The Roxy is packed tonight, with members of several bands who played recently concluded Ozzfest in attendence. The last time this very club was this crowded was for a System Of A Down concert, right about the time their debut album was released to worldwide acclaim.

It's difficult to say whether local boys Linkin Park will make as great a ripple as System, but one thing is certain: Chester Bennington is a star in the making. Some people have voices, and there are others who have VOICES. Kurt Cobain, Chris Cornell, Robert Plant - all famous names whose throats and layrnxes managed to conjure up the sound of something that's more than human. We can now add Chester Bennington to that short list.

Deceptively small in stature, he is one of two vocalists in this rap-and-sample inflected rock band. While Mike Shinoda handles most of the refrains for the songs, it's Chester's choruses that cause jaws to momentarily dangle. It's a voice that scythes through the music like a machete through bamboo, occasionally shrill but always forceful.

It's hard to believe that it's all Bennington, that he's not artificially augmented by backing tapes. Guitarist Brad Delson, DJ Joseph Hahn and drummer Rob Bourdon keep the groove steady, but without dissing their talents, it's clear they're all about the vocalists. It's a formula originated by 311-one guy sings, the other raps-but Linkin Park have taken the recipe and baked it up in a whole new way.

With their strong sense of melody and a knack for the huge hook, especially during 'One Step Closer' (already a radio hit in LA) and the mighty 'Crawling' where the band's sound is refreshingly melodic. The Park's debut album, 'Hybrid Theory,' isn't quite the wonder that one might hope, but at their best, Bennington is clearly one to watch. Actually, make that one to hear.

Joshua Sindell