Los Angeles legends Linkin Park have truly hit the ground running since dropping the surprise announcement of a new lineup, new music, and a new world tour only two months ago. The reformed band have already been crossing continents and reuniting with fans from New York to London to Seoul to Paris and beyond, with plenty of more shows lined up for 2025 - including headlining slots at Sonic Temple and Sick New World.
This past week, the group made a stop in the Lone Star State for a massive and historical concert at Arlington’s Globe Life Field. This was the band’s third official U.S. show for their ongoing From Zero World Tour and their first time playing in Texas in nearly a decade. What’s more, the show marked 21 years of the band’s infamous Linkin Park: Live in Texas concert film and album, which was filmed only a few minutes away at the now-demolished Texas Stadium.
People drove and flew in from all corners of the country to attend the event, braving rain showers to gather in front of the stadium hours beforehand and connect with fellow fans. Homemade tributes like bracelets, stickers, and even sock puppets inspired by Mike Shinoda’s solo era were passed out among the earlycomers at the gates. For newcomers, this was a long-awaited first taste of the Linkin Park concert experience; their first chance to hear their favorite songs performed live. Longtime fans, many of whom had stayed in contact throughout the years on message boards and the like, savored a reunion of community and music.
Kicking off the evening was a legacy act all their own: New York City’s criminally underrated Helmet, who has been a major influence on Linkin Park since their inception. Page Hamilton took to the stage and immediately launched his band into favorites like “Give It” and “Just Another Victim”, warming up the crowd with their signature slew of headbanging riffs. Shinoda himself managed to sneak down onto the floor area of the venue to catch a few songs, no doubt relishing the opportunity to watch what he’s called one of his favorite bands. As a testament to Helmet’s ability to keep the audience’s attention, no Linkin Park fans even seemed to notice the frontman for their favorite band right behind them.
Up next was the genre-bending Jean Dawson, who appeared more amazed than anyone that he was opening for Linkin Park in front of tens of thousands of people. Clad in an oversized puffer jacket and armed with an elaborately decorated mic stand that resembled a pair of wings, Dawson brought a different kind of energy to the night that was more inspired by rap and pop than anything metal related. “Linkin asked me to come and play a few songs.” he told the rapidly growing crowd, who responded warmly to his calm and sincere stage presence. A performance of “Houston” was a definite highlight, with Dawson encouraging the crowd to let loose as his live band showcased their own impressive musicianship.
Once the lights went down for the start of Bad Omen’s set, the younger portion of the stadium absolutely erupted in a chorus of excited screams. Still riding high off the monumental success of their 2022 album The Death of Peace of Mind and its extension, this year’s Concrete Jungle [The OST], the Virginia group seemed determined to make this show a truly special one for themselves and their fans in attendance. Noah Sebastian, Nicholas Ruffilo, Joakim Karlsson, and Nick Folio were joined onstage by not just one, not just two, but three special guests throughout their hour-long set.
Poppy, Jake Duzsik of Health, and J.T. Cavey of Erra all arrived to sing their respective parts of “V.A.N.”, “THE DRAIN”, and “ANYTHING > HUMAN”, instantly making the band’s Texas show a once-in-a-lifetime event. The few dedicated Bad Omens fans who had waded their way through the sea of Linkin Park enthusiasts were surely rewarded, if not outright blown away by just how monumental of a set they ended up witnessing. “It’s so hard to see how many of you are here.” Sebastian told the crowd during a brief pause in the action. As the lights came up to reveal the sheer scale of the packed stadium, the frontman was visibly awed, sending a shoutout to Linkin Park before diving into their hit-laden finale.
Emotions ran exceptionally high throughout Linkin Park’s titanic return to Texas. Countless tears were shed as Shinoda, Phoenix, Mr. Hahn, and new vocalist Emily Armstrong, drummer Colin Brittain, and touring guitarist Alex Feder brought catharsis to the venue through songs like “Somewhere I Belong”, Waiting for the End”, “What I’ve Done”, and more, each member of the band managing to connect with the massive crowd on a deeply personal level. Shinoda urged the thousands of fans to sing along to every word, and they responded with overwhelming intensity, their voices even overpowering the band at particularly sing-worthy moments like “Crawling” and “In the End”.
Everything from essential hits like “Numb” to new tracks like “The Emptiness Machine” and “Heavy Is the Crown” to deep cuts like “My December” were given their time to shine; all part of a carefully constructed set that represented nearly every single era of the band. Not to be outdone by the rarities of Bad Omen’s set, Linkin Park had a couple of secrets of their own for the occasion. “We actually have a surprise for you tonight!” Shinoda excitedly told the audience. “We’d like to welcome to the stage Mr. Page Hamilton from Helmet!” And with that, Hamilton strapped on a guitar and joined the band for the first, and possibly only ever performance of “All for Nothing”, an under-appreciated track off their carnivorous 2014 album The Hunting Party.
But Shinoda and company weren’t done yet. “Earlier I kinda fibbed and said that we have one surprise for you tonight. That wasn’t exactly true. We do have a second surprise for you. Dallas gets to find out what happens when Em puts her screamy pants on!” Armstrong took the spotlight and launched the band into the world premiere of another new song - an exceptionally heavy and hard-hitting track called “Casualty”. “If ever there was ever a time at a Linkin Park show to show us the biggest pit that you can…” Shinoda egged on the rowdier side of the audience. “Some of you motherfuckers haven't been in a pit in like ten years! Don't you miss it? You gonna show us you still got it?”
The floor opened up as old and new fans alike spun and collided into one another with manic glee, the mosh pit continuing to grow in size and launch crowd surfers in the air as the band followed up with “Given Up” and “One Step Closer”. The energy only increased as the band played more heaters like “Papercut”, “Lying From You”, and others in a display of how wild a Linkin Park show can actually get in addition to the emotional sing-a-longs.
As the final notes faded and the group said their goodbyes, it was clear that Linkin Park: Live in Texas 2.0 wasn’t just a concert - it was a moment of collective memory, catharsis, and sheer joy. With new music, fresh energy, and a community that’s seemingly stronger than ever, Linkin Park proved their story is far from over, reigniting their legacy and creating palpable anticipation for what comes next.
Linkin Park continues their ‘From Zero World Tour’ with a pair of shows in São Paulo this year with more dates set to be announced for next year.
From Zero will be released November 15th.
From Zero World Tour
Nov. 15 - Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Allianz Parque
Nov. 16 - Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Allianz Parque
Apr. 12 - Las Vegas, Nevada @ Sick New World 2025
May 10 - Columbus, Ohio @ Sonic Temple 2025
