Lost is a song by the band Linkin Park. It was originally recorded for their second studio album, Meteora, in 2002 but didn't make the final cut. It was released on February 10, 2023, as the lead single from the album's 20th-anniversary reissue. It is also the first track on the "Lost Demos" compilation album. The song did outstandingly well at release receiving millions of listens in short time. It sums up the early days of Linkin Park's rise to success and their sound at the time, being reminiscent to their widely loved and popular songs in the music world like "In the End" and "Numb".
Background[]
Despite being described as never-before-heard, "Lost" was known to exist and partially heard by some as far back as 2003. It became popular in the Linkin Park fan community from a small clip in the album Special Edition's Making of Meteora DVD, where Chester is singing some demo lyrics over the song's instrumental. The demo lyrics "thoughts that take away my pride" that aren't present in the full song were what fans referred to the song as for 20 years as the actual title was unknown, and the band never spoke a word on the track over the years. Later, a couple of small clips of the song's instrumental were used behind their "LPTV" videos and discovered by some fans. The mystery of the song led to it being a "holy-grail" track to fans much like "Pictureboard". On April 19, 2021, on a livestream[1], Mike Shinoda was asked about the demo lyrics "thoughts that take away my pride". This was technically the first time the song was ever mentioned by a band member, but Mike didn't recognize the lyrics, and said they were likely from a demo of a song that made the album. In interviews from 2003, the band also mentioned having extra songs from the album cycle that didn't quite fit with the rest of the album as a whole.
When finally released in February 2023, the song's background was finally revealed. It was a song that just barely missed making the tracklist for Meteora. As the band described it, the album was 12 songs, and Lost was the 13th. It was recorded during the album's sessions at NRG Studios, and fully mixed/mastered with the songs that made it on, but got held off at the last minute and not included. The song was too similar to Numb in intensity and energy, and the band didn't want two of that same type of song on the record. Numb was the stronger song. Even though held off the original album, it was intended to be released at some point during the Meteora cycle. The band ultimately went on to forget the song existed and came across it looking for material to include for Meteora's 20th anniversary. Mike Shinoda said about the song, "Finding this track was like finding a favorite photo you had forgotten you'd taken, like it was waiting for the right moment to reveal itself. For years, fans have been asking us to release something with Chester's voice, and I'm thrilled we've been able to make that happen in such a special way. I think they're going to be floored when they hear and see all of the incredible unreleased songs and video footage in Meteora|20." Brad Delson said, "The performance is so beautiful, delicate and clear. I've heard a lot of great Chester vocals, and this is among the best." Though being originally mixed by Andy Wallace, the song's mix was reapproached by Mike and Manny Marroquin, for the single release, and inclusion on Lost Demos.
Lyrics[]
Just a scar somewhere down inside of me
Something I can not repair
Even though it will always be
I pretend it isn't there (this is how I feel)
I'm trapped in yesterday (just a memory)
Where the pain is all I know (this is all I know)
And I'll never break away (can't break free)
'Cause when I'm alone
I'm lost in these memories
Living behind my own illusion
Lost all my dignity
Living inside my own confusion
But I'm tired, I will always be afraid
Of the damage I've received
Broken promises they made
And how blindly I believed (this is all I know)
I will never break away (can't break free)
'Cause when I'm alone
I'm lost in these memories
Living behind my own illusion
Lost all my dignity
Living inside my own confusion
I try to keep this pain inside, but I will never be alright
I try to keep this pain inside, but I will never be alright
(I'm lost) I try to keep this pain inside, but I will never be alright
(I'm lost) I try to keep this pain inside, but I will never be alright
I'm lost in these memories
Living behind my own illusion
Lost all my dignity
Living inside my own confusion
Music video[]
| Lost [Official Music Video] - Linkin Park | |||
 | |||
| Publish date | 8 February 2023 | ||
| Director | Maciej Kuciara • pplpleasr | ||
| Place shot | Kaiber (AI) | ||
| Views | 81,569,697 (as of 14 March 2024) | ||
Versions[]
2002 Mix[]
The original version of the song, officially known as Lost (2002 Mix), is currently only officially available on the 3-CD release of Meteora 20th Anniversary Edition, as a bonus track on Meteora. It has a length of 3:23 and is the untouched original finished mix by Andy Wallace done alongside the songs that made Meteora. Linkin Park spent a number of days both finishing vocal parts of a few songs and mixing the album in New York City in December 2002. The song's original arrangement and lyrics are the exact same. The band did not want to change anything about the song, but rather improve it to a more modern sound in the main version.
Resolution[]
Main article: Resolution
Resolution, despite not being clearly stated, is an early demo of "Lost" from before the album's recording sessions. Most of the demos from Meteora were worked on at Mike's home studio, which is seen in the Making of Meteora DVD and also the new "Work in Progress" Meteora 20 DVD. It is a vocally incomplete demo, with only Mike rapping on the verses. The track was longer and structurally different, with a length of 4:37. It was later almost completely reworked at NRG studios into "Lost". "The Wizard Song" was a funny bit originally shown in the Making of Meteora DVD, with Chester singing about Wizards over Resolution's instrumental with the band in Mike's studio before the album's sessions. Pre-Meteora 20, "Resolution" was an unidentified title known about by hardcore fans from the Meteora era known working titles. The track was included as the fourteenth and final track of the Lost Demos CD. No wizard lyrics are in the track, that was a goofy joke and never actually a thing.
PLZ Tethered Version[]
On April 21, 2023, the band released a remixed version of the song with the title "Lost [PLZ Tethered Version]". The remix was done by Patrick Zappia and features a different, more calm instrumental without any drums. The song can be easily compared to the Reanimation remix of "Crawling". It has a length of 3:22 and has a shortened first chorus and lengthened outro, compared to the original studio version. The remix also includes the original guitar track from the song.
Gallery[]
Spotify[]
Release history[]
Radio[]
| Country | Source | Release date |
|---|---|---|
| Italy | [2] | 10 February 2023 |
| United States | [3] | 14 February 2023 |
References[]
- ↑ 4.19.21 - Freestyle?
- ↑ "Linkin Park - Lost; Tenaglia, Raffaella (February 10, 2023)". EarOne (in Italian)
- ↑ "Rock Future Releases" - AllAccess. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
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