Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda Previews ‘Post Traumatic’ LP With Two New Songs
Mike Shinoda trumpeted the impending arrival of Post Traumatic, the Linkin Park MC’s debut solo album, with a pair of new videos for the album tracks, “Crossing a Line” and “Nothing Makes Sense Anymore.”
The two tracks come on the heels of Shinoda’s three-song Post Traumatic EP, his first release since the death of Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington. The EP’s three songs will fold into the 16-track Post Traumatic LP, due out June 15th.
“It’s a journey out of grief and darkness, not into grief and darkness,” Shinoda said of Post Traumatic in a statement. “If people have been through something similar, I hope they feel less alone. If they haven’t been through this, I hope they feel grateful.” Like its introductory EP, the album tackles Shinoda’s experience with loss as well as healing.
That conflicted and redemptive tone is captured on Post Traumatic‘s atmospheric, synth-driven first single “Crossing a Line.” “I got demons inside me / So I’m faced with a choice / Either try to ignore them / Or I give them a voice,” Shinoda sings. “And it’s keeping me up at night / Worried it’s not alright / You’re not gonna like where this goes.”
Shinoda paired the single with a video featuring the singer delivering the song’s lyrics walking the streets of Los Angeles and surrounded by fans.
Shinoda also details his inner turmoil in the aftermath of tragedy in the video for “Nothing Makes Sense Anymore”; the video utilizes footage of the recent wildfires in California to mirror his emotional state in the visual.
“The past six months have been a rollercoaster,” Shinoda said in a statement in January. “Amidst the chaos, I’ve started to feel an intense gratitude – for your tributes and messages of support, for the career you have allowed me to have, and for the simple opportunity to create. Today, I’m sharing three songs I wrote and produced, with visuals that I filmed, painted, and edited myself. At its core, grief is a personal, intimate experience. As such, this is not Linkin Park, nor is it Fort Minor – it’s just me. Art has always been the place I go when I need to sort through the complexity and confusion of the road ahead. I don’t know where this path goes, but I’m grateful I get to share it with you.”
Shinoda will embark on a handful of solo shows this summer in support of Post Traumatic, including a headlining gig at the Identity LA festival.