Linkin Park, “From Zero.”

Linkin Park created its eighth album, From Zero, with the pressure of carrying on the legacy of Chester Bennington and its own storied alt-rock catalog. But it was able to accomplish this in secret, without the bright lights and fanfare, over several years. With Dead Sara vocalist Emily Armstrong and drummer Colin Brittain, the remaining members started anew, and the album shows they were up for the challenge.

“From zero? Like, from nothing?” Armstrong asks during the intro track, which allows fans to be the fly on a wall as she nods to both starting over and the band’s original name, Xero.

The music is indeed fresh for this band, and as focused as Linking Park has sounded in years. It’s as urgent as the band’s earliest work while venturing into new territory rather than rehashing an old sound. The opener, single “The Emptiness Machine,” is a natural introduction of Armstrong, with Mike Shinoda taking the first verse and chorus, and Armstrong entering in the second, each repeating, “I only wanted to be part of something.”

Armstrong seems intent on convincing skeptics, bringing an impressive range from soaring melodies to gripping screams. Take “Casualty,” easily one of the heaviest songs on the album, bridging punk with modern metal.

“Let me out/ Set me free/ I know all the secrets you keep/ I won’t be your casualty,” Armstrong barks, and Shinoda counters with an uncharacteristically aggressive delivery of his own.

Armstrong is by no means a newcomer, but her vocals are still a revelation on From Zero. The textures and voices she explores throughout the record vary substantially. From the smoky and melodic power balladry of “Over Each Other” to the pained aggression of “IGYEIH” and an extended scream on “Heavy is the Crown,” she checks all the boxes.

Where the band really rekindles its magic is in the vocal and lyrical interaction between Armstrong and Shinoda. At times, the pair trade tight verses back and forth, with Shinoda rhyming and Armstrong countering with an aggressive vocal. At others, they harmonize and blend their vocals.

Shinoda’s raps take on a mature tone, with nods to his earliest work while incorporating more vivid lyrical imagery. Verses on the bouncy “Cut the Bridge” and “Stained” both hit with stomp and an energetic lyrical delivery.

From Zero shines brightest during unexpected moments. “Overflow” is dark and moody with a sparse and hard-driving beat, and Shinoda offering up a spacey atmospheric vocal.

“We’re all dressed up for a riot/ Catching fire, fighting fire/ I can feel the pressure coming/ End the world and push the button,” Shinoda raps.

The track that will likely excite longtime fans the most is “Two Faced,” encapsulating the personality and energy of earlier albums but without replicating the sound. It’s raw guitar-driven hard rock blended with rap and electronic music courtesy of DJ Joseph Hahn, who feels more prevalent throughout the record. Brittain deserves an honorable mention for providing a strong rhythmic foundation on the drums, as well as album co-producer.

“Good Things Go” may fly under the radar as the album’s final track, but the song is a melodic juggernaut. Shinoda spits pointed and focused bars while Armstrong reaches up to the heavens with a slick hook. While the band keeps its song meanings fairly close to the vest, it often feels like Shinoda is speaking to those voices setting his musical path for him, declaring what Linkin Park can or can’t be.

“Maybe the problem is ego/ Maybe the problem is mine/ Really I’m fine/ Don’t get too intimate, don’t get too curious/ This is just feeling like it’s not that serious/ Stare at the ceiling/ Feeling delirious,” he sings.

The band, and particularly Mike Shinoda, has a workaholic reputation and an obsessive attention to detail in the studio. From Zero works because it feels like both Armstrong and Brittain fit that mold and bring cohesion and chemistry that elevate the sound with fresh eyes and ears. While it goes without saying that filling the shoes of Chester Bennington is an impossible task, Linkin Park carries the flame about as well as it could. There was no guarantee that a retooled band would even work. Rather than leaning on nostalgia, the band forges ahead.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.