Review: Linkin Park/Puddle Of Mudd At Palumbo CenterSunday, Dec. 7, 2003POSTED: 5:56 pm EST December 16, 2003 The following review was written by Mike Hamilton, a Channel 4 Action News viewer from Monroeville.If you'd like to tell us about a concert you've recently seen, e-mail your review to webstaff@thepittsburghchannel.com. We'll post it on the site for people to read. Ill Nino was the opener, and most of their stuff sounded like white noise. They do have one song that they said was currently being played on the radio and it sounded good.Puddle Of Mudd were discovered by slipping a demo tape to one of Limp Bizkit's security guards, who passed it on to Fred Durst. The odds of a security guard actually delivering the tape to someone are so low, it's hard to believe the story. Fred liked what he heard, and since he and Limp Bizkit were doing so well at the time, he was able to sign the band to his own label.You may remember the first video for Puddle. It's the one where the guy would rather walk than continue to ride in the truck and hear his girlfriend complain. She then takes off down the highway.It is interesting how bands can become friends and then influence each other. When Korn was first hitting it big, they stopped into a local tattoo parlor to get some work done while on tour. Durst was working in the shop, but he hadn't done that many tattoos as of yet. They liked what he did for them, and he told them he was in a band. Korn helped Limp Bizkit get into the business.When Korn stopped touring for an extended period, Limp Bizkit filled the void for the metal/rap style. Then when Korn and Limp Bizkit were not in the news, Linkin Park took the spot for metal/rap and has never let go. Despite the fact that Korn has come back with a new album and Limp Bizkit is due to release one shortly, the only people that can knock the new champs off is themselves.Puddle of Mudd's lead singer is named Wes. He may be more famous for currently dating Rachel Hunter than for being in his band. His singing style borrows heavily from that of Kurt Cobain, yet has a more rock than grunge feel to the music.The band came out strong. They played most of their songs from their first CD and a few from their new one. Old songs included "Out Of My Head," "Away From Me," "Drift And Die," "She Hates Me" and their best song -- and, in my opinion, the best rock song of last year -- "Blurry."During one of their songs late in the set, they worked in a few riffs from "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath. Very cool.You knew coming into this show that Linkin Park was going to be the headliner. Their first CD, "Hybrid Theory," makes me think of one of Casey Kasem's best lines: "And the hits, they just keep on coming." That CD was so good, you could just press "play" and let it ride. Song after song after song, it delivered. The concert was the same thing, but LIVE!The band has a unique style -- two lead singers, Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda, who trade off lyrics within each song. Chester acted like he was on crystal meth the whole show. He was bouncing up and down like the Energizer bunny. He had so much energy, and he put it into his voice. He and "Shinodes" went back and forth like they had been singing these songs together for the last 10 years. It was very impressive.Their lead guitarist wore the "old" style of huge headphones during the whole show. He also bore a certain resemblance to Wes Borland, the former bandmember of Limp Bizkit.They played almost everything from "Hybrid Theory," including "Papercut," "One Step Closer," "With You," "Crawling (in my skin)" and "By Myself." From the new album, which is almost as good as the first, they played "Don't Stay" and "Somewhere I Belong." They played a three-song encore, which is almost unheard of these days. An incredible job by a band that is at the top of its game and doesn't show any sign of letting go.Most venues have banned mosh pits and crowd surfing due to safety concerns. Security not only allowed both mosh pits and crowd surfing during the show, they assisted the crowd surfers onto the ground near the stage and escorted them back to the side aisles. This was a rare case of security and ticketholders getting along.At the end of their last song on the encore, Shinoda was held above the front of the crowd by two security guards and he sang while hovering over the crowd. An outstanding show featuring top notch performances by Puddle of Mudd and Linkin Park. Copyright 2003 by ThePittsburghChannel. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | Pictures In Entertainment |










