Mike Shinoda — Post Traumatic (06/15/18)
Mike Shinoda released the debut album under his name last month, titled Post Traumatic. The Linkin Park co-vocalist helped define a genre in the 00’s and this album marks the beginning of a new chapter in the rapper’s career. He’s not holding back either; with sixteen new songs at 54-minutes, Post Traumatic is longer than any of Linkin Park’s seven full-lengths. Though there are a few tracks that could be removed to shave off some time, it’s an overall well-balanced set that just doesn’t hold the level of emotion I was expecting.
Early album hits, “Over Again” and “Watching As I Fall” (revealed on the Post Traumatic EP in January), are strong enough introductions to the album but set the standard for one that falls short of making a deeper connection. As the first half continues, Shinoda brings in Florida rapper, blackbear, for a foray into trap music; puts on an eerie but soothing instrumental with “Brooding”; and pulls out one of the album’s stronger moments with “Promises I Can’t Keep”.
Kicking off the second half of the album, “Hold It Together” supplies a walking beat and an infectiously melodic verse before dropping into a chorus that may not be the most inventive but grows on me every time. “Ghosts” similarly does well with the drop-to-chorus strategy, Shinoda rapping over a building synth and bass beat that falls into one of my favourite hooks before sliding into an EDM-style breakdown.
He packs in most of his features in the final six tracks. K.Flay makes a wonderful addition to “Make It Up As I Go”, her hazy vocals contrasting well with Shinoda’s rap. Deftones fans are sure to be excited to see Chino Moreno make an appearance on “Lift Off”. The famed nu metal vocalist makes use of the lighter side of his vocals, providing a spacey chorus that, like the lyrics, evokes a feeling of floating “off the earth” and “drifting away.” Machine Gun Kelly lays down a decent verse also, making references to Jared Leto, Bambi’s mom, and some of the Scooby Doo characters. Lastly, Toronto-raised musician, grandson joins Shinoda on the hard-hitting, “Running From My Shadow”, supplying an outro that gives a good taste of the featured artist’s style.
It’s been slightly over a year now since the passing of Chester Bennington, and a large part of the lyrics on this album reflect Shinoda’s thoughts in the time since. The songs are well written for the most part and Shinoda can easily put together a strong melody, but it seems almost too easy, the songs lacking a deeper emotion. And I’m okay with that, it’s just that some of these songs feel a little empty in the context of what they were written around. 6.5/10
