''Phoenix'' is the debut studio album from

Christian metal Christian metal, also known as white metal, Jesus metal or heavenly metal, is heavy metal music distinguished by its Christian themed song lyrics and the dedication of the band members to Christianity. Christian metal is typically performed by ...

project

Everything in Slow Motion Everything in Slow Motion (EISM) is an American music project by former Hands frontman Shane Ochsner from Fargo, North Dakota. The project began in February 2012, and he signed with Facedown Records soon thereafter. EISM first released a studio E ...

by Shane Ochsner. The album released on December 10, 2013 by

Facedown Records Facedown Records is a Christian rock record label based in Fallbrook, California that is devoted to hardcore punk and metalcore bands (Christian and secular) with a few death metal acts such as Immortal Souls and Indwelling. Founded by No Inn ...

, and Joshua Barber was the producer. This album had commercial charting successes, and it garnered critical acclamation.

Background

The album was released on December 10, 2013 by

, and it was produced by Joshua Barber. This was the debut studio album from the Christian metal project by Shane Ochsner.

Music and lyrics

Dan Slessor of ''

Outburn ''Outburn'' is a print magazine and online publication focusing on alternative rock, heavy metal, punk rock, indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970 ...

'' said that "With a rich, epic sound shot through with crunchy riffs, ethereal atmospherics, and perfect melody that one moment whips and snarls, the next breaks your heart, Ochsner has created a record that bleeds with potent emotion."

Style

The styles of music present on the album have been called the following:

Hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

metalcore Metalcore (also known as metallic hardcore) is a fusion music genre that combines elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. As with other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use of ...

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...

and

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. It was initially inspired by post-punk and noise rock. Like post-punk, the term has been ...

Critical reception

''Phoenix'' garnered critical acclaim by

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

. Danny McMartin of

Cross Rhythms Cross Rhythms is a Christian media organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It operates an FM and online radio station, produces radio shows sent internationally, and its website has resources about contemporary Christian music. Hi ...

rated the album nine squares out of ten, and stated that this is "An impressive end from a band which could be Christian rock's next serious contender." At '' HM'', Justin Mabee rated the album four-and-a-half-stars, which the album was an HM Pick, and felt that the album was "definitely worth checking out" because it was "much more sophisticated and mature sound" than he was with Hands. Dan Slessor of ''

'' rated it a perfect ten, and proclaimed this to be "a beautifully crafted, loving realized record, and anything Ochsner puts his name on from here on out is essential listening." At Indie Vision Music, Lee Brown rated the album a perfect five stars, and highlighted that the album "paints on the canvas of life a picture of a thousand words that somehow manages to bring together both the beauty of a Picasso with the raw and childlike grace of your little child’s first finger-painting." Aaron Lambert of Jesus Freak Hideout rated the album four-and-a-half stars, and affirmed that the material on the release was "even more ambitious and powerful" than his work with Hands, which makes this effort "essential listening, and one of the best albums of the year." At Mind Equal Blown, Tim Dodderidge rated the album an eight-and-a-half, and noted that "''Phoenix'' is a beauty", which "strengthened" him saying this was "a rarity in music nowadays." Also, Dodderidge said of "Any record that connects is going to go a long way, and with this record doing so through such a rich, honest expanse, it makes me hope it can affect others the same way. That, in the grandest sense, is unity." Rick Gebhardt of Decoy Music rated it a perfect five stars, and wrote that "There are fewer and fewer bands that can truly provide such an emotional punch, which makes those that can, such as Everything in Slow Motion, stand out so much more." At Jesus Wired, Chris Adam rated the album four-and-a-half stars out of five, and stated that "''Phoenix'' is nearly a perfect album with its only downfalls being the two tracks that can’t quite match the excellence of the rest of it."

Commercial performance

For the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' charting week of December 28, 2013, ''Phoenix'' was the No. 15 most sold album on the breaking-and-entry chart via the

Heatseekers Albums Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...

, and it was the No. 31 most sold album on the

Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

Background

Music and lyrics

Style

Critical reception

Commercial performance

Track listing

Charts

References