LINKIN PARK SAYS THEY CHANGED MUSIC, NOT RUBIN

Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda says it wasn’t Rick Rubin that changed their sound, it was the band itself.

Linkin Park’s Minutes To Midnight is less than a week away from hitting store shelves, and many who are not prepared for their new sound don’t blame the band.

The band’s follow-up to Meteora was produced by Rick Rubin. Fans have been saying on several message boards and blogs that he’s changed their sound. Vocalist/multi-instrumentalist — and co-producer — Mike Shinoda dispels any notion that the change in Linkin Park’s style was made by the famous producer.

“I don’t agree with that. I go on the message board. You go ask anybody on the Linkin Park message boards, they know I’m on there and they know the band is watching. The band goes on occasionally we’ve always been very active with the fans and we stay that way. We know what people are saying out there, and I have to say: Number One – we call them the vocal minority. There are a smaller number of people who are very vocal, and then there’s a lot of people who sit there and they do their own thing.”

Shinoda says Minutes To Midnight will be a challenging, but ultimately rewarding experience for their fans.

“Yeah, as we were writing the record we knew going into it that this would be a challenge for people. This is not the same kind of record. If you’re expecting Hybrid Theory Part 3, I’m sorry. You’re going to have to buy another copy of Hybrid Theory or some other band that’s trying to do that style because we’re not going to do it for ya.”

Linkin Park’s Minutes To Midnight de-emphasizes the hip-hop elements in their songs, but with that being said, Shinoda’s vocal work was very instrumental. Fans who buy the deluxe version of the set can hear and see Shinoda laying down early melody lines and vocals for the songs on the album. Their song “What I’ve Done” is topping radio airplay charts in virtually all rock formats.