Linkin Park and 30 Seconds to Mars
Carnivores Tour – August 29th, 2014
First Midwest Bank Amphitheater – Chicago, IL
I bought tickets 15 minutes after I saw this show was going to happen. I was in a conference room at a client site and saw the notification come across (Thanks Bandsintown!), texted a friend, and pulled the trigger. It’s amazing how willing I am to drop $175 and book a hotel and drive to Chicago, but this was such a unique opportunity to see these two bands together. Originally, I thought this was a strange pairing – Alt Rock legends 30 Seconds to Mars with Nu-Metal giants Linkin Park, but I later learned that the pairing was at the request of the LP fans. Kudos to them for this suggestion – it ended up as a great one.
30 Seconds to Mars
AFI led off this show and played a pretty good show. They didn’t sound great, mostly as a result of a sound system that was not set perfectly for them, but hey, who doesn’t love a little Miss Murder. When the AFI set ended, the energy in the arena was palpable – usually an environment that is reserved for the headliner. I had to remind myself that there was in fact two bands left – moreso than any show I’ve been to, this felt like a true co-headlining event.
For those that don’t know, I am a huge 30 Seconds to Mars fan. I think the band is extremely creative and puts on a fantastic show, and this show would prove to be no exception. Musically, the band sounded extremely tight and in sync – Shannon is a great drummer, and Nomo certainly holds his own on the guitar, but anyone who watches 30STM has little doubt where the heart and soul of this band lie. Lead Singer Jared Leto shined on this night (as he always does), floating around the stage, sprinting and spinning and twirling an American flag, all while effortlessly soaring through high-register vocals that easily qualify him as a best-in-biz front man.
As they played through monster songs like Up in the Air, Search and Destroy, and City of Angels, the band induced a palpable joy in the crowd, one that you could see on people’s faces and hear as they sang and shouted lyrics at the top of their lungs. I wish I could explain better why the audience is such a great part of a 30STM show. Somehow the band finds a way to make their set feel so….BIG….like there are 10 million people all out there, and each and everyone of them is completely lost in the moment. The passion in the fans gives the show another dimension – like you are part of it, rather than watching it.
From a song perspective, I thought the show did a great job of focusing on the new album (which I think is by far their strongest), while also paying homage to the “must plays” from the previous releases. In addition to previously mentioned tracks, they also played Do or Die, Conquistador, and Birth, off the latest album, and King and Queens and This is War off the previous album. About an hour into the show, Jared took his mic and guitar out to a small stand at the back of the pavilion, where the seats meet the lawn area. Here, surrounded by screaming fans, he played two acoustic songs (Alibi and The Kill). He also brought a little boy up to sing with him, and then comically looked at the little boy and said “Sorry buddy. Your concert experiences are all down hill from here.” The acoustic part of the show sounded great, but for those of us with tickets at the very front, it made it tough to see and was a bit of a lull in the show. In addition, a popular topic on the car ride home was how we all really wanted to listen to Leto destroy The Kill, and while the acoustic version was pretty, it didn’t quite cut the mustard. 
Leto closed the show after The Kill….but of course the unwavering crowd “convinced” them to come back out and play two more songs. The encore opened up with a very refreshing instrumental jam version of Pantera’s Cowboys from Hell. I don’t know that this was the intention, but I got a chuckle out of this, as my mind immediately pointed towards all my “metal” friends that think 30STM aren’t “hard” enough. Finally, after pulling countless audience members on stage, as they are wont to do, they closed with their biggest hit to date, Closer to the Edge. It’s three days later, and I can still hear the crowd screaming “NO! NO! NO! NO!”
As a small side note, I’d like to point out that for the second consecutive 30 Seconds to Mars concert that I’ve seen, Leto has pointed DIRECTLY AT ME in the front row and called on me to be one of the participants to come on stage. Also for the second consecutive time, the security guards who have to pull people over the fence took one look at me and thought “uhhh, no.” That’s what I get for being 6’6″ and 250 lbs. #discrimination #imnotbitter
Here’s the bottom line about this show. People LOVE this band. The Kill has nearly 40 million views on Youtube, they sell out arenas all over the world. I strongly believe that the loyal following they have built has a lot to do with how great they are live. This show was just another data point that proves that the passion people feel for this band is completely justified. Great, GREAT show.
Linkin Park
Linkin Park put on an absolute clinic. In a completely dynamic set that lasted almost 2 hours, Linkin Park made a statement about what it means to be a unique band. They delivered twenty-eight (thats right….TWENTY EIGHT) masterpiece songs, all of which I knew, and each of which was completely unique and different. There was truly something to love for fans of every type of music – Let me try to paint a picture of how far-reaching the music from this show was:
- Of course, a primary theme throughout the show was the classic nu-metal/rap-rock sound that made Linkin Park an overnight commercial success. Lots of songs featured what Linkin Park is famous for – nu metal smash hits with Bennington’s strong vocals and a varying degree of rap-rock involvement. Songs like New Divide, Numb, Crawling in the Dark, and more showed the recipe that Linkin Park has used for years to garner millions of fans.
- Peppered in with the nu-metal rap/rock stuff, LP also features full-blown rap songs. Mike Shinoda, the jack-of-all-trades that is impossible to really ever figure out, has incredibly impressive chops. In addition to songs that just have a taste of his rapping abilities (like Papercut, Bleed it Out, and Faint), the show also songs that could anchor a rap show, like Wretches and Kings, and a few songs off of the joint album they did with Jay-Z. Shinoda shines on this portion of the show – more on him later, but I believe in terms of a utility musician, nobody beats Shinoda’s talent and breadth.
- They also played the songs that have a metalcore feel. The song Rebellion features Bennington’s vein-popping screams, which left me drawing comparisons to him and guys like Oli Sykes or Matt Heafy. This song could absolutely be at home on Warped Tour, and is just another testament to how vast their library is.
- In a classic pace change, Bennington spent 3 songs at the piano with Shinoda with no lights on, just singing his heart out in full-on Ballads. Specifically, Leave Out All the Rest and Shadow of the Day left little room for a vocalist to hide, and Bennington was flawless. At the end of this, as the band came back on stage one-by-one, and the vocals got more and more complex. Eventually, I heard five part harmonies from five different guys (Bennington, Shinoda, Guitarist Brad Delson, Bassist Dave Farrell, and Samples guy Joe Hahn). Spot on five part harmonies. From a rock band. Unbelieveable.
- Finally, if the four previous points didn’t make my point, there was about a 15 minute section of the show that could have headlined an Electronica/EDM festival. Shinoda on Keys and Joe Hahn on samples and turntables, with the drummer keeping pace, was insane. I’m not goin to a Deadmau5 concert any time soon, but I was certainly entertained for the duration of this portion of the show.
That was the best part of this Linkin Park show. You never knew what was next. Anything and everything was fair game, and it kept the show entertaining for nearly two and a half hours. I totally understand if Linkin Park isn’t your thing, but I just don’t understand how you can’t respect the hell out of them. They refuse to be pigeon-holed, boxed into one area of music. Rather, they write music that will challenge people and their preconceived notions about music. They will forever act as a great example of why I hate the word “genre”. Fantastic band, and fantastic performance.
Visually, the set was incredible. It featured massive (20 ft) moving LED panels that at times encased the drummer and turntables. What made this cool is that depending on what was displayed on the LED panel, LP could control when you could see the musicians that were encased, and when you simply saw what was displayed on the LED panel. Very cool visual effects, and something that I’ve not seen before.
For such a long set, this is a short blog. The simple fact is this – I can throw as many adjectives and superlatives as I want at this show, but it wouldn’t do it justice. I’ve seen LP before, but this show elevated them into rare stratospheres only inhabited by bands like Muse, Slipknot, and Rob Zombie. As many risks as they took up there, as many dynamics that they brought in, every single minute was exceptional. Money well spent.
Thanks for reading! Lots of exciting winter shows coming up so stay tuned for more content!
“You were the love of my life, the darkness, the light. This is a portrait of a tortured you and I. Is this the, is this the, is this the end? I’ll wrap my hands around your neck so tight with love, love, love.”