How Far has Linkin Park gone ‘From Zero?’

By Herrick Swirbalus

At a certain time, it would have been considered impossible to have a Linkin Park reunion. Following the tragic and early passing of legendary vocalist Chester Bennington in 2017, the band’s journey was complete, and so was their legacy. Linkin Park was one of, if not the most important metal/rap rock bands of the 2000’s who set the framework for the metal scene to come. From Chester’s iconic screaming vocals alone, most people could recognize famous tracks like “One Step Closer,” “In The End,” “Numb,” and so many more. Linkin Park was a powerhouse of a group, which is why almost everyone thought Linkin Park couldn’t exist without Chester and the other original members. 

However when side vocalist Mike Shinoda announced the band’s return this year with new vocalist Emily Armstrong of alternative rock group Dead Sara, most people were both surprised and confused. In addition, original drummer Rob Bourdon did not return to the band, having Colin Brittain from All Time Low fill the spot. Despite Emily’s questionable history and morals, she showed up to fill Chester’s shoes with the first single of the band’s upcoming album From Zero: “The Emptiness Machine.” Now that the album is here, the fans have mixed feelings about this “reunion” of Linkin Park and their album From Zero.

Overall, I think From Zero remained very directionless, and hasn’t really achieved anything for the band’s legacy. While the songwriting was solid on most tracks, I think the execution came off as relatively sloppy, sometimes with Emily’s vocal performances. Although her style of singing is very raw and intense, similar to Chester’s, she was definitely pushed out of her comfort zone with singing on some of these songs like “IGYEIH” and “Two Faced.” She is a very talented vocalist, and I would honestly say she sounds a lot more like Chester than most vocalists could. I respect and appreciate that although the quality and execution of the music isn’t perfect, From Zero definitely has remnants of Linkin Park’s classic sound from earlier in their career. Of course it can be a good thing for artists to change up their sound, but for a group like Linkin Park who is this late into their well established career, it is definitely to their benefit to play into what they know works.

Mike Shinoda definitely had a more commanding role in this album. He sang on almost every song, which reminded me heavily of the Meteora era. In reality, most of these songs like “Two Faced” and “Stained” sounded very much like authentic Linkin Park. However, they fell short on the actual execution and recording process to deliver to the fans. I can definitely see myself returning to songs like “The Emptiness Machine” and “Casualty,” but as an overall project I would have liked to see Linkin Park put more effort into making From Zero an actual return for the band, instead of a remade commercialization of a once-legendary band.

My critiques don’t represent hate for the band. I love Linkin Park and I am so happy to see them return, but I wish this From Zero era was a more defined time for the band that comes off as authentic instead of commercial. It isn’t like this album cycle will stain the reputation of the band, but I have a feeling it will not be remembered in their legacy. Emily isn’t the same as Chester, but she certainly stepped up to the challenge of filling his position and did a better job than I think most people could. Although From Zero didn’t deliver on all fronts musically, at least Linkin Park is back. They have already started playing shows across the world, just finishing up a run of shows in São Paulo, and in the spring of 2025 they will start their From Zero World Tour with some newer artists like JPEGMAFIA, Spiritbox, Architects and more. To me, the concept of seeing these unique and diverse artists open for a borderline legacy act like Linkin Park is so special. The whole world is going to be lucky enough to hear songs from Linkin Park’s entire category live, which is something that most die hard fans never would have been able to dream of. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion about the album and technicalities of the reunion, but at the end of the day we have Linkin Park again, which is something worth being grateful for.