“A Thousand Suns,” the latest record from Linkin Park, shows that the band is still having trouble reconciling past success with a mostly stale present.

The band members try their hands at a variety of genres, but they mostly end up with an awkward mesh of pop and screamo. However, some of the more experimental pop comes off surprisingly successfully, much like the adult-pop of the new Backstreet Boys. Dark but soothing vocal harmonies permeate this album, and it’s obvious that lead vocalist Chester Bennington has had some vocal training since his more scream-prone days.

Most of the songs have an electronic, mechanical feel to them. They’re very tight and don’t allow for much musical flexibility. Some bright, techno-like songs might seem to invite dancing, but the dark lyrics and tone of Bennington’s voice, which overshadow the underlying bouncy beat, are a real downer and sober any desire to dance. Linkin Park has therefore gone against the tendency of pop songs to be created for dance and has instead created a more expressive mode of music—an interesting experiment, but not an aurally fruitful one.

As always, Linkin Park explores various polarities of emotion, with Bennington screaming during some parts and cooing tenderly during others. But it seems that Linkin Park has had difficulty moving away from its overwhelmingly successful past, featuring generally cohesive and unified albums, and moving into a more mature sound.

Linkin Park seems to be struggling with defining who their audience is. Given their age, they can’t appeal, let alone relate, to angst-filled teens anymore. “A Thousand Suns” seems to be a random assortment of songs aimed to appeal to varying, diverse audiences. In order to gain a solid group of devoted listeners, the band must redefine a sound they are already confident of. No one really knows what to expect from Linkin Park anymore, and I doubt even they truly know what to expect from themselves.

Linkin Park was a child hero in the past but has since entered into a seemingly endless fit of awkward adolescence. Both the band and their fans have changed, but Linkin Park hasn’t quite grown up yet. Instead of dabbling in the sounds of others, Linkin Park needs to learn to stand firmly on their own two musical feet to create a unique sound. Here’s to hoping these guys can get their act together.