Following the death of their lead vocalist Chester Bennington in 2017 the American rock band Linkin Park went on hiatus. During that time the band did not make any new music or go on tour, only releasing reissues for two of their previous albums that had anniversaries and one greatest hits album.
In 2024, it was announced that Linkin Park would be going on a “reunion tour” with the remaining members and a new female vocalist in place of Bennington. Lead vocalist of the American rock band Dead Sara, Emily Armstrong, joined Linkin Park on stage that night and for the rest of the tour.
The eighth studio album from Linkin Park, From Zero, a title playing off the history of the band having originally gone by Xero from 1996-1999. It is an aggressive comeback for the band and truly feels like a tribute to the fans. Stand-out tracks like “The Emptiness Machine,” “Cut the Bridge,” “Heavy Is the Crown,” “Two Faced”, and “IGYEIH” bring the Linkin Park sound that has attracted so many fans before. Sounding so similar to that ‘Linkin Park sound’ that it has driven many fans to use AI and put Chester Bennington’s voice in place of Emily Armstrong.
From Zero is a very polarizing album amongst Linkin Park fans. Some believe the band just isn’t Linkin Park without Chester, and many think it’s a disgrace to his memory, but others don’t see the problem. Whether it’s Emily Armstrong or Chester Bennington or whoever, Linkin Park does have a sound and all you need is a lead vocalist that can help encapsulate that.
In an interview with Chester Bennington, where he was asked when he learned how to scream, Chester responded: “There was this track that Mike was like, ‘Hey can you scream here’ and I didn’t know if I could. Well, about two days later he told me I had to scream on every song going forward.” Apparently this was said as a joke but it’s not too far from the truth.
Chester Bennignton’s scream became an integral part of Linkin Park and many of their biggest hits capitalize on how long Chester could scream. Like on “Given Up” where he delivers his vein popping eighteen-second long scream. Mike Shinoda, Linkin Park co-founder, knew how important the screams were in their songs. Emily Armstong’s vocal work with Dead Sara was one of the deciding factors behind her getting signed. Armstong can scream.
Shinoda jokingly told Armstong to “get your screaming pants on” during the ending of the song “Over Each Other” and transition to “Casualty”. The rock album’s heaviest song is where Armstong really puts her “screaming pants on” whereas each song before sounded like a warmup.
Linkin Park’s eighth studio album, From Zero, is a tribute to the fans and while it might not be the best album from the band, it shows a clear sign that they’re not done yet … whether they continue with Armstong or not. What may not be the best Linkin Park album can sometimes turn out to be one of the best Dead Sara albums.