R.I.P. Chester Bennington: His Rawest Linkin Park Vocals
The late singer was a one-of-a-kind icon, and a voice that we desperately need right now
On this day in 2017, Linkin Park's iconic frontman, Chester Bennington, tragically took his own life.
His suicide shocked the world. Linkin Park's music had been synonymous with self-empowerment for millions of people. Even as their later efforts took a bashing from critics, LP fans stood behind their band unfettered. One More Light, the group's final and most widely detested effort before Bennington's death, was drastically different than anything that came prior. But in hindsight, the album's relentless pop-leaning optimism more spoke volumes of Bennington's character.
Even when he stepped away from the microphone, Bennington was an optimist and a major champion of mental health and self-empowerment. "You can't be afraid of people willing to hurt you, cause if you fear life, then you will never live," is just one of Bennington's famous quotes that have been regularly abused on Pinterest; but LP was never afraid to take risks, even if it meant alienating their fans in the process.
Chester Bennington was an unbridled creative and inspiration, so as we pay tribute, here are just a few powerful musical moments that made him a one-of-a-kind icon.
Rolling in the Deep (Adele Cover)
While Linkin Park was not known to do covers, their interpretation of Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" at 2011's Apple Music Festival was an emboldened remix that Bennington absolutely demolished. Dripping in sweat and aided by a subtle piano, Bennington's voice was soft and showed the crooner's incredible versatility. At a moment's notice, his voice could crunch with metal-like aggression and transcend into something far more angelic.
Breaking the Habit
Offered up as LP's first song sung entirely by Bennington, "Breaking the Habit" featured none of Mike Shonda's spitfire rapping, but frankly, it didn't need it. Tackling issues of self-harm, depression, and isolation, "Breaking the Habit" is an odyssey, with Bennington softly approaching the chorus with a hint of self-deprecation in his voice.
But when the song achieves liftoff, the singer soars and shakes off the hate. At the end of the journey, Bennington sounds changed but shaken. It's one of his finest songs and served as inspiration for millions of kids to keep moving forward.
Faint
Sung with a seething heat behind it, Bennington's call of "I won't be ignored!" lit a fire underneath every angsty teenager's butt. A vocalist known for conveying the frustrations of outcasts, Bennington's rugged, ear-cackling scream at "Faint's" halfway mark did just that with raw authenticity.
By the time of Meteora's release, LP represented the underbelly of American culture and the collective anger that boiled over post-9/11, with Bennington leading the charge, and let's not forget those badass, epochal strings at the song's kick.
Waiting For The End
One of LP's most under-appreciated gems, "Waiting for the End" is a moving rhythmic track that was far different than any LP material that came before. Driven by a reggae-infused beat and minimal guitar distortions, the result was a haunting tribute to the demise of a relationship.
Bennington's frustrations seem almost to implode, as the singer sounds on the verge of tears by the song's chorus, with the sentiment behind "Waiting for the End" eerily applicable to the current moment: "All I want to do is trade this life for something new. Holding on to what I haven't got." Not to mention, it was one of the band's coolest music videos.
BURN IT DOWN (Official Video) - Linkin Park
Off of their severely slept-on album Living Things, "BURN IT DOWN" finds the band experimenting with an emulsion of sounds from electronica to hard rock and hip-hop, with Bennington's emboldened cackle piercing through all of it. Here, the singer is a master of his craft, singing each verse with pure sincerity–before ripping our throats out with his loud howl at the chorus.
Papercut
Showing off his pristine rapping ability, Hybrid Theory's snappy opener "Papercut" served as the world's introduction to all that Chester Bennington and Linkin Park were. A chic mix of metal and hip-hop with Bennington (only sometimes) dabbling in both. Sure, Mike handled a majority of the rapping, but Bennington was no stranger to it.
Regardless, on "Papercut," Bennington once again teetered the line between pop savant and rugged metalhead with ease. "It's like I'm paranoid lookin' over my back; it's like a whirlwind inside of my head," he spits as crushing guitars propel him forward.
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