Music Would Brad Delson return to perform with Linkin Park? He responds

The real involvement of Brad Delson with the current phase of LinkinParkreactivated with Emily Armstrong (vocals) and Colin Brittain (battery). The guitarist, one of the founding members of the band, only participates in the group in studio activities, being outside of tours.

Live, Alex Feder takes its place. In addition to the names already mentioned, the singer and multi-instrumentalist Mike Shinodathe bassist Dave “Phoenix” Farrell and the DJ Joe Hahn complete the training.

Is there any chance of Delson returning to his role on stage? And what does he think of Feder? These questions were answered by the musician in an interview with Guitar World.

When asked if he would perform again, Brad gave an enigmatic statement. It is known that he deals with mental health issues that led him to decide to retire from the stage, so it would not be possible for him to offer a conclusive answer. However, he does not close the door on the possibility, stating:

“You never know. I don’t have a crystal ball, I can’t say for sure [se retornaria às turnês].”

Regarding the arrival of Alex Feder, chosen by himself, Brad initially adopted a playful tone — “Alex is so handsome that the world couldn’t resist him [risos]” — and reinforced how Linkin Park’s seven-year hiatus, between Chester Bennington’s death and the current meeting, made it redefine priorities. The guitarist commented:

“Having less active time in recent years has given us an opportunity to think qualitatively: what energizes us, where we feel most fulfilled, and where we thrive. It wasn’t about going back to what we were doing. It was about taking what we learned in our free time to approach our roles with greater self-awareness. And the studio is where I really thrive. I love doing new things. That’s what gives me energy.”

Delson defined Feder as his “world-traveling lookalike” and said that his colleague “brings a lot to the show”. He also defined him as “an incredible musician and a strong live guitarist”. And he made it clear: although he is no longer performing, he helped create the concept of the show that is being taken all over the world.

“I’m very proud of the show. Even though I’m not on stage, I put a lot of my creative love into the show. I’ve always been obsessed with repertoire, the concept of the show and how it flows. I worked really hard on the current show; It’s no different from the past.”

Brad Delson and mental health

In November, Mike Shinoda gave an interview to Zach SangShow (via Blabbermouth) and, when discussing Colin Brittain’s arrival, ended up sharing some additional information about Brad Delson.

Initially, Mike commented that Colin would just be one of the composers and producers of From Zero. However, the fact that the original drummer Rob Bourdon Choosing not to get involved with the reactivation of the group caused a vacancy to arise.

“Colin Brittain would be part of the process (from the new Linkin Park album, From Zero) only as composer and co-producer. I love working with Colin. I met him in sessions and brought him in to help. But we saw that he would need someone to play the drums and, as I knew it was his main instrument, I offered it to him. This would take him away from a career in production.”

Then Delson’s situation was mentioned. According to Shinoda, the guitarist deals with mental health issues that prevent him from touring.

“In case anyone doesn’t understand the dynamic, Brad is our guitarist — he’s in the band — but he realized that in terms of… it’s kind of a mental health issue. He doesn’t like touring and the live show lifestyle. So, he’s our guitarist, but he’s not playing live.”

The arrival of Alex Feder, in fact, was a choice made by Brad Delson. However, for a moment, the possibility was offered of Brittain becoming the touring guitarist rather than the actual drummer. Mike states:

“Brad chose Alex to play his parts live and they get along great. But at the time, we didn’t know Alex, so we asked Colin: ‘Brad needs someone to play guitar and we need a drummer. You do both equally well. What would you like to do?’. It was like a kid in a candy store. I think he said, ‘I can’t believe what you’re asking me right now.’ He was so excited.”

The new phase of Linkin Park

In addition to holding a short series of shows in 2024 — two of them sold out in São Paulo, last November — Linkin Park released a new album with Emily Armstrong and Colin Brittain. From Zero It also arrived last month and had a great response.

The album reached number one on the charts in 15 countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, France and Portugal. There was only one “stone in the shoe” in the most important music market in the world, the United States, where they came in 2nd place — the EP Golden Hour: Part.2from the k-pop group Ateezwon the highest recognition.

Even though it didn’t reach first place in the United States, From Zero was the rock album that reached the highest position on the general national charts in 2024. The last time an album of this style reached the top of the ranking was in November last year, with One More Time…from Blink-182.

Linkin Park resumes From Zero World Tour in Mexico City on January 31. Passing through several continents, the group closes the agenda with four more presentations in Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro (08/11), São Paulo (10/11), Brasilia (13/11) and Porto Alegre (15/11). There are no tickets for sale yet.