Elixir for Cynical Curmudgeons

Some big media account on Twitter asked people what they think the best music album ever was, front to back.

While some albums are more iconic than others, the fascinating thing about the question is how it tends to be a sign of what era someone came of age in (i.e. which decade they grew up as a teenager), and what cultural part of that era they were more in line with. Sure, some people go back and find older iconic music and appreciate it the most, the absolute greats of the past, but the more typical outcome is that someone finds music from their coming-of-age years to be what somehow sticks out.

For me it was rock in the 2000s, and my mental answer to the question of "best album?" was Meteora by Linkin Park.

While it was a very popular album and also well-remembered, it doesn't generally go down on the ageless list of greats. In other words, it's always kind of a top two or three genre item. I could argue why other more iconic albums are better, and why they "should" be my answer. For example I could go a little bit before my time, but still close enough, and say Nirvana's Nevermind was better. That would poll better.

But basically, as a product of my time, Meteora is just the one that struck the right chords at the right time when I was a teenager. It's the one that spoke to me. I would listen to it casually, and then also listen to certain songs in it before martial arts tournaments to get myself in the combat zone. Even as my musical tastes changed over time, that's the album I listened to the most of all time, and so when I hear it in the present day, I still appreciate it a ton.

The fact that they crossed genres appealed to me a lot. Their main vocalist, Bennington, struck their melodic and emotional aspect. The other vocalist, Shinoda, was their hip-hop guy, with a rougher or more practical aspect. Mr. Hahn brought an electronic aspect, and Delson brought the rock guitar aspect. Some of their stylization was anime-aligned, and I was into anime at the time. Basically whatever vibes I might be feeling as a teenager at the time, there was something in Linkin Park that spoke to it, with Meteora being among their best and which came out at the right time when I was 15. It's like Bennington would speak to my emo aspect and help me acknowledge it, while Shinoda and the others would pump me back up, and tell me to not fuck around and get back out there, and boost my confidence. Yin and Yang.

Another reason I thought of this is that here in 2023, Linkin Park released a 20th anniversary edition of Meteora, which included a couple songs like "Lost" that didn't make it into the original. It all hits a bit harder for us fans based on the fact that the lead singer, Chester Bennington, is no longer with us. RIP.