Linkin Park working on “personal and revealing” tracks

Mike Shinoda
Mike Shinoda (Image credit: Getty)

Linkin Park mainman Mike Shinoda has given an update from the studio.

The band began work on the follow-up to 2014’s The Hunting Party in December. And Shinoda has checked in saying several of the new tracks are both “personal and revealing.”

He says (via Musicology): “We just started narrowing down to some of our favourite songs, and we’re starting to put our first ‘final’ vocals on them. As I listen through them, I feel like these songs are really personal and revealing.

“We have really poured our hearts into the words and melodies, and it’s starting to show as we approach recording the ‘keeper’ vocals.”

Shinoda reports the band have “a lot of material to choose from” and adds: “We clearly have an album in there. We’re looking forward to getting the vocals right and starting to put sounds on them.

“Keyboards, samples and drums are high on the list – but first, we’re going to get some of these vocals nailed down.”

The band previously hinted the record could be influenced by hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar.

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers and magazines as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. After initially joining our news desk in the summer of 2014, he moved to the e-commerce team full-time in 2020. He maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott grew up listening to rock and prog, cutting his teeth on bands such as Marillion and Magnum before his focus shifted to alternative and post-punk in the late 80s. His favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Ned's Atomic Dustbin and Drab Majesty, but he also still has a deep love of Rush.