History Fridge / LinkinPark

* I didn't get the song ''Handlebars'' (by the Flobots) at first, how it changes from sounding like Cake to more like Music/LinkinPark. Then I realized that it tells a story: As the song goes along, the music gets more complicated, the feats get more impressive and the singing gets louder. --{{Stinkoman87}}
** After several hearings, I decided this song reflects the gradual sophistication (corruption?) of Western civilization, from simple inventions/tools to weapons of mass destruction. Of course, it's possible I'm way overthinking this...--{{Nyssa23}}
*** Firstly, it's impossible to really appreciate ''Handlebars'' without the music video. Anyway, I really rejected this song because I leapt straight to that exact conclusion. I mean, inventing a fuel-efficient engine is a sleazy move on the slippery slope to an Orwellian dictatorhip? But then I watched it again, and saw it as the story of one fairly ordinary guy with a gift for speech, one power-mad dictator with a few shady business ventures in his backstory, and how they were once great friends. From that standpoint, it's absolutely ''epic''. --DomaDoma
*** Agreed. Without the music video the song sounds schizoid to say the least. But when you see the vid, it's apparent that there are two different lists of achievements involved, being put to to different uses by the dictator and the revolutionary. At that point, the song becomes a tragedy in miniature as these two guys, both of whom believe that they are the hero of the story, move towards a clash. Neither really wanted it to get this out of control, but it did and...boom. The look on the dictator's face as his friend dies is what firmly convinced me of the brilliance of the song. --Ambar Son of Deshar--
*** I always thought the message was that power corrupts. If you watch the video, the story becomes much clearer. It's two different guys who used to be good friends, but ended up going down different paths in life. The first stayed a normal guy, to whom "I once saw a platypus," or "I know all the words to ''I'm Proud to Be An American,''" or "I can keep rhythm without a metronome" are achievements. This is a normal, average guy. His friend goes into the world of business and politics and, at first, has good intentions. He does things that really will help people, like developing a new car engine or a new computer, but eventually starts to get sucked into that world. Eventually, he enjoys the power that comes with this new life and his goals become more about money and more about power, as at that point he starts to lose sight of his original goals and morals. At that point, he realizes that he can do anything he wants for nothing and eventually becomes a dictator. - Gravityman
** First and foremost (by my interpretation, which I believe is backed up by evidence in the song) it is a song about ego. The "story" builds as the character is first proud of small achievements (riding a bike without handlebars) to being proud of major achievements, to being obsessed with his achievements, to eventually becoming completely egotistical and discarding the value of the lives of others. The change in the musical dynamic of the song represents a building motion as the character's ego mounts ever higher. It's a very well designed song. The muted trumpet solo helps too. - Mbessgettios
** A LOT can be said about "No Handlebars," specifically how solemnly brilliant the line "I can lead the nation with a microphone" is. Moreover, the gradual build and bloom of the song (bursting at, approximately, "I can end the planet in a holocaust!") is so delicately done, so perfectly crafted, that it's hard to believe a band like Flobots did it. The music video makes it a lot more beautiful, basically animating all of the lyrics, and almost giving it a "What have I done?" quality when the narrator destroys the planet, but then reverts back to the knowledge that he can, in fact, ride a bike with no handlebars. - TemporaryLife

** In "Jornado del Muerto", Mike is singing in Japanese. Okay then, what's the significance in that? Well, remember what Oppenheimer's "A Thousand Suns" quote was referring to and where it was first dropped.
*** It says [[spoiler: 持ち上げて、解き放して]] by the way. The translation appears near the end of the album, on The Catalyst: [[spoiler: Lift me up, let me go]].
** "Valentine's Day" at first seems like a rather pathetic, emo break-up song; the lyrics work in context with a break-up. Now, apply those same lyrics to a funeral. They fit even better.
*** With a line like "And the ground below grew colder / As they put you down inside", it's pretty safe to say it's about a funeral.
** Their first album has a 2.5 minute song with scratching on it. It's called "Cure for the itch". What do you when you have an itch? [[spoiler: That's right; you scratch it.]]
** The name of their first album Hybrid Theory suddenly makes a ton of sense once you consider that the band has always been experimenting with and splicing musical styles. Their songs are literally hybrids of different genres!

* FridgeBrilliance:

* FridgeHorror: With a heavy dose of RealitySubtext. Chester Bennington spoke several times about his horrific childhood – in particular the sexual abuse he endured from an older male friend, starting from when he was ''seven years old'', for ''six years''. Now think about that and listen to "Points of Authority" again.

* FridgeHorror: with a heavy dose of RealitySubtext. Chester Bennington spoke several times about his horrific childhood – in particular the sexual abuse he endured from an older male friend, starting from when he was ''seven years old'', for ''six years''. Now think about that and listen to "Points of Authority" again.

** "You want someone to hurt someone to hurt like you, you want to share what you've been through… You live what you've learned" makes sense. According to one interview, as an adult Chester finally revealed the abuse to his father, a detective who [[{{Irony}} specialized in child sex abuse cases]], but decided not to press charges after learning that his abuser had himself been a victim.

** "You want someone to hurt someone to hurt like you, you want to share what you've been through… You live what you've learned" makes sense. According to one interview, as an adult Chester finally revealed his abuser's identity to his father, a detective who [[{{Irony}} specialized in child sex abuse cases]], but decided not to press charges after learning that his abuser had himself been a victim.

* FridgeHorror: Chester Bennington spoke several times about his horrific childhood – in particular the sexual abuse he endured from an older male friend, starting from when he was ''seven years old'', for ''six years''. Now think about that and listen to "Points of Authority" again.
-->''You love the way I look at you while taking pleasure in the awful things you put me through…''

** The name of their first album Hybrid Theory suddenly makes a ton of sense once you consider that the band has always been experimenting with and splicing musical styles. Their songs are literally hybrids of different genres!

** Their first album has a 2.5 minute song with scratching on it. It's called "Cure for the itch". What do you when you have an itch? [[spoiler: That's right; you scratch it.]]

** Their first album has a 2.5 minute song with scratching on it. Its called "Cure for the itch". What do you when you have an itch? [[spoiler: That's right; you scratch it.]]

* FridgeBrillance:

* FridgeHorror:

** Their first album has a 2,5 minute song with scratching on it. Its called "Cure for the itch". What do you when you have an itch? [[spoiler: thats right, you scratch it]]

** "Valentine's Day" at first seems like a rather pathetic, emo break-up song; the lyrics work in context with a break-up. Now, apply those same lyrics to a funeral. They fit even better.

*** This is wrong. It actually says: [[spoiler: Pick it up and let it go]].

** In the above-metioned "Jornado del Muerto", Mike is singing in Japanese. Okay then, what's the significance in that? Well, remember what Oppenheimer's "A Thousand Suns" quote was referring to and where it was first dropped.