Hybrid Theory

When *Hybrid Theory* came out in late 2000, it was easy to lump LINKIN PARK in with other so-called nu-metal bands. The difference was in how they processed their anger. *Hybrid Theory* is a mostly internal affair, music whose huge, mechanistic beats and walls of guitar are less an attack on the outside world than protection against it. If anything, part of what made Chester Bennington so compelling as a frontman was his ability to explore trauma without ever trying to avenge or place blame for it—a huge feat, considering how deep his trauma seemed to run. So, while the rap/rock/industrial blend of tracks like “Papercut,” “Crawling,” and “In the End” redefined modern rock, they also called back to bands like The Cure and Depeche Mode: sensitive young men looking for a break from pain.

Check out our album review of Artist's Hybrid Theory on Rolling Stone.com.

Of those groups, Californian crew Linkin Park rose to the top of the pack with their boundary-busting approach to the genre, which they debuted on their first effort, Hybrid Theory.

Linkin Park - Hybrid Theory review: An album that changed and empowered a generation of teenagers.