Concert Review -- Linkin Park

Located at Shanghai Stadium
Performed August 15, 2009

I walked into Shanghai Stadium on Saturday night with no clue what to expect. Having never seen Linkin Park live or a big concert in China, only one thing was certain; I was ready to rock! Before the show was an international smorgasbord of friends and acquaintances. We consumed a predictable assortment of beverages in a living room while rocking out. If we knew the services of Shanghai Stadium were like that of the famed Betty Ford Clinic, we would have “turned it up a notch.”

As we made our way through traffic and the familiar mayhem of a big show, I felt we were in for a good show because of the massive crowd. Westerners were only scarcely scattered about the mobs of thousands descending upon 八万人体育场 “80,000 people’s Stadium.” Making it to our seats (300RMB or about 44USD) just before the first song “Session” ended I wondered if there was an opening band that we missed. LP had taken the stage within twenty minutes of their listed 8:00pm (20:00) starting time. Wow! That was a first for me. My friends were hungry and there were no bearded or dreaded groupies selling munchies outside, nor was there anything besides popcorn or ice cream inside. I was thirsty for cold beer and resorted to chewing gum. We were S.O.L.

The opening chord which we heard while scrambling to find our section electrified the crowd. I had no idea there were thousands (30,000 plus at the show) of LP fans in Shanghai. Not many bands successfully crossover to Asia besides everyone’s favorite Backstreet Boys and Westlife. The unique sound that I thought LP were innovators of quickly unraveled inside my head. I could hear 311 and Rage Against The Machine being emulated throughout the concert. “From The Inside”, a teen anthem that I still knew some words to while the crowd surrounding me knew every single line. The songs were not as memorable as the band because of the poor acoustics in the stadium. I could hardly make out a single lyric that the talented Mike Shinoda spit. Chester Bennington’s lead vocals were better live than on their studio songs. He can scream like a real metal singer needs to. There was a three song period when Shinoda moved from rapping, to playing the lead guitar, then playing the keyboard. Shinoda proved that he is the most talented member of the group besides the thumping drummer Rob Bourdon. Bourdon had a drum solo before the encore that was phenomenal.

Songs like “New Divide” from Transformers 2 which started the encore was a true adrenaline rush. “In The End” and “Bleed It Out” were also quite crisp allowing LP’s musical cohesiveness to shine on Shanghai’s biggest stage. The presence of the band was impressive. There was some Cab Calloway-esque crowd calling/control led by lead singer Bennington which was fun. Besides an LP member wearing an actual Metallica shirt the pulsing white lights created an energy that felt like a Metallica show. The encore was a bit short, and many fans including myself were quite shocked when an Alan Jackson (or some other awful new country star) song was gently played signaling the end of the evening.

Overall this was a good show and I had fun. No set break was new for me, but without beverages and other recreational activities I am glad it was absent. LP can put on a helluva show. There were minutes when my head naturally banged, and there were songs that made my girlfriend and I hold each other. Although LP didn’t invent this late 20th Century “rock-hop” sound, they have refined it and made it something millions of people all over the world love.

*J Rocc, the founder of The World Famous Beat Junkies Crew (CA, USA) and the third member of Jaylib (J Dilla and Madlib) and will spinning the best Hip-Hop has to offer at The Shelter (which was a bomb shelter) next Friday the 28th of August here in Shanghai’s French Concession. I will be there, but I will not be square.

(Review by Thomas Demerath)