Mike Shinoda is not shy about talking about his late Linkin Park bandmate Chester Bennington and his struggles with depression and addiction. In a new interview, he compared some of Bennington’s behavior to a character from Friends.
Shinoda talked about the various highs and lows of Linkin Park during the Hybrid Theory-era of the band. Apparently, Bennington had a knack for disappearing and drinking heavily.
“He’d just go missing and come back obliterated, that you couldn’t even talk to him,” said Shinoda. “He was just so wasted. But also funny. Ever see that ‘Friends’ episode where they had the ‘Fun Bobby’? The ‘Fun Bobby’ is hilarious — everybody loves him — and then the second he gets sober, nobody likes him anymore.”
Shinoda continued, “There was an element of Chester that was very fun sometimes when he was that way, and usually the next day he’d be, like, so dark. He’s super hungover; he’s angry at everybody, yelling at everybody, and you’re kind of just, like, ‘Let’s get through the day.’”
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In other Linkin Park news: The band is releasing a 20th anniversary reissue of their second studio album Meteora. The sophomore LP went on to sell 16 million copies worldwide. It boasts some of the band’s most popular hits. Among them is “Numb,” which is closing in on 2 billion views of its video on YouTube. Other popular tracks from Meteora include “Breaking the Habit” and “Somewhere I Belong.”
All Meteora 20 formats are available for pre-order at LinkinPark.com where fans will find special related merch also up for sale. The reissued also includes “Lost,” a previously unreleased track that can be heard below.