This is a great read which brings us ‘One Step Closer’ to one of the best bands of this millennium, Linkin Park. I turned the pages so quickly I was in danger of getting a ‘Papercut’. The author made so many excellent ‘Points [of Authority]’ and had some interesting takes which I couldn’t have thought up ‘By Myself’. OK, I’m ‘Breaking the Habit’ now of stuffing song titles into the review…

I had my eye on this book for a while, ever since I caught up with Linkin Park’s back catalogue after being impressed with their comeback album From Zero. The book was written in late 2023, I think, so it didn’t go that far. Although the majority of information and quotes in the book can be found elsewhere, if you trawl through a lot of articles, videos etc, it’s well put-together into a cohesive look at the band’s origins, rise to fame, chart success and influence. What I thought was most valuable, however, was the author’s twin perspectives of music critic and fan. His descriptions of the music are very effective and he provides valuable context on topics such as rock styles, chart trends, changes in music consumption and mental health representation in music. With his other hat on (perhaps an LP baseball cap?) he is around the same age as me and was a young teen when Hybrid Theory came out. He critiques the music of Linkin Park and the band members’ side projects in a way that you know he’s a fan.

The book has a particular focus on the band’s early career; halfway through, we’ve only reached the second album, Meteora. I would have liked more space given to the later albums too, more descriptions of the shows, and more about the band members other than Mike and Chester (to be fair, as the vocalists and biggest personalities they were always going to have more attention). The author discusses a handful of songs in more detail, which are most significant in LP’s career. However, I liked that he put his personal views in there too. He wants justice for A Thousand Suns, the nuclear-themed electronic album which is bold and genius but not critically appreciated enough at the time. He thinks the video for ‘One Step Closer’ is embarrassingly silly, but doesn’t he realise it’s iconic, floating monks and all? He considers that Out of Ashes, the album from Chester’s band Dead by Sunrise, wasn’t as successful as it deserved to be, overshadowed by the LP single ‘New Divide’ (it’s a great song, but he’s right, the sound is too safe). He also makes fair assessments on One More Light, the band’s last album (at the time he was writing), with its change in direction from heavy rock, to expertly-crafted radio-friendly pop which baffled both fans and critics. The last few chapters of the book are devoted to the memorial concert, tributes and the legacy of the band. There is a small section of black and white photos.

There are a few oddities about the book. In one chapter, Brad plays the trumpet at school, but in the next, it was the trombone! There are some ‘interludes’ taken from interviews with other musicians but mostly I don’t think they add much. Further appraisal of the music videos, in which Mr Hahn had a major role, would have been welcome. The tone of the book is possibly a little too professional, or sanitised, I’m not sure how to describe it. The strong focus on chart performance and quotes from serious interviews about the music-making process don’t leave much room for anecdotes which would bring more colour to the narrative. However, these are minor criticisms and I thought it was a very well-written read which, although preaching to the converted, emphasises the talent and influence of Linkin Park in the context of the 2000s, music trends and popular culture.

‘In the End,’ this book was definitely worth reading. It’s ‘Crawling’ on to my list of top reads this year. I may have ‘Lost’ the plot somewhat on this review, so I’m saying ‘Good Goodbye’.

Published by Hachette, 2024.