It began with an Instagram story. Before the Manila stop of Mike Shinoda’s Post Traumatic Tour, he took online and asked fans what they wanted to see. Someone suggested he smash one song from every Linkin Park album. But this is Mike Shinoda, the man, the myth, the legend, and by the end of the night he represented every studio album from Linkin Park, Fort Minor, and Mike Shinoda.

Mike had the stage presence and crowd command of a full band, backed by multi-instrumentalists Dan Mayo and Matthias Harris. A backdrop of waltzing smoke and blinding choreographed lights set the tone for every track. This was the penultimate destination of his world tour and the last headlining stop.

Mixes and mashups helped navigate through his extensive discography. For the first time ever, he mixed Lift Off with High Voltage and Skin to Bone and couldn’t hide his amazement after pulling it off. On Twitter later that evening, he shared how he had to write down the first line of Keys to the Kingdom, which he added into Sorry for Now, describing the lines were a deep cut.

Gaps between performances were utilized for storytelling. We learned that Castle of Glass, released under the Living Things album, was actually written at the end of production for A Thousand Suns. He also mentioned that Invisible was written for his children to listen to when they grow up and face moments of uncertainty.

This stop of Post Traumatic saw a couple firsts. It was the tour debut of I.O.U. and the first performance of Worlds on Fire post-music video release. Although Mike has had input on the animated components of his releases, the Worlds on Fire music video is the first time he has drawn characters. The video was published the day before the concert.

English band Don Broco opened the event with infectious high-energy performances. They were happy to be in the country for the first time, noting that when their track Beautiful Morning came out in 2011, their second biggest listenership was Manila after their local of Bedford. The group later joined Mike for a blazing performance of A Place for My Head.

The most beautiful part of the evening was Mike playing keys for Numb/Encore and In the End/ Enth E Nd with the audience filling in for singing duties. It’s not everyday you have a duet with the man behind your karaoke staple. He would stop playing the last set of notes and only the audience’s chorus bounced through the walls. There’s a perceptible air of calm and relief broken shortly by claps and howls.

Whether intentional or not, the concert was a cathartic experience, perhaps more so for those who have followed Mike since Hybrid Theory came out in 2000. The show was heavy on emotions without necessarily being emotional. Two years ago, Mike doubted whether he could continue music and touring. We’re thankful he did.

Special thanks to Insignia Presents

Words by Marijo Endriga
Photos by Carla Barretto