Album of the Day

“We were looking back at the things that we had done in the past,” noted Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda of MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT, “and we just needed to move on.” Coming four years after METEORA, the band's third studio set shows a more mature side to the talented sextet - there's a little less rap than fans may be used to, and even a slow song or two (“Shadow Of The Day,” “The Little Things Give You Away”). That variety makes tracks like “What I've Done” and “Bleed It Out” hit even harder; Linkin Park and producer Rick Rubin dial the intensity up and down with a sure hand. It may sound different from its predecessors, but like them MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT was a smash, and hit No.1 in the U.K. on this day in 2007 (it would top the charts in 16 countries around the world including the U.S.).