Meteora is the second studio album by Americanrock bandLinkin Park, released on March 25, 2003, throughWarner Bros. Records. It followedReanimation, a collaboration album which featured remixes of songs included on their 2000 debut studio albumHybrid Theory. The album was produced by the band alongside Don Gilmore. The titleMeteora is taken from theGreek Orthodox monasteries originally bearing the name.[1]Meteora has a similar sound toHybrid Theory, as described by critics, and the album took almost a year to be recorded. It is the first Linkin Park studio album to feature bassistDave "Phoenix" Farrell after he rejoined the band in 2000 following his temporary touring with other bands.
Meteora debuted at number one on theBillboard 200, selling over 810,000 copies in its first week.[2] Linkin Park released singles fromMeteora for over a year, including "Somewhere I Belong", "Faint", "Numb", "From the Inside", and "Breaking the Habit". "Lying from You" was released in March 2004 as a promotional single.Meteora received generally positive reviews, although some critics felt the album's style was too similar to its predecessor.
In February 2023, it was announced that the band would release a20th anniversary edition ofMeteora on April 7, 2023. They released a previously never-before-heard outtake from the album titled "Lost" as the lead single of the reissue.[4][5]
In 2000, Linkin Park worked withmusic producer Don Gilmore to record and release their debut album,Hybrid Theory. Initial writing for a second album dated back to early 2001, while still touring in support ofHybrid Theory. The band had written around eighty different demos during theirHybrid Theory World Tour andLP Underground Tour, within the span of just eight months.[6] Rough song ideas written then would find its way to the final album; notably the intro for "Somewhere I Belong". Lead singerChester Bennington recorded guitar notes for it,[1] but found it toofolk rock sounding. However, bandmatesMike Shinoda andJoe Hahn reworked it, adding effects to it, and then played it backwards, molding it into something the band was happy with. As explained by Shinoda: "Since I reversed it, it was playing 4-3-2-1. The chord progression was reversed. Then I cut it into four pieces, and I played it 1-2-3-4. And that's why it has that sweeping sound."[7][1]
We really learned the meaning of pressure. But it wasn't pressure from outside people. It was artistic pressure from ourselves. You can't control the commercial success of a record, so there's no point in investing energy in that. But the quality of your record is entirely up to you, and you can't blame anyone else if you write crappy songs. Before we didMeteora, I listened toHybrid Theory andReanimation, and I was like, "Dude, I'm really proud of these records. I don't remember how we did it, and I don't know how we're gonna do it again. We're kind of screwed." Then, fortunately, we were able to invest ourselves fully in the process for 18 months, and that helped us make a really great record.[8]
– GuitaristBrad Delson, speaking about the album's writing background withMTV
Prior to releasing a second album, the band instead chose to release a remix album,Reanimation, in 2002, produced by Shinoda. The experience led the band to want to co-produce their second album, while still working with Gilmore, hoping to expand on the sound ofHybrid Theory with more experimental ideas.[9] In early 2002, after the touring, the writing continued in Mike's home studio, pre-production of the album began there. The band worked in pairs during the writing process, whereas Shinoda was always involved in all the songs. The recording of the songs mainly usedPro Tools, whereas the band used the traditional method of writing, in main studio. In June, pre-production terminated and the band headed for main production. The band finalized Don Gilmore as their producer. WhenReanimation was released, the band had started to write the main content. DrummerRob Bourdon spent eight hours a day in the studio for the recording of the album. By August, the band enteredNRG Studios as Bennington also began writing songs with the band.[10][11][12]
We knew what we wanted, and we knew how to execute to a certain degree. However, we were also just going for it. We didn't really care about what anybody else was doing. We also didn't care whether or not the songs fit together stylistically as a whole or a collection of songs. It was more like, "This riff is sick!" Then, we'd just scream over it, and the next song would be a mid-tempo ballad and you'd sing the way that song needed to be sang. We were testing. We were students in college. We were in the lab, and we happened to stumble across something everybody liked and it worked. I thinkMeteora was an extension of that.
Mike Shinoda (pictured) participated in the writing of all the songs.
Linkin Park had finished rough versions of many songs before entering the studio to begin recording. They spent the time in the studio to create the sound for the album and write the lyrics. By October, the drum recordings were completed and guitar parts were introduced. By the middle of October, the bass parts were introduced. The scratching and sampling parts by Hahn were introduced just a month before the deadline. The song "Breaking the Habit" featured live strings arranged byDavid Campbell; the song had been worked on by Shinoda for five or six years.[13][failed verification] The vocal recordings began on a song after all the instruments were finished for it. The band went to New York for mixing withAndy Wallace, where the album was finished in December 2002.
Lyrically, the album contains elements including depressing emotions, anger, and recovery. Explaining toMTV, Bennington said: "We don't talk about situations, we talk about the emotions behind the situations. Mike and I are two different people, so we can't sing about the same things, but we both know about frustration and anger and loneliness and love and happiness, and we can relate on that level." In the same interview, Shinoda explained it as: "What we really wanted to do was just push ourselves and push each other to really find new ways to be creative." He continued: "We wanted each sample that was in each song to be something that might perk your ear – something that you might not have ever heard before."[14]
In a promotional interview, Rob Bourdon stated: "We wanted a group of songs that would sit well together because we wanted to make a record that you could pop into your CD player and, from beginning to end, there would never be a spot where you start daydreaming."[14]
In titling the album, Mike said that "Meteora was a word that caught my attention because it sounded huge." Dave, Joe, and Chester elaborated that just like howMeteora, the rock formation in Greece, is very epic, dramatic, and has great energy, the band wanted the album to have that same feeling.[1]
The promotion for the album began well ahead of its release, as pictures of the band recording were distributed to the media. To support the album, there were many photo shoots of the band on October 29, 2002 at theAmbassador Hotel, where the band took a break from recording the album for two days, for designing the cover art of the album. "The Flem" and "Delta" helped the band for the art works, for the album as well as for the singles spawned by it. A TV commercial for the album was premiered on January 1, 2003.
"Somewhere I Belong" was released as the lead single and premiered on US radio on February 24, 2003. Being released a month before the album release, it influenced the album sales performance worldwide. The second single off the album was "Faint", released before the band started its world tour. The third single "Numb" was released when Linkin Park performed it live inMadrid. "From the Inside" was released as the fourth single off the album before the North American leg of the world tour. "Breaking the Habit" was released while the band was in Indonesia. The album was released with various limited edition content for promotional purposes.
There is a special edition ofMeteora, which includes the "Making ofMeteora" DVD documentary. The special-edition package was packaged in a blue tinted case with the blueMeteora cover that can be found in some parts of Asia, United States, and more commonly inIndia. An alternate Indian version contains an alternate DVD and alternative cover that is packaged in a slimline case with the disc in original packaging. The "Tour Edition" ofMeteora is packaged in a two disc set. The second disc, which is aVideo CD, has the music videos for "Somewhere I Belong", "Faint", "Numb", and "Breaking the Habit". The tour edition is packaged in a standard Compact Disc case, rather than their trademarkdigipak case. The album was also released on a very limited quantity of vinyl records (spread across twoLPs) underWarner Brothers. These are coveted by collectors and fetch high prices at auction. In 2014, Linkin Park released a demo version of Shinoda singing the song, on their 14th annual fan club CD, LPU XIV.
The band promoted the album with their Meteora World Tour and various other supporting tours. The world tour was supported byHoobastank,P.O.D. andStory of the Year. The band played shows atPellissier Building and Wiltern Theatre on the day before the album release and on the release date. The shows were called "'Meteora' Release Show". The European leg was cancelled because Chester was having severe back and abdominal pains. As a result, half of the music video of "Numb" was shot inLos Angeles and theCzech Republic. The album was also promoted by theProjekt Revolution festival. A live album was released in support of the album titledLive in Texas. Linkin Park played various special shows worldwide, including "Reading Ireland", as well as performing during theKerrang! Awards, "Livid", "X-103's Not So Silent Night", "The End's Deck The Hall Ball" and "KROQ Almost Acoustic X-Mas", in promotion of the album.
Meteora received generally positive reviews, although critics noted that the album's musical style was similar to its predecessor,Hybrid Theory (2000). The overallMetacritic score is 62.[20]E! Online rated it A, and expected it to "shoot straight for the stars".[24]Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B+, calling it a "thunderously hooky album that seamlessly blends the group's disparate sonic elements into radio-friendly perfection."[25]Dot Music described it as a "guaranteed source of ubiquitous radio hits".[30]Rolling Stone said the band "squeezed the last remaining life out of this nearly extinct formula".[18]Billboard Magazine describedMeteora as "a ready-made crowdpleaser".[31] TheNew Musical Express said it had "massive commercial appeal" but left the reviewer "underwhelmed".[28]
Writing forAllMusic,Stephen Thomas Erlewine described the album as "nothing more and nothing less than aHybrid Theory part 2.", but added that the band "has discipline and editing skills, keeping this record at a tight 36 minutes and 41 seconds, a move that makes it considerably more listenable than its peers... since they know where to focus their energy, something that many nu-metal bands simply do not."[21]Sputnikmusic writer Damrod criticized the album as being too similar toHybrid Theory, but praised the album's production quality and catchiness, stating "the songs just invade your brain".[32]
Blender described it as "harder, denser, uglier",[33] whileQ described it as "less an artistic endeavor than an exercise in target marketing."[34]
In its first week,Meteora debuted at number one on theBillboard 200. The album sold 810,400 copies in the US and 36,700 inCanada its first week of release.[36] In its second week, it sold an additional 265,000 copies in the US and stayed at the top for another week.[37] As of June 2014, the album has sold 6.2 million copies in the US,[38] and around 16 million copies worldwide.[39] The album was ranked number 36 onBillboard'sHot 200 Albums of the Decade.[3]
As of April 2023, the album has sold 8.55 million equivalent album units and 6.49 million in pure album sales in the US.[40]
In January 2023, the band started teasing the 20th anniversary ofMeteora by updating their website, featuring a countdown to February 1, where it was speculated that they would be announcing something related to their second album.[42][43] By the time that the countdown concluded, the website was updated again in the style of an interactive game that progressed every day up until the announcement of "Lost", on February 6, to commemorate the album's 20th anniversary.[44] The previously unreleased track was released on February 10 as the lead single alongside the official announcement of the 20th anniversary reissue.[45][46] A second single, also previously unreleased, entitled "Fighting Myself" was released on March 24.[47] The 20th anniversary reissue was released on April 7.[48]
The 20th anniversary super deluxe edition ofMeteora, promoted asMeteora20, features the original tracklist; an extended release ofLive in Texas, featuring tracks previously omitted from the CD release; a previously unreleased live performance atNottingham, England in 2003, titledLive in Nottingham 2003; previously released demos for the Linkin Park Underground fan club, titledLPU Rarities 2.0; previously released live recordings, titledLive Rarities 2003–2004; previously unreleased demos, titledLost Demos; and three DVDs: the first disc feature the previously releasedThe Making of Meteora andThe Art of Meteora documentaries, along with a new documentary titledWork in Progress, while the second and third discs feature previously unreleased live performances from 2003 and 2004 respectively.[49][50] The Deluxe CD features the original Andy Wallace mix of "Lost", called "Lost (2002 Mix)", as the 14th track of the first disc, after "Numb".[51]
Lost Demos was later released on vinyl forRecord Store Day Black Friday 2023.[52]
Meteora – Live Around the World is a live album which features live versions of seven songs from the second studio album,Meteora, similar to their prior live release,Hybrid Theory – Live Around the World. They were recorded in various cities around the world from 2007 to 2011. The album was released exclusively oniTunes.
Mike Shinoda – co-lead and rap vocals, samples, strings arrangement ("Faint" & "Breaking the Habit"), rhythm guitar ("Somewhere I Belong", "Easier to Run", "Faint", & "From the Inside"), piano ("Somewhere I Belong", "Session", & "Numb"), keyboard ("Lying from You", "Easier to Run", "Breaking the Habit", "From the Inside", "Figure.09", & "Session")
Additional musicians
David Campbell – strings arrangement ("Faint" & "Breaking the Habit")
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
^"Czech Albums – Top 100".ČNS IFPI.Note: On the chart page, select34.Týden 2017 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart.
"Meteora official lyrics page". Archived from the original on January 14, 2010. RetrievedDecember 19, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
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