By Emily Kelly

On Feb 16, Linkin Park released their new single, “Heavy.” I usually love irony, but the fact that this song lacks any amount of heaviness hurts my heart. I have stood by them during their past few albums despite other fans’ outrages that they wanted "the old" LP back, but“Heavy” makes it incredibly difficult to stick with them anymore. It is a true disappointment and shame that Linkin Park has completely changed genres and abandoned all that made them so special.

To start with, the song lacks any originality or passion. Its repetitive, uninteresting lyrics offer nothing for the heart to grab onto, and its poppy sound fills me with rage—and not the good kind. “Heavy” should be re-titled to “Generic Pop Song by a Former Rock Band with a Pathetic Attempt to Gather More Revenue by Going Mainstream.” It breaks my heart to say this,  but I feel that someone should say it: generic lyrics and generic vocals create a generic sound.  All Linkin Park accomplished was producing another cog in the pop radio machine and I can already envision this song being played over the radio at summer barbecues.

"Heavy” is nothing special and doesn’t create a moment where I feel that the song is worthwhile and unique. Even at the beginning, with the lead singer, Chester's bizarre talking/singing/rapping monologue attempt, I felt in my gut that there was no redeeming this song. I think one of the biggest concerns presented in this song is that it’s completely electronic. Where are the real instruments – the guitar, bass, and drums?

When I first heard the news that Linkin Park was making a new album, I was really eager to listen to it. With all the political turmoil and hate circulating in America, I anticipated songs similar to “Rebellion” from Hunting Party – songs with political meaning and a message that speaks to the band’s beliefs. I received the absolute opposite. “Heavy” has no heaviness at all – not in sound, meaning, or lyrics.

And then there's the song feature, Kiiara. Her voice sounds just like every other auto-tuned female voice on the radio. For half of the song, she sings the chorus, making her the final piece to this mainstream, insignificant mess of a disgraceful song.

I usually support bands that change up their style because I understand that keeping the same sound throughout the years is not effective and it is necessary to evolve and create new material. That being said, doing a reverse makeover that results in an infuriatingly catchy and flat song that could easily be lost in the pop-genre crowd is not evolution – it’s the complete opposite. There’s no point to this song, and I am devastated to say that if Linkin Park tours over the summer I, for the first time, may not go.

It seems that the end of Linkin Park has finally arrived. At least they had a great run, and I’ll always be a fan and cherish their previous material but at the same time, I will definitely be the first person to outspokenly critic this song. We can only hope that this song is a joke and that the remainder of the album will have some meat to it. Even though we can hope, I think LP is done, and there’s nothing anyone but the band can do to reverse this downfall. The lack of denseness is what is bringing down Linkin Park – the only thing that’s heavy is how much hate I have for this song. What a shame. If you want a laugh after this, though, I recommend reading the “Heavy” comments on YouTube – the Internet can be amazing.

RIP Linkin Park ~ 2000 – 2016