Maps of Music

The Hunting Party (2014)

Where the lyrics of The Hunting Party take you, and where it was really made.

The title came from a news article about a Japanese writer who called young men 'herbivores', people who wait for opportunities to come to them instead of hunting for them.

Key places

Main recording studio (2014)

Recording site Larrabee Sound Studios — The album was recorded at Larrabee Sound Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles. The band spent five or six days a week there during recording. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Drums and percussion sessions (2014)

Recording site EastWest Studios — Part of the album was recorded at EastWest Studios in Hollywood, where drummer Rob Bourdon and Shinoda recorded drums and percussion. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• The Hunting Party: sixth studio album by American rock band Linkin Park
• Produced by band members Mike Shinoda and Brad Delson
• Released 17 June 2014 by Warner Bros. Records and Machine Shop
• First album since Meteora (2003) not produced by Rick Rubin
• Title is a contextual metaphor: the band as the party that hunts to bring back rock's energy and soul
• Sound returns to nu metal after the electronic and experimental albums A Thousand Suns and Living Things
• Recorded and produced in under a year, with material written in the studio
• Guests: Page Hamilton, Daron Malakian, Tom Morello and Rakim, the first outside collaborations on a Linkin Park studio album

Background

• A Thousand Suns (2010) and Living Things (2012) moved the band toward electronic and experimental sounds
• Shinoda made demos during the 2013 Living Things World Tour, then scrapped them after rethinking the material
• The band treated the record as a return to its early sound, using Hybrid Theory as a template
• Shinoda described the album as made by 37-year-old adults rather than 18-year-old kids

Recording

• Recorded at Larrabee Sound Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, and partly at EastWest Studios, also in Hollywood
• The band spent five or six days a week at Larrabee
• Drummer Rob Bourdon and Shinoda recorded drums and percussion at EastWest
• Chester Bennington joined late in the process, after touring with Stone Temple Pilots in 2013

Cover

• Artwork by Brandon Parvini, based on an original drawing titled 'Archer' by James Jean
• Joe Hahn served as creative director for the artwork

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Linkin Park was formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996 by high school friends Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon, and Brad Delson.
• The band began as Xero, recorded a four-track demo in 1997, and changed its name to Hybrid Theory after Chester Bennington joined in 1999.
• Warner Bros. Records advised another name change, and the band chose Linkin Park.

Members

• The original lineup included vocalist Chester Bennington and drummer Rob Bourdon.
• Bennington died by suicide in July 2017, and the band went on hiatus.
• In September 2024 the reformed lineup was announced, with Emily Armstrong and Colin Brittain added to Shinoda, Delson, Joe Hahn, and Dave Farrell.

Career

• Debut album Hybrid Theory (2000) was certified Diamond by the RIAA and sold more than 4.8 million copies in its first year.
• Meteora (2003) followed, and Minutes to Midnight (2007) marked a change in sound.
• A Thousand Suns (2010), Living Things (2012), The Hunting Party (2014), and One More Light (2017) explored electronic, rock, and pop directions.
• The band has sold more than 100 million records worldwide.
• Eighth album From Zero (2024) returned to a heavier sound.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Metacritic: generally favorable reviews, 65 out of 100 from 15 critic scores
• The Guardian (Dave Simpson): three stars, praised the return to the band's original sound
• The New Zealand Herald (Chris Schulz): positive review, described the record as loud, spontaneous and free
• NME (David Renshaw): an energetic effort; praised Daron Malakian's guest spot but called Tom Morello's contribution a disappointment
• AllMusic (Stephen Thomas Erlewine): the band seems rejuvenated by returning to its roots
• Revolver (Dan Epstein): the hardest and heaviest thing the band had released, with guitar firepower that would appeal to headbangers
• Billboard (Kenneth Partridge): the band attacks record companies, politicians and others with rediscovered guitar fun
• The Daily Telegraph (Neil McCormick): sleek, exciting and committed
• PopMatters (Jordan Blum): rated 5 out of 10, called it a solid album but too repetitive and generic
• Rolling Stone (Jon Dolan): a retro-neo-aggro sound that would have been too intense for modern-rock radio in 1999

Records

• Debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 110,000 copies
• Lowest-peaking Linkin Park studio album, and first not to reach number one since Hybrid Theory
• Dropped to number nine in its second week, selling 29,000 copies
• 231,150 copies sold in the US as of December 2014
• Certified Platinum in the US in December 2017
• Placed at number four on Revolver's list of the 20 best albums of 2014
• Loudwire: nominated for 2014 Rock Album of the Year, lost by a close margin; the band won Best Rock Band of 2014 and Best Live Act of 2014

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Shinoda's criticism of modern alternative radio drew a reply from CHVRCHES' Lauren Mayberry, who called it a pointless dig.
• Shinoda said drummer Rob Bourdon had to seek a chiropractor after recording the album's material, which he said had hurt his back.
• Joe Hahn banned James Jean from hearing more material after Jean played some of the songs from memory on piano.
• The music video for 'Guilty All the Same' was made entirely in the in-game engine of Project Spark, and the course was released openly for players to remix.
• Some shows on The Hunting Party Tour were cancelled after Bennington broke his leg.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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