums that are more diverse with a mix of sounds instead.

Verdict: 2.5/5

Wanna read more on this? Check these out: Linkin Park's Chester Bennington Dies at 41, Leaves Almost $30 Million (more); Common and OK GO Will Headline The Lowdown Hudson Music Fest (more); Harry Styles Debuts The 'Sign of the Times' Music Video (more); Miley Cyrus Clarifies Statement On Hip-Hop Music (more).

And here are some more related articles: Listening To New Music From Betty Moon, Vacances And Everywhere (more); Can't Stop Won't Stop: A Bad Boy Story To Hit Apple Music In June (more); Marvel Music Releases 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.

2: Awesome Mix Vol. 2' (more).

A few more: The Roots To Be Honored At Third Street Music School Settlement Spring Gala (more); Watch Kate Upton's Super Steamy 'Baby One More Time' Music Video (more).