BREAKING BENJAMIN | Ember | Album Review

If you wrote down a list of the bands that have entered a hiatus in their career only to return and get more acknowledgement and respect than they've ever gotten, Breaking Benjamin will almost definitely be in one of the top three slots. Several factors play into this such as lineup changes, an extremely dedicated fanbase, and consistency in their material. None of their discs have ever veered away from who the band is as a collective unit and what they are classified as, but this actually works out much better from Benjamin Burnley and the rest of Breaking Benjamin due to the amount of extra effort to make their songs appealing and easy to listen to. As of 2018, the band has motives to expand upon both the melodic and heavy aspects of their sound with "Ember", the band's sixth studio effort and the second since the hiatus in the early 2010's. Explaining in interviews about the themes and styles that are the construct of this album, Benjamin stated that the catalyst for making a heavier piece of work was due to the fans, also stating that it is a record where both the heavy and soft sides are pushed to the extreme limit. Guitarist Jasen Rauch also explained about the dynamic around now having three guitarists in the band, stating that "playing-wise, it's the most difficult album", but would not be a departure from the sound that got Breaking Benjamin on the map. As someone who is among the BB fanbase and adores the creative riffs that make up many songs from the band, it's awesome to see that the band is actively attempting to come up with something unique in the guitars and not completely falling into the habit of using four generic chords to make up a riff. So, what does this highly-anticipated disc have to offer to the fanbase? 

There were five pre-released songs before the album's release, so for the purpose of this review, it feels right to only speak of the first three of those before anything else, those being "Red Cold River", "Feed The Wolf", and "Blood". Looking at this trio of tracks in terms of quality, all three of them are home runs and it feels like each track that came out was slightly better than the already great song that came before it. A good example of this is "Red Cold River" which does fit well among the lines of a track you'd expect from Breaking Benjamin. It has the musicianship and the lyrics to accomplish that along with some slight deviations in sound like the shift from quiet verses to loud choruses, as well as some creative vocal layering in the second half, and it definitely hits the spot. The next single, "Feed The Wolf" expands upon this with the same great musicianship and writing as before with some new elements such as the speech that plays throughout the bridge. It's almost to the point to where "Feed The Wolf" doesn't really sound similar to anything they've done in the past, like it's different but it's familiar at the same time. "Blood" was the last of the three to get released, and once again, they expand their sound further. This is probably the most radio-friendly song out of the three, but "Blood" still does everything in its power to be memorable once the playback is over. All three of these songs should give you idea of mostly what to expect along the road from Point A to Point B on this album. 

Listening to new Breaking Benjamin is sort of akin to watching a film that you really enjoy and have seen many times, but it still finds a way to please you, whether it be funny jokes or visuals that have you mesmerized every time they're onscreen. You might have heard some of this material before on other Breaking Benjamin albums and from other band, but there is something about it that keeps you along for the ride, and that is the musicianship. Jason Rauch, Keith Wallen, and even Ben himself are masters of musical composition and writing and it clashes impeccably and perfectly with the bass thumping from Aaron Bruch and the drum performance from Shaun Foist. These are men that have never worked better as a writing team, and it's proven so well with the material that is the structure that holds this album up. Songs like "Tourniquet", "Down", "Close Your Eyes", and "Torn In Two", which has circulated even during the "Dark Before Dawn" days and had 30 seconds leaked online last year, all fit along the lines of something you'd expect them to make but they still share all of the qualities of the pre-released singles released before it. Some of these tracks even feel like they have elements from other bands like Chevelle on the song "Down" or the nu-metal influence that seems to come out on a few of these tracks for example. 

My favorite song on this album is easily "Psycho". This was the fourth pre-release single, and it's the cut on here that I feel has the most to offer out of any of these songs. It's weird to think that a song titled "Psycho" would be considered the best track on a record that has a song with that title, but that's what happens. The riff in this song is utterly fantastic and it is where Ben Burnley and everyone else really show their musical creativity throughout over three minutes of music, with more of the great lyricism featured and even a guitar solo that really blends well with the song. But, the real shift of the album comes with the track directly after "The Dark Of You", the softest track on the record and the band's first duet with dancer/singer Derek Hough. Honestly, I would say that this track is my least favorite on here. It isn't bad in any away, not at all, but compared to other softer cuts like "Ashes Of Eden" and "Anthem Of The Angels", it doesn't feel as consistent. It just kind of feels like a verse building up to one long chorus, but I will assume that this is a track that grows on me over time, so it definitely doesn't feel like filler. And with other tracks like "Psycho", "Save Yourself" which is another pre-release track, and "Tourniquet" on the album that have instant replay value and interesting elements that make them stick out, it's really hard for a Breaking Benjamin fan to be disappointed by the end product. 

This album isn't necessarily a game changer or anything like that, as this does feel like a very short album. I would've loved to hear a couple more songs on this album or at least some of these songs extended past the three minute mark. There must've been more than ten songs and an intro and outro in the sessions for this album, but whether or not there are a larger quantity of songs or a song is four minute instead of three doesn't always mean that there is little effort. Some of these tracks are just around three minutes but they still do everything in their power to add interesting elements and ideas and are successful. While I could also argue that this is lacking some truly soft moments as well, even that doesn't matter because Breaking Benjamin can pull off anything and make you forget that there was even a flaw to begin with. Is this my favorite album from this band? No, because there's "Dear Agony", and it's a little early to judge where this ranks among the six BB albums in terms of quality. However, one definite pitch I can make selling this album to fans and newcomers is that "Ember" is an album that you need to check out. That's straight up obvious for any fan with any sort of anticipation, but as a whole, this album proves that the fire is still burning within this band. 

RATING: 8/10 

What did you think about the record? Was it good? Was it bad? Let me know in the comments below. And of course, these are only my opinions. If your opinions are different, awesome! If they're similar, then that's great, too. So, don't hesitate- comment to me about it down below. Take care.