Album: Saturate (2002)
Genre: Alternative
Length: 12 tracks / 49:16
The debut album from one of my favourite bands: Breaking Benjamin. These guys will always have a sense of nostalgia for me as my first CD I bought for myself was a Breaking Benjamin album. 4 guesses as to which one.
Saturate is a stellar debut. First albums for a band are always a risk if you've heard future stuff from the band. The quality may not be as good as later albums, and these are the albums where a band tries to find their sound. Saturate not only verifies Breaking Benjamin's sound early on, but it's in a way that is still enjoyable. The album starts off really well with some good lead-off tracks, to a hit-and-miss middle, and a solid last few songs, save for the last song. While I feel that experimentation is always good, there are those that work and those that don't: Shallow Bay/Forever follows that. Shallow Bay is among other songs of this album, but Forever is just an experiment that blows up in the listeners face. Although there are other experiments that work: the intro to Water, and the breakdown in No Games. And while you get your other misses throughout the album, there's a ton of good content in here that makes it worthwhile to give the whole thing a listen to.
To me, picking this album up was a risk, but one that works. I mean, if you compare this to later works, it doesn't hold up as well, but I still like it enough to consider it a valuable addition to my collection; and not just because it completes my discography. I can enjoy many of the songs, although the fact that I want to skip 3 or 4 is a turn off, but not enough to pass up. I already gave an explanation about Shallow Bay/Forever, and I wasn't too partial to others like Natural Life or Next To Nothing, but those two have their saving graces that will keep me listening.
TREVOR'S FAVOURITE SONG: No Games
Funnily enough, two albums reviewed, two albums where my favourite is right near the end. Nestled in the 10th spot out of 12 songs, No Games starts off very quiet and very slow with a friendly little riff. The verse continues this friendly little game before the pre-chorus sets in. Almost to the point of yelling, singer Ben seems almost pleading in the first pre-chorus, and accusing in the second. Both work well with the song and make it enjoyable. The chorus just continues it. And I must say, the second pre-chorus contains one of my favourite lyrics: "You are an a**hole / king of the castle". Not to mention, an experiment that WORKS is the use of violins in the breakdown just before the solo. This is a great mix of slightly different styles all melded into one song. Just remember when I win.
RECOMMENDED SONGS:
Medicate [Track 2]
Polyamorous [Track 3]
Water [Track 7]
Home [Track 8]
No Games [Track 10]
Final grade: 8.3/10 | B
The good songs are good, the misses are only somewhat noticeable. However, it's a hefty borderline which prevents it from scoring higher. But it's the fact that, because every person's border may be different, getting the whole album is worth it.
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