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Spring Music Guide 2003 Linkin Park Support: Blindside Date: March 23, 8pm. $26.50. The Warfield Theatre, 925 Market St., San Francisco. 408.998.TIXS Current Album: Meteora (Warner Bros., March 25, 2003) Vitals: Rap rockers who overcame distasteful rap-rock stigma using sensitivity Breakthrough: "One Step Closer" (2000) Current Single: "Somewhere I Belong" (2003) Scouting Report: Linkin Park touched a nerve that sent shock waves through the music industry. Every major label turned down the group, some twice and three times, before it inked with Warner Bros. Linking Park promptly sold 12 million copies of its debut album, Hybrid Theory, and revived a style that was left for dead. Credit Linkin Park's crossover appeal--the band attracted as many girls as dudes (probably due to its pronounced sensitive-guy nature). Lead throat Chester Bennington goes from tender David Gahan lullaby to jilted screamer. Rapper Mike Shinoda is effective in his rhyme execution and avoids the whole minstrel-show aspect of other rap-rock combos. The band recognizes real hip-hop, following up Hybrid Theory with a remix album called Reanimation. The album paid tribute to the band's heroes, and Linkin Park exhibited good taste with collaborations with underground Cali legends like Rasco, DJ Babu, Kutmasta Kurt, Alchemist, Chali 2na and Planet Asia. Before the band releases its second album of new material, Meteora, and heads out on the Summer Sanitarium tour with Metallica and Limp Bizkit, it will launch a 10-day, major-market tour with the best seats reserved for its fan club members. Experience tells me that reserved seats won't be necessary, as the fans will rush the floor to become a huge sweaty mass, reciting--and reveling in--every word. (TI) Send a letter to the editor about this story to letters@metronews.com. [ Silicon Valley | Metroactive Home | Archives ]