It was clear from the start Wednesday night at Target Center that Linkin Park’s fans were more than ready for the band’s triumphant return.

The crowd cheered wildly as each member of the rap rock group took the mostly darkened stage and then erupted once they launched into the first song of the night, “Somewhere I Belong.” By the time they got to the third number “Crawling,” the energy exploded once again as the audience sang along with glee.

The last time we saw Linkin Park in town was 11 years ago, nearly to the day, at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand. But the 2025 Linkin Park didn’t look quite the same.

Lead singer Chester Bennington died by suicide in 2017, a week before the North American leg of the band’s tour was set to start. The following year, vocalist/rapper/multi-instrumentalist Mike Shinoda said he had every intention on continuing the group, but gave no timetable, saying at the time that “we have a lot of rebuilding to do.”

In 2023, the band reunited with a new lead singer, Dead Sara vocalist Emily Armstrong. Drummer Rob Bourdon chose not to participate and Colin Brittain stepped in to take his place. Lead guitarist Brad Delson played on LP’s first album with Armstrong, 2024’s “From Zero,” but chose not to tour while saying he may change his mind in the future. Alex Feder is serving as his live replacement.

Even though half of the six band members were new, they still very much conjured the raw intensity and spirit of Linkin Park Wednesday night. It felt odd, yet promising, when the band took on a woman in a genre that’s almost exclusively male. But once she started to sing Wednesday, it was obvious why they hired her. She’s got an amazingly powerful voice and the ability to effortlessly transition from melodic singing to fierce growling.

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No, she doesn’t sound like Bennington, but that’s a good thing. She brings a freshness to a band that enjoyed a successful 17-year run tragically cut short and followed by a seven-year hiatus. Armstrong didn’t feel the need to hog the spotlight, either, with Shinoda now effectively acting as the band’s leader.

For two hours, LP surveyed each era of their history from their multi-platinum 2000 debut “Hybrid Theory” through the well-received “From Zero.” Indeed, two of the recent singles with Armstrong, “The Emptiness Machine” and “Up from the Bottom,” were highlights of the first hour. So was “The Catalyst,” an epic that started as a hard-edged techno thriller and turned into a power ballad that got the crowd waving their arms in the air.

Middle-aged fans who were there from the start made up a large part of the crowd, but many brought their kids. At one point, Shinoda jumped off stage and slapped hands with fans. He found one who appeared to be in grade school and gave him his hat, which the band had all signed. And that kid looked like he was in heaven.

Second acts can be tough to pull off in rock music, especially when there are new faces involved. Linkin Park seems to have pulled it off with ease and there was a real sense of both purpose and joy radiating from the stage.

Shinoda also took a moment to acknowledge the mass shooting Wednesday morning that left two children dead and 17 people injured at Annunciation Church in south Minneapolis. He said he knew what it was like to pick up the pieces after a tragedy, dedicated the show to the “loving, resilient city of Minneapolis” and said he hoped a night of music would bring a positive light in a time of darkness.

Maybe it had something to do with a bout with illness that led to the cancellation of his most recent concerts, but Hank Williams Jr. arrived at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand Wednesday night seemingly in a reflective mood. The artist dubbed “Bocephus” by his legendary father leaned heavily upon his dad’s legacy and his own reputation for fusing country with southern rock. Yet he decided to do some storytelling, too.

Williams seized an opportunity to honor his ancestors, spinning tales of his childhood encounters with such mentors as Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis, and invoking the name of Johnny Cash more than once, dropping in a bit of “I Walk the Line” and pointing out that June Carter Cash was his godmother.

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And, while he did pump up the adrenaline levels for the crowd of 7,331 with rocked-up takes on his father’s “Move It On Over” and “Mind Your Own Business,” this show proved most memorable when he let the band leave the stage and mixed stories with his songs in a solo setting.

Such as a stint at a baby grand piano for Domino’s version of his father’s “Your Cheatin’ Heart” and a summoning of Lewis’ manic spirit on “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.” Add a lengthy stint at center stage with only an acoustic guitar and microphone and you have a pretty darn satisfying concert that bore a valedictory feel, a sense that, if this is his last time at the fair, Williams wanted to be remembered as part of an ongoing legacy in both country and rock and roll.

And he’s among those who spliced the two genres, to which he nodded when his seven-piece band joined him for a mid-concert rave-up with extended quotes from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Gimme Three Steps” and ZZ Top’s “Waitin’ for the Bus.” Even amid all the reflective fare, it served to remind the audience that Williams found stardom more as a rocking rowdy than a balladeer.

He picked a tough act to follow when asking Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives to open for him. Stuart and Williams are both part of the Country Hall of Fame’s class of 2020, and – if anyone thought Williams’ set a little too low-key – they could make no such complaint about Stuart and company.

Mixing Bakersfield twang, rockabilly, surf rock, Byrds-esque jangly guitar pop and some breathtaking bluegrass with Stuart tearing it up on mandolin, it might have been the most exciting set the Grandstand has hosted in several years that fell under the broad umbrella of country.

A 59-year-old Cass Lake woman died Tuesday after her boat crashed into the shore on Leech Lake in Cass County.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office responded to the crash at 1:25 p.m. on the south shore of Leech Lake, near the Walker City Park. According to a news release from the sheriff’s office, deputies and responders arrived and found a 2016 Regency Tri-toon crashed on the shore. The Cass Lake woman was located unresponsive in the watercraft.ke Bertha Storm Clouds June 12, 2024, Video By Ricky Buchanan

She was removed from the watercraft. Lifesaving efforts weren’t successful.

The woman, whose name was not immediately released, was the only person on board the watercraft at the time of the incident. An autopsy is scheduled with the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office.

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A shooter opened fire Wednesday morning during Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, killing two children and injuring 17 other people before dying by suicide, officials said.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooter, 23-year-old Robin Westman, did not have an extensive known criminal history, acted alone and had legally purchased the weapons recently.

A law enforcement official told the New York Times that investigators believe the attacker was a former student at the school and the suspect’s mother is a retired school employee.

Videos on YouTube

O’Hara said authorities are aware of a video showing writings that the shooter had timed to be released on YouTube.

It “appeared to show (the suspect) at the scene and included some disturbing writings,” O’Hara said. With the assistance of the FBI, the content has since been taken down and “it now remains under active review by our investigators,” the police chief said.

According to the Associated Press, in one video that lasts about 10 minutes, the alleged shooter shows weapons and ammunition, many with sayings written on them including the phrases “kill Donald Trump” and “Where is your God?” Some are in Cyrillic.

The person holds up a letter to relatives, sings the word “tomorrow” and says, “I’m sorry to my family … that’s the only people I’m sorry to.”

A second, almost 20-minute video shows two journals with stickers, some depicting weapons. The alleged shooter flips to what looks to be a drawing of the layout of the church, points to two outside windows and then stabs the illustration with a long knife.

Gender identity, family

Federal officials referred to Westman as transgender, and Frey decried hatred being directed at “our transgender community.”

In 2020, a judge approved a petition, signed by Westman’s mother, asking for a name change from Robert to Robin, saying the petitioner “identifies as a female and wants her name to reflect that identification.”

Former Kentucky state lawmaker Bob Heleringer told The Associated Press he is Westman’s uncle, but had not seen Westman in a few years.

“He was my nephew, and I wish he had shot me instead of innocent schoolchildren,” Heleringer said during a phone interview. “I barely knew him. They (Robin’s family) never lived in Louisville. They lived in Minnesota.”

RISE Dispensary employment

Westman was employed by RISE Dispensary, a chain of cannabis dispensaries in Minnesota, for several months earlier this year, according to a RISE spokesperson.

“This individual was not employed by the company at the time of the incident,” the spokesperson said in a statement.  “We are deeply saddened by the tragic events that occurred today in Minnesota. Our deepest condolences go out to the victims, their families, and the entire community impacted by this senseless act of violence.”

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