Linkin Park Vinyl Records
Rooted at the crossroads of aggressive metal and beat-driven hip-hop, Linkin Park became one of the most successful acts of the early 21st century by incorporating elements from across genres, injecting hardcore rap, raucous punk, atmospheric electronic, and even polished pop stylings into their music. Despite being burdened with the oft-derided nu-metal and rap-rock genre designations, they soon evolved beyond those associations into a more complex beast. Indeed, as their original band name and debut album title suggested, they were a hybrid of forces, relying as much on the vocal interplay between singer Chester Bennington and rapper Mike Shinoda as on the band's muscled instrumentation, which layered DJ Hahn's effects atop heavy, processed guitars and pounding percussion.