Linkin Park stopped by The Tonight Show to perform their new single, “The Emptiness Machine.” The song marks the rock band’s first new music in seven years and the debut of their new vocalist Emily Armstrong and drummer Colin Brittain.
“The Emptiness Machine,” played live on late-night TV for the first time, will appear on Linkin Park’s new album, From Zero, slated for release on Nov. 15.
Earlier this month, Linkin Park began teasing an announcement, which turned out to be the reunion of the band and the introduction of new band members, as well as the album and a global tour. The group kicked off their headlining tour on Sept. 11 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, marking their first run of live performances since the death of frontman Chester Bennington in 2017.
The From Zero World Tour also includes stops in Los Angeles, New York, Hamburg, London, Seoul, and Bogota, with the musicians headed to Hamburg and London later this month.
At the Los Angeles show, frontman Mike Shinoda addressed the crowd, saying, “We are thrilled to be back out here. It is not about erasing the past. It is about starting this new chapter into the future and coming out here for each and every one of you. We loved writing this music. We are very fuckin’ excited about the new record. So thank you guys very much. We had an incredible night with you.”
On The Tonight Show, Shinoda sat down with host Jimmy Fallon to further discuss Linkin Park’s plans and future. He noted that the band was “euphoric for like 48 hours” after the Los Angeles performance. “To be this many years in and to feel that genuine adrenaline and excitement and happiness, there’s nothing like it, man,” Shinoda told Fallon.
Shinoda also spoke about Bennington’s death and what it’s been like to perform with Linkin Park without him. “I think the important thing for us is that we never set out to, like, ‘Let’s bring the band back’ or ‘Let’s find a singer,’” he explained. “That was never our intention or our goal.” Instead, the musicians started hanging out and being creative, which resulted in the new LP.
“When we started the music we didn’t have a band and it just came together while the music came together,” he said. Shinoda added that the album’s title, From Zero, is a reference to starting from scratch and a nod to their original band name, Xero. “I think we ended up on the right band name,” he quipped.
Linkin Park’s tour and album announcement has not come without criticism. Bennington’s son Jaime slammed the band for hiring Armstrong to replace his dad following controversy surrounding her ties to the Church of Scientology and actor Danny Masterson, who was convicted of rape last year.
In a series of Instagram stories, Jaime said band has “quietly erased [his] father’s life and legacy in real time… during International Suicide Prevention Month.” He added that Shinoda and the rest of Linkin Park “have betrayed the trust loaned to [them] by decades of fans and supporting human beings including myself.”
