I want to be clear in that I really like Breaking Benjamin as a band and I actually really like all of their albums. I know that is probably evident from the four star rating here. The reason I want to be clear with that up front is because I don't have a lot of nice things to say regardless of my rating. The fact remains that I have little to say about this album, which is never a very good thing. I'm giving it a B because it is, from start to finish, a solid album and not one song is bad or distasteful. The reason I have nothing to say is because, outside of four tracks, none of these songs really stand out from the rest. In fact, none of these songs even sound distinctive of this present album. That is my main issue with bands like Breaking Benjamin. They sound the same from record to record. There is no growth, and each song starts to run into the other in a fashion that strips them of any personality. Yes, they are very good at what they do. The vocals are great and the musical progression from song to song is catchy and very listenable, but when all is said and done there is nothing here that you will remember with a fondness that makes you anticipate their next offering with ecstatic excitement. Their sophomore album still remains their pitch perfect highlight, and since then they have meandered within the narrow limits of their `comfort zone'. Their mellow tempo ballads all sound the same, with a haunting down-tuned verse structure and then an immediate uplift with the chorus that sounds like the same beat structure from track to track. Their heavier offerings consist of grungy arrangements and the signature growl here and there within the chorus. They are just far too predictable. They need to do more tracks like their acoustic take on `The Diary of Jane', for it gave them a layer of visionary personality. Over time, while they maintain their obvious talent, they become slightly boring.
Anyways, `Fade Away' is a brilliant opener, and their first single `I Will Not Bow', while slightly generic for them, is them at their best within their signature structure. `Lights Out' is catchy, sure, but it also manages to sound like a different take for them (it reminds me of early Sevendust). `Dear Agony' is the best ballad here, for it has a beautiful sullenness about it and the uplift in the chorus is swelling; moving.
Sadly, the rest of the album, while perfectly solid, is nothing special. I'm waiting for Breaking Benjamin to come out of this rut and present us with something that takes their obvious knack for musical construction and brings it to another level. They have it in them, but they really have yet to deliver on their promise.
I have faith in you!
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Dear Agony
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From the brand
Track Listings
| 1 | Fade Away |
| 2 | I Will Not Bow |
| 3 | Crawl |
| 4 | Dear Agony |
| 5 | Lights Out |
| 6 | What Lies Beneath |
| 7 | Without You |
| 8 | Give Me A Sign |
| 9 | Hopeless |
| 10 | Into The Nothing |
| 11 | Anthem Of The Angels |
Editorial Reviews
This is the brand new fourth album from the Pennsylvania rockers Breaking Benjamin that includes the new hit single "I Will Not Bow."
Product details
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- Language : English
- Product Dimensions : 4.88 x 5.59 x 0.47 inches; 3.67 Ounces
- Manufacturer : Hollywood Records
- Item model number : 5819492
- Original Release Date : 2009
- Date First Available : July 13, 2008
- Label : Hollywood Records
- ASIN : B002KVSJ64
- Country of Origin : USA
- Number of discs : 1
- Best Sellers Rank: #5,443 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #94 in Alternative Metal (CDs & Vinyl)
- #2,950 in Rock (CDs & Vinyl)
- #3,320 in Pop (CDs & Vinyl)
- Customer Reviews:
Customer reviews
4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
1,201 global ratings
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3.0 out of 5 stars
Great album cracked case
Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2020
Huge fan of breaking Benjamin and love the album of course. Three stars because the “Brand new” cd I got had a large crack in the case... it was not packaged well.
Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2020
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 3, 2010
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Breaking Benjamin gives their fans another hard rock CD with even more emtions to relate to and riffs to blast in their car
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 24, 2016
Like Breaking Benjamin CD Dark Before Dawn I enjoy every single song on this CD lot of people where right this a top rated hard rock music CD with some uplifting songs thrown into the mix to help smooth things out among all their fans. Track one is a hard rock song expressing how it feels to have your body break down on you and leave you "Cold and Broken", track two is the hit single "I Will Not Bow" which how I see the lyrics as standing by your convictions no matter what you have to go threw to do so. Track three the lyrics show you how fighting to be the person you desire not to be you turn into anyways no matter how you try to stay ahead in life, track four is a uplifting song you go threw life not giving up while you wait for God to "Give you a Sign." Track five shows you a hard choice when trying to choose which side to face to give up and "let go" or fight on and "hold on", Track six is about looking at one self and seeing what truly "Lies Beneath" and being stuck there forever, track seven you hear the pain in the singer's voice about dealing with death of someone he care's lot for. Track eight you hear the anger of how much the singer dislikes the person in the song and died and is gone but wont be missed by them, track nine is an amazing song with amazing lyrics showing you no matter how much you suffer in life their is someone out their to lift your faith. Track ten is a song about no matter how much we suffer in life to never forget to "Live for the Dying" among others who need help threw their issues along the road of life, track eleven talks about being on the verge of giving up but you need that special someone to be there with you to face the darkness because they are your shinning light to get threw the darkness bringing you down. In closing an truly amazing hard rock CD with great riffs amazing lyrics that will blow you away from relating to the lyrics, another great CD by a band that I don't see leaving anytime soon.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 1, 2009
Breaking Ben has been one of my favorite artists for the majority of the last decade. I've been headbanging to their music since Polyamorous hit the radio. Through that time, through the records Saturate, We Are Not Alone, and Phobia, each album proved the band had a wide array of talent and was capable of melding many different sounds and beats into their own style. Look at "Next to Nothing" from Saturate, "Forget it" from We are Not Alone (or "Rain" if you point out that "Forget It" was cowritten with Billy Corrigan), and "You" from Phobia. Dear Agony is a great album, but quite bluntly I expected more. I was disappointed at first, but after listening to it probably a couple dozen times or more now, I say that it is, in fact, a great album, and while it didn't quite meet my expectations for variety, it did surprise me in a couple ways.
Now for what makes Dear Agony great: The album rocks from start to end. Not only does it rock, however, but it does something that previous albums did not: It flows. Each song flows into the next, making the album feel not just like a rock album, but also a story. These days when I put the CD in and play it, I find that if I'm doing something else at the time, I stop paying any attention to the album and start rocking to the drums and base and feeling myself move to the soul in Aaron's guitar and Ben's voice. A few tracks, including the title track "Dear Agony", are simply mesmerizing.
So while I expected more in the way of variety, it did grow on me in the time that I've owned it. It's a great album to have, to listen to, to rock out to, and I can even program to it. I have no regrets about buying it and if I had downloaded it to listen to it at first, I would gladly pay for it now, which to me says 5 stars.
Now for what makes Dear Agony great: The album rocks from start to end. Not only does it rock, however, but it does something that previous albums did not: It flows. Each song flows into the next, making the album feel not just like a rock album, but also a story. These days when I put the CD in and play it, I find that if I'm doing something else at the time, I stop paying any attention to the album and start rocking to the drums and base and feeling myself move to the soul in Aaron's guitar and Ben's voice. A few tracks, including the title track "Dear Agony", are simply mesmerizing.
So while I expected more in the way of variety, it did grow on me in the time that I've owned it. It's a great album to have, to listen to, to rock out to, and I can even program to it. I have no regrets about buying it and if I had downloaded it to listen to it at first, I would gladly pay for it now, which to me says 5 stars.
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MSH
5.0 out of 5 stars
singing along to some of my favourite songs, was one of the highlights of my ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 13, 2016
I'm a huge Breaking Benjamin fan. I have their logo tattooed on my arm and I even saw them live at Download, which was an incredible experience. Standing amongst all of those people, singing along to some of my favourite songs, was one of the highlights of my life. Some people were even crying when they closed their set with 'The Diary of Jane', and that just shows how beloved this band is, even in a country they'd never played in until earlier this year. I'm writing a review for this album because it's my personal favourite. It definitely seems like the band's most personal album, as some of the songs are about Ben Burnley's struggle with his illness. The title track 'Dear Agony' is a perfect example of this.
There's not much more I can say, other than if you're a fan of rock music then you should have heard of Breaking Benjamin by now. Buy this album, along with the rest of their music, and you won't be disappointed.
There's not much more I can say, other than if you're a fan of rock music then you should have heard of Breaking Benjamin by now. Buy this album, along with the rest of their music, and you won't be disappointed.
Meg
5.0 out of 5 stars
Utterly amazing!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 16, 2012
Totally. Amazing!!!
I've bought three of BB's albums now and they never cease to amaze me! Some people think their songs get repetitive, but if that was the case in other albums, it's not the case with this one!
This is probably my absolute favourite album (only JUST ahead of Phobia, by the tinniest amount) and Breaking Benjamin are my absolute favourite band!
I love my rock music and Breaking Benjamin are up there with Bullet for My Valentine, Three Days Grace, Evanescence, etc, etc... Their just so damn good!
If you like any of the bands mentioned or like rock music then this is your band, because even if you don't like all of their songs, you will, with-out fail end up liking one of them. For example, the infamous `Diary of Jane' (not in this album) hasn't had a dislike yet! (that I know of!)
I've bought three of BB's albums now and they never cease to amaze me! Some people think their songs get repetitive, but if that was the case in other albums, it's not the case with this one!
This is probably my absolute favourite album (only JUST ahead of Phobia, by the tinniest amount) and Breaking Benjamin are my absolute favourite band!
I love my rock music and Breaking Benjamin are up there with Bullet for My Valentine, Three Days Grace, Evanescence, etc, etc... Their just so damn good!
If you like any of the bands mentioned or like rock music then this is your band, because even if you don't like all of their songs, you will, with-out fail end up liking one of them. For example, the infamous `Diary of Jane' (not in this album) hasn't had a dislike yet! (that I know of!)
Jazzy_Jeff
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dear Agony
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 9, 2014
Such an epic album. There were a couple tracks I wasn't too keen on including 'Dear Agony' and 'Without You' but they've grown on me and now there's not a track I don't like. My favourites include 'Fade Away', 'Crawl', 'Hopeless' and 'Into The Nothing'. Overall it's one of the best Rock/Metal albums I own and I'm happy to have it in my collection.
lemon
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rock
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 10, 2014
Great album from band I'd never heard of, currently in process of purchasing back catalogue, not as good as Phobia but still miles better than any of the new money-obsessed middle-of-the-road crap out there.
Sharon Tatlock
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love this album with a passion.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 24, 2014
If you like Breaking Benjamin then you must have this album. It really is superb.
I ordered it from Amazon because it is not available to download on itunes. I am so pleased I bought it.
I ordered it from Amazon because it is not available to download on itunes. I am so pleased I bought it.
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