NJ Music Festivals

Linkin Park proved that they were still worth their name after a nearly sold-out show at Prudential Center.

After Chester Bennington died in 2017, the band’s future was uncertain. Many doubted any possibility of a Linkin Park return.

In the late summer of 2024, in a small room in California, Linkin Park played their first show with a new lineup in years, featuring Emily Armstrong on lead vocals. Critics raged at the decision, and so did some lifelong LP fans, but after a few shows, it was clear that the band was back and in a new era.

Emily Armstrong and Mike Shinoda and co. stopped in New Jersey for the first time since 2014, when they headlined PNC Bank Arts Center on the ‘Carnivores’ tour. This time, on the ‘From Zero World Tour,’ the band is headlining arenas and stadiums worldwide.

PVRIS, pronounced ‘Paris,’ took the stage first, a female-fronted pop band formed in 2012. Lead singer Lynn Gunn is the only full-time original member.

Gunn’s vocals allowed for a ferocious set for the three-piece. Despite playing on a stage that seemed very unique for Linkin Park and didn’t quite fit other bands, PVRIS made it work.

The band played for 35 minutes.

Setlist:

1. GOOD ENEMY
2. ANIMAL
3. Dead Weight
4. Snakes
5. TAKE MY NIRVANA
6. Hallucinations
7. Monster
8. Burn the Witch
9. My House
10. GODDESS

A half hour later, Linkin Park took the stage. The band’s set was divided into five main acts, plus an encore, over the course of two hours.

After a laser intro with ‘Inception Intro C’ on tape, the band ferociously took the stage to ‘Somewhere I Belong.’ A full circle moment for a band who went through the loss of a member, now touring with a new singer.

After ‘Lying From You,’ the band quickly jumped into ‘Crawling,’ which was one of the loudest moments inside The Rock all night. The band closed the first set with ‘The Emptiness Machine,’ the group’s comeback single in 2024. In total, the band played eight tracks from their new record, ‘From Zero.’

During ‘Burn it Down’ in the second portion of the show, Linkin Park brought out Lynn Gunn from PVRIS to share vocals.

For a band that took so much criticism when they reunited, it seemed like all of that was ignored and none of it entered the arena. Energy was high, and people were glad to hear their favorite band for the first time in years, and for some, over a decade.

Setlist:

1. Somewhere I Belong
2. Lying From You
3. Crawling
4. New Divide
5. The Emptiness Machine
6. The Catalyst
7. Burn It Down (with Lynn Gunn)
8. Up From the Bottom
9. Where’d You Go
10. Waiting for the End
11. Lies Greed Misery
12. Two Faced
13. When They Come for Me / Remember the Name
14. Casualty
15. One Step Closer
16. Lost
17. Over Each Other
18. What I’ve Done
19. Overflow
20. Numb
21. From the Inside
22. Heavy Is the Crown
23. Bleed It Out
24. Papercut (encore)
25. In the End (encore)
26. Faint (encore)

The band returns to the area for a show in Philadelphia at Wells Fargo Center on August 16.