Breaking Benjamin - Ember

Breaking Benjamin have long been one of the saving graces of the post-grunge and alternative metal movement that flooded the 2000′s. With a metalcore knack for heavy, groovy riffs and a contralateral sense for gripping expression of and connection to anguish as a common ground, Benjamin Burnley kept his band above the chopping block through their first four albums, until a nasty and drawn-out lawsuit between him and his band members propelled a brief hiatus even longer and into a full-blown reformation of the instrumentalists around him.

Consequently, it wasn’t until six years after 2009′s Dear Agony that the band finally cranked out a follow-up. Their fifth record, 2015’s Dark Before Dawn, was certainly still a finer taste of the alternative metal and post-grunge compared to most of what’s out there in that wasteland, but it still felt like such an unfortunate loss of momentum, like the band were just getting back on their feet with it, trying to get the wheels turning again.

Ember finds the band, strangely, in kind of a similar position, still gaining their momentum, very slowly. Though they’ve never really been a band to venture too far outside their comfort zone (arguably being a band who’s never needed to), Breaking Benjamin sound more nervous than anything on this album, stepping only in between their previously drawn lines from track to track.

The first single “Red Cold River” seemed to simply play into the gruffly heavy mold of Breaking Benjamin’s music in a worryingly unimaginative manner (though still adequately groovy), but the following single, “Feed the Wolf” blended Burley’s death growls with some clean singing and a few interesting key changes.

The relatively crushing “Tourniquet” seems like a sequel to Dear Agony’s “Crawl” for its slow-mid-tempo heaviness; it shows quite the compositional influence Jasen Rauch has had on the band since joining for how much it fits the mold of Red’s earlier works, making for a fitting headbanger in classic Breaking Benjamin fashion. “Psycho” is a bit more nu-metal-tinged during its verses, which makes its heartfelt chorus unexpectedly goosebump-inducing. It sounds like it could have fit right at home on Phobia.

The album hits a bit of a lull with “The Dark of You”, not just because it’s a calmer song (and Breaking Benjamin have made some excellent mellow songs), but it just sounds less emotionally invested than the rest of the track list. Burnley’s vocal performance sounds somewhat heartless as well, just hitting notes rather than pouring his heart out. “Down” is kind of the heavier converse to it, still sounding a bit autopilot for the band.

“Torn in Two” picks up the excitement again though, reintroducing the nu metal again with down-tuned guitar riffs and clanky bass lines, and Burnley’s performance is much more energetic and conscious than it was on the previous two tracks. “Blood” sounds like Rauch had the reins over most of it, as it seems again quite like something Red might have included on their second or third album. It’s rather formulaic, and not exactly the most thrilling song on the album, though.

While the tense growls and sparse, eerie guitars of the verses set the song “Save Yourself” up for success, its choruses fail to deliver the last punch with a more by-the-numbers melody than I would have liked. “Close Your Eyes” isn’t totally heartless, but for a closing track it’s much too predictable for Breaking Benjamin.

Overall, Ember is an album that finds Breaking Benjamin still in the process of getting their bearings back, with a handful of good songs that justify the band’s continued presence, but also an inconsistency that I would like to see them break through on their next effort. There were times here when playing it safe still ended up producing some pretty admirable results, but it also produced about equal quantities of forgettable material. Though I wouldn’t pressure them to do something they’re incapable of for the sake of branching out, I would love to see Breaking Benjamin try some new things to spice up their sound, especially in the writing department. And if not that, just taking a more keen approach to honing each and every song they write comfortably meticulously until it’s at its best, knowing what to throw out and what to hold on to. They’re clearly quite proficient in the writing style; I don’t think they would be easily hindered by a little more pickiness at the drawing board.