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Naysayers predicted that this whole rap-rock thing would be dying a slow, silent death right about now, but it seems to be breathing just fine without needing to come up for air. Linkin Park are one of the most successful guitar-swinging, lyric-dropping scratch wizards to simultaneously glorify the big riff while bowing down at the altar of hip-hop. In the course of a single song they let their guitars run amok, push plodding rhythms and growl like angry dogs roused from sleep -- all while dexterously zipping back and forth along record grooves. Linkin Park formed in 1996, but all the pieces didn't fall into place until 2000, when Warner Brothers released Hybrid Theory, dubbed after the band's original name. Thanks to "In the End," the album was a massive hit and the second single, "Crawling," won them a Grammy for "Best Hard Rock Performance." Despite a somewhat cool reception from anyone over the age of 13, Linkin Park claimed a spot at the very top of the heap in the early 2000s nu-metal arena. They have since released an album of Hybrid Theory remixes, a studio album and a live album chronicling their extensive tours. A single called "Numb/Encore," featuring a collaboration with rapper Jay-Z, was released in 2004; the EP it was taken from, Collision Course, and single hit No. 1, and firmly reset Linkin Park's place at the top of the charts. In 2005 the band concentrated on a number of relief efforts to aid victims of the Southeast Asian tsunami and Hurricane Katrina. MC Mike Shinoda splintered off to work on his solo project, a hip-hop group called Fort Minor. The band released Minutes to Midnight in 2007, another chart-topper that scaled back the rapping in favor of a more straight forward arena-friendly rock sound.
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