Phobia is the third studio album by American rock band Breaking Benjamin. It was recorded at The Barbershop Studios in Hopatcong, New Jersey, and released on August 8, 2006, through Hollywood Records.
Overview Phobia was released on August 8, 2006. The album sold 131,000 copies in its first week, which made it the fastest selling and highest charting Breaking Benjamin album (until 2015's Dark Before Dawn), hitting number two on the US Billboard 200. This is the first studio album Chad Szeliga recorded with the band. The intro track features the sound effects of an airport, namely a flight attendant announcing standard safety procedures and the sound of an airplane making its ascent, alluding to Benjamin Burnley's fear of flying, hence the inspiration for the album name, Phobia.Annotations to Breaking Benjamin – Intro - RockGenius
The album re-entered the US Billboard 200 at number 38 on May 5, 2007, with its reissue. The album was certified platinum by the RIAA, gold by the RMNZ and silver by the BPI, making it their most successful album in terms of sales internationally.
Reception
Phobia received generally mixed reviews. Corey Apar of AllMusic called the album "nothing if not consistent" with their past material, concluding "Phobia will not win over any skeptics still holding out on the band, but for those already happily settled in the Benjamin camp, it makes for another satisfying listen". Simon K. of Sputnikmusic was more critical, stating "There are a couple of songs on here that are easily forgettable and lack any real substance from the vocal side of things, and because the music behind it is keeping vocals in mind, the song suffers because of it", though also felt that "[...] it's still a very enjoyable album". Entertainment Weekly criticized the disc's dark tone, saying almost every song was "[...] a cry in the darkness of a cruel world", but praised its "[...] expansive choruses and epic riffs".
Track listing
1The CD released with the Phobia collectors edition DVD also includes this track.
2This track is not listed on the album's back insert. When played, it appears as track 14, making "So Cold" track 15 and "Rain" track 16.
Collectors edition DVD
This DVD was released in April 2007 as part of the Phobia collectors edition CD and DVD package; it features the band's entire February 11, 2007 concert at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Song information "The Diary of Jane" is a hidden track (number 124) on the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit roller coaster at Universal Studios Florida. According to lead singer Benjamin Burnley on the Phobia DVD, the track "Evil Angel" was one of the first songs he wrote for Phobia. The single "Until the End" is playable on Guitar Hero 5.
Personnel Credits adapted from album's liner notes.
Breaking Benjamin Benjamin Burnley – lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, arrangement Aaron Fink – lead guitar Mark James Klepaski – bass Chad Szeliga – drums, percussion
Additional musicians Sebastian Davin (of Dropping Daylight) – piano and backing vocals David Eggar – cello Scott Treibitz – cello arrangement
Management Jason Jordan – A&R Larry Mazer and Tamra Feldman – management for Entertainment Services Nick Ferrara – legal for Serling Rooks Andy Somers – booking agent for The Agency Group Lic Wheeler – marketing
Production David Bendeth – producer, digital editing, arrangement, mixing Dan Korneff, John Bender – engineering, digital editing Kato Khandwala – digital editing Mark Rinaldi, Austin Briggs – assistant engineers Ben Grosse – mixing Paul Pavao – assistant mixing Chris Lord-Alge – mixing Keith Armstrong and Dim-E – assistant mixing Ted Jensen – mastering
Artwork T42design – art direction and design Kamil Vojnar – cover artwork at Getty Images Phil Mucci, Prem Prakash Sahu, Dada Jayela – photography
Charts
Weekly charts +Weekly chart performance for Phobia Chart (2006) Peakposition Canadian Albums (Nielsen SoundScan) 22
Year-end charts +2006 year-end chart performance for Phobia Chart (2006) Position US Billboard 200 171 +2007 year-end chart performance for Phobia Chart (2007) Position US Billboard 200 127
Certifications
Release history
Region Date Label Format United Kingdom August 7, 2006 Hollywood United States August 8, 2006 JapanAugust 18, 2006 Australia October 7, 2006 Malaysia October 9, 2006 Philippines Thailand United States April 17, 2007 (Collectors edition)
References