KROQ’s Stryker talked to Mike and Chester before the dress rehearsal on thursday (post and pictures here), here is an excerpt of Mike talking about Chester’s choice of jewellery during the Hybrid Theory days.

In an interview with Ted Stryker just prior to a dress rehearsal for a small group of fans, the band recollected the early Hybird Theory days of their career–the days of dog collars and jelly bracelets–and how it compares to twelve years later in the Living Things stage of their musical journey.


Shinoda told a funny story, about two years into their career, when Bennington was hungover and had to get through an airport security line with all his rock and roll metal.


“There was a day when he was wearing a dog collar, he had the metal in his ears, he had the metal in his lip, he had spike bracelets from his wrist to his elbows, he had a belt that had metal all over it with like a chain, and metal in his boots and he goes to the airport with us,” says Shinoda. “And we see him, we get to the airport, we’re in the security line with this guy going, ‘Ummm, there’s like two people in front of you and we don’t say anything to him because clearly he was hungover.”


“It was like Mr. T came to the security line and forgot the lock to his dog collar,” continued the songwriter and rapper. “My favorite part was that he was kind of bitter. He was kind of hungover and angry, so he gets to the front of the line and we were like, “Oh, no. This is gonna be bad.’”


In the end, all the band could do was laugh at Bennington in his state, just like they laugh at the old incarnations of themselves. “That’s who we were at the time,” finishes Shinoda.


Linkin Park are getting into tour shape to co-headline the 2012 Honda Civic Tour with Incubus. The two bands, whom have often been put into the same musical category, also grew up in the same area. Linkin Park said they saw Incubus play some backyards when they were in high school; Incubus lived down the 101 freeway in Calabasas.


The band will promote their latest album, Living Things, in stores June 26th.

Source: KROQ.radio.com