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.
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.
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.
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".
<sup>1</sup>The CD released with the Phobia collectors edition DVD also includes this track.
<sup>2</sup>This 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.
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.
Credits adapted from album's liner notes.