The Traveler
A minor disappointment
We owe our congratulations to Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda for finally releasing a solo album. We don't, however, owe him admiration or respect for a job well done.
Shinoda's self-produced The Rising Tied releases him from the supposedly heavy onus of carrying the better half of the Park's vocal crew, Chester Bennington. Or as Machine Shop Recordings' promotional Web site FortMinor.com puts it, "Shinoda's rap roots have always had to share space with other elements-until now!" [Mood-intensifying italics mine]. Chester doesn't know how lucky he is.
Linkin Park has sold more than 35 million albums, and as further proof that there's no accounting for taste, rap legend Jay-Z, who has worked with Linkin Park in the past, has ascribed his name to Shinoda's side project as executive producer. What does this mean for creative input? Absolutely nothing. Steven Spielberg was the executive producer for the 1995 lackluster blockbuster "Casper." As in the friendly ghost. So…
Shinoda mixed the samples himself for this album, which, despite being recorded from real-live instruments, sound completely canned. His electronically manipulated voice is disguised by the same structured, distortion-pedal like sound on every track, and like Strokes' lead singer Julian Casablancas, Shinoda uses it like a polio patient uses an iron lung.
But the backbone of any and all hip-hop - the beat - is where Shinoda's sound suffers most. Rather than being overtly negative about this crucial element, let me say the beats sound almost, but not entirely, like the Casio keyboard I got for Christmas when I was nine.
Hip-hop is merely a vehicle for lyrics, however. And as far as lyrics go - they're actually really good.
Just kidding. They sound like Dr. Seuss must have sounded as an angst-ridden, frustrated youth, scrawling tortured verse in his tattered black composition book.
For example, "Remember the Name" on track two has this to say: "Mike! - He doesn't need his name up in lights / He just wants to be heard whether it's the beat or the mic / He feels so unlike everybody else, alone / In spite of the fact that some people still think that they know him."
Aww. One fish, two fish, Shinoda's a blue fish. And yes, he uses Mike to rhyme with mic. Not convinced? Here's a snippet from "Petrified" on track four: "My name is Mike / I'm fooling with the new s--- / I'm doing it all like / I like what I do / I do what I like / I could quit and get it back like I'm riding a bike." Bike, Mike, like, mic. Umm, pike, trike, spike, fyke. (It's a type of fishing net.)
Shinoda's sophomoric debut leaves no doubt that his name is Mike, but he isn't satisfied with smearing his own name. He also drags down label mates Styles of Beyond, Holly Brook, John Legend and the Roots' Black Thought by way of collaboration.
If you're a fan of Mike Shinoda, stick with Linkin Park. If you're a fan of hip-hop, stick with the real talent: Jurassic 5, De La Soul, The Roots, etc. If you're a fan of self-injury, look for The Rising Tied release Nov. 22.
