Dear Agony

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.

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!)

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.

An amazing album that encapsulates the older stylings of BB and their later works, and generally accepted favourite album by fans, 'Phobia'. Without a doubt one of the most meaning filled albums and has a lot of personal implications which makes the experience that all the more wonderful. If you want something that is chilled, dark, and well written this is definitely an album to check out!

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.

This fourth album marked a change for the band as Ben Burnley; the main songwriter decided to go sober, after writing the previous 3 albums in a less than sober state! This meant a change in the band's writing style and with it Ben tried to focus more on a theme for the album meaning for it to be more consistent. This is also the most personal album for Ben which resonates with the cover image of an MRI scan of his brain. This personal experience is very noticeable throughout the whole album and you can tell that a story is being told rather than many different tales like with the previous 3 albums. It is more focused and I think that is certainly noticeable. The inner artwork also creates a feeling of a change in image for the band with the setting of an abandoned warehouse with the band standing like soldiers. The first song Fade away starts with Ben ironically stating "It's almost over" which shoots us on this personal journey of his. Straight away it kicks in with a guitar sound with higher pitched lead, showing a new sound and sets us up for the rest. I will not bow; the 1st single from the album is one of the best and tells of someone who will not give up no matter how tough things appear. It's inspirational. Crawl is one of my favourites and has a great sound. You get the feeling Ben is singing to someone he's not pleased with. The screaming is different to what we're used to from Ben and gives another taste of this transformed style. Give me a sign is different from anything the band have done before. Even though we had acoustic songs in the first 2 albums and gave us an idea of the ranging styles the band's capable of, this song has a very mellow sound with electric guitars. Lyrically it's different from anything we've heard before too. Hopeless includes the new screaming style. I love the contrast between the soft verses and the aggressive chorus; it`s great to listen to. What lies beneath is another favourite and once again Ben's speaking to someone he's angry with in an epic style. Another soft verse/powerful chorus combination. Amazing! You can sense the loneliness and the neglect from the singer. The bridge is great with lyrics "You're the devil in disguise". The quality of song-writing definitely remains solid if it hasn't progressed. Anthem of the angels took a bit more getting used to for me and represents a less aggressive individual who's looking towards hope. I can appreciate the clever song-writing now and enjoy it. Lights out (the heaviest song in between the 2 softest) follows, which is completely different. It's probably my favourite song on the album and I loved it from 1st listen with Ben being as aggressive and outspoken against this tormentor as he gets. The intensity gets to it's climax here! For me, if one song represents the band's progression it's this one! Dear agony (title song) returns to a much softer and mellow sound where Ben speaks out about his agony which was inspired by his personal problems spanned from his alcoholism. I saw somewhere it was described as a sugary ballad and I'd probably say the same although this is not a bad thing and it`s cleverly written. Into the nothing is a weaker song but is still strong and effective. It's one of, if not the darkest song on the album (with imagery of dead). Without you is most similar to Dear agony but I would describe it as romantic with the individual looking towards hope again, reminiscent of Anthem of the angels. He's looking for help and solace with lyrics "I can't face the dark without you". It's a nice way to finish this awesome album. Whereas this album is more focused on a specific theme and depicts a much more personal journey for Ben, for me it lacks that overall controlled chaos that the previous albums have. Ben seems to be writing with a certain thing in mind and there doesn't seem to be so many different ideas which appear in the previous albums. I would say that it is a development for the band and a progressive style, which isn't straying away at all from the amazing Breaking Benjamin sound. No huge risks have been taken and as a listener I appreciate that. This is a very powerful, solid album and one which I've become very attached to. I do prefer Phobia though because it had a lot more variety in terms of style, the best sound, and I think it's a stronger album. Listen to the whole album and you'll find some repetition of lyrics and I think although Ben's sticking to these specific ideas which I commend, it doesn't vary and please me as much as Phobia does. It won't let fans of the band down but be prepared for a different style and you will be just as pleased as me!

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.

I love this album and band. Anthem of the angels made me cry and I will not bow is my new favourite song!!!

Llegó en un buen estado, a mi hermana le encantó mucho y más para esta navidad 10/10.

Was soll man groß Schreiben bei einer Band wie Breaking Benjamin, die ein Hammer-Album nach dem anderen abliefern?? Das aktuelles Album "Dear Agony" findet sich zu 92% auf dem selben Level wie ihr Hammer-Album "Phobia" wieder. Alle Songs wirken sehr durchdacht, bilden eine gesunde Mischung aus Rock und Metal und spiegeln den typischen Breaking Benjamin Stil wieder. Einen großen Teil des Erfolgs von BB macht wohl die Stimme des Frontsängers aus, die nicht nur Clean sehr gut rüberkommt sondern auch in den Screaming-Parts absolut geil klingt! Die Songs "I Will Not Bow" / "What Lies Beneath" / "Lights Out" haben mir auf Anhieb gefallen und gehören klar zu den besten Songs der Band (und davon gibt es nicht wenige). 70% der Songs würde ich mit 5 Sternen bewerten, die restlichen mit sehr guten 4 Sternen; Daher eine Gesamtbewertung von 5 Sternen! Wer Breaking Benjamin nicht kennt, hat eine der besten Rockbands der heutigen Zeit verpasst also hört auf jedenfall mal rein!

Je n'ai découvert que depuis peu mais j'adore. Des chants prenant, et qui restent en tête, des mélodies puissantes. Je recommande.

Es el más similar a Dark Before Dawn (el que han sacado recientemente) así que si te gusta ese muy probablemente te guste este también.

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.