Believe (Disturbed album)
Encyclopedia
Believe is the second studio album
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

 by the American heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...

 band Disturbed. It was released on September 17, 2002. Believe debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

chart, making it Disturbed's first #1 debut, shipping over 284,000 copies in its first week. It was certified double platinum by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

 in the United States on September 23, 2008.

The album contains three successful singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 and focuses heavily on religious and spiritual themes inspired by recent tragedies. With greater emphases on melodic dynamics, it also demonstrates a broadening in Disturbed's musical range compared to the heavy onslaught of their debut album
The Sickness
The track "Stupify" actually lasts 4:07, but skipping to the track or ripping it produces a song that's 4:33. There's a 0:26 backwards-played instrumental part hidden in the pregap between tracks 3 and 4 that can only be heard by rewinding / playing straight through.-Chart...

. Believe was the last album to feature Steve "Fuzz" Kmak on bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

. Believe is also, to date, the only studio album by Disturbed where the title track is not a single.

Background and recording

With Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...

's August 2001 tour canceled, and Disturbed's opening slot with it, the Chicago quartet planned to use the month following Ozzfest
Ozzfest
Ozzfest is an annual festival tour of the United States featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon Osbourne, both of whom also organize each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne...

 to begin pre-production of their next album while preparing for their own headlining tour.

That summer, vocalist David Draiman's grandfather, an Orthodox Jew
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...

, died in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. At a young age, Draiman was beloved by his grandfather; however, when Draiman became a heavy metal musician, his elder cut off their communication. It wasn't until the grandfather fell ill that he wished to see his grandson. But by the time word got to Draiman, who was on Ozzfest, his grandfather had mere hours to live. Regarding his grandfather's death, he noted, "No one could look at the aura I projected over the course of that next week and not feel my pain and those feelings very definitely will present themselves on the record."

That same month, Draiman had surgery to remove a damaged valve that was causing acid to spill on his vocal cords. The successful surgery not only repaired Draiman's voice but also allegedly broadened his vocal range.

The band entered K's Groovemaster Studios in mid March 2002 to begin recording with producer Johnny K, the man behind their debut album. The majority of songs, which reportedly included about 10 at the time, had been written since November the previous year, including "Prayer" which debuted during Ozzfest.

By mid April, Disturbed had completed 12 songs for Believe. In an interview with MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

, vocalist David Draiman
David Draiman
David Michael Draiman is an American songwriter and the lead singer for the metal band Disturbed. Draiman is known for his distorted voice and rhythmic singing style...

 elaborated how the reevaluating of his own Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

 heritage and compromises of life as a musician affected his writing. He noted the album as being "the greatest work we have ever done in our lives" but also expressed concern over how fans would react to the vulnerability and vast expression of emotions showcased on the album.

Music and lyrics

Believe witnessed the band shift away from the waning nu metal
Nu metal
Nu metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It is a fusion genre which combines elements of heavy metal with other genres, including grunge and hip hop...

 scene and place more emphases on lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...

 and melodic complexity. This musical progression would follow through on future Disturbed albums where guitar solo
Guitar solo
In popular music, a guitar solo is a melodic passage, section, or entire piece of music written for an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Guitar solos, which often contain varying degrees of improvisation, are used in many styles of popular music such as blues, jazz, rock and metal styles such...

s would become commonplace. While The Sickness focused on heavy compositions, Disturbed's sophomore effort varies greater in its range of heaviness and melody, closing with a somber, acoustic
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...

 ballad entitled "Darkness." Singer David Draiman also wished to demonstrate greater vocal dimension than the intense style he was previously associated with. Nevertheless, he described the content of the album as "pure and unadulterated in every sense of the word 'metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...

'."

As noted by Draiman, Believe contains overt religious and spiritual themes. These were inspired by various experiences such as the September 11 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...

 and the recent death of Draiman's Orthodox Jewish
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...

 grandfather:
"All the songs on the record revolve around the theme of belief in oneself and in humanity's potential. . . And the right-wing reactions of religious leaders of the world to the events of 9/11 had a lot to do with the original impetus of where this record came from. It angered me beyond any way I could possibly explain. The whole album's about questioning your beliefs to determine what you really can believe in."


Lyrically, the album deals with various other topics as well. "Remember" delves into the cutthroat nature of the music industry as well as Draiman's resistance to indulgent partying; "Awaken" deals with America's never-ending obsession with vacuous "wallpaper music"; the tracks "Dehumanized"," "Bound," and "Intoxication" focus on Draiman's inability to have a meaningful romantic relationship. In an interview, he noted, "I've had various experiences with women over the past two-and-a-half years that have made me have several chips on my shoulder - not in an angry way necessarily, but almost in a pleading way. I'm at a point in my life where I've had my heart torn apart so many times that there's just not much left to it."

In keeping with the lyrical themes, the album cover
Album cover
An album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album. The term can refer to either the printed cardboard covers typically used to package sets of 10" and 12" 78 rpm records, single and sets of 12" LPs, sets of 45 rpm records , or the front-facing...

 features symbols of major religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...

s, including the Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

 Star of David
Star of David
The Star of David, known in Hebrew as the Shield of David or Magen David is a generally recognized symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism.Its shape is that of a hexagram, the compound of two equilateral triangles...

, the Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

ic crescent
Star and crescent
A star and crescent featuring in some combination form the basis of symbols widely found across the ancient world, with examples attested from the Eastern Mediterranean and Central Asia....

, the Wicca
Wicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...

n pentacle
Pentacle
A pentacle is an amulet used in magical evocation, generally made of parchment, paper or metal , on which the symbol of a spirit or energy being evoked is drawn. It is often worn around the neck, or placed within the triangle of evocation...

, and the Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 cross
Christian cross
The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...

.

Touring and promotion

Believe boasted three singles which gained substantial radio and video airplay. The lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...

, "Prayer
Prayer (song)
"Prayer" is a song released on August 14, 2002 by American rock band Disturbed as the first single from their second album, Believe. It was inspired by the death of vocalist David Draiman's grandfather as well as various circumstances after the September 11 attacks, and is about a conversation...

," featured a video with apocalyptic imagery of a city being destroyed. This led some outlets to refuse to play the video on the grounds that it conjuring similarities to the September 11 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...

. After initially considering to edit the video, Disturbed ultimately chose not to. Follow up singles "Remember" and "Liberate" also charted well and gained significant rotation on radio and television. The title track "Believe," although not a single, would also find its way to radio airwaves.

In 2003, Disturbed headlined Music as a Weapon II with Chevelle
Chevelle
Chevelle is an American alternative metal trio that formed in 1995 in Grayslake, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The band was originally composed of two brothers and a local friend: Pete Loeffler , Sam Loeffler , and Matt Scott . Matt was later replaced by brother Joe Loeffler...

, Taproot
Taproot (band)
Taproot is a four-piece rock group from Ann Arbor, Michigan. They are most known for their hit single "Poem" , as well as a number of other singles from 2000 to the present.-Pre-formation:...

, and Unloco
Unloco
Unloco was an alternative metal/hard rock band formed in Austin, Texas.-History:Unloco was formed in 2000 by frontman Joey Duenas...

. A live album, featuring Disturbed's cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of "Fade to Black
Fade to Black (song)
"Fade to Black" is a song by the American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released as the first promotional single from its second studio album, Ride the Lightning...

," would result in 2004. Upon finishing the tour, Steve Kmak was fired by the band because of "personality differences". He was soon replaced by John Moyer
John Moyer
John Moyer is the bassist and back up vocalist for the heavy metal band Disturbed, replacing their former bassist Steve "Fuzz" Kmak...

, and the group joined the Main Stage of Ozzfest 2003.

Critical response

Believe currently holds a score of 62% on review-aggregating website Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...

, indicating "generally favorable reviews," based on nine reviews. Allmusic's Bradley Torreano praised the album, declaring that on Believe, Disturbed takes the kind of leap that their heroes in Soundgarden
Soundgarden
Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...

 and Pantera
Pantera
Pantera was an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas. Formed by the Abbott brothers, Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell in 1981, bassist Rex Brown would join in late 1981 with vocalist Terry Glaze. Looking for a new and heavier sound, Pantera had Terry replaced in 1987 with Phil Anselmo as...

 had after their respective albums of progress. He also states that "it is not a function of the agitation of the tempo and percussion-based riffing of the past; guitarist Dan Donegan
Dan Donegan
Dan Donegan is an American musician and guitarist for heavy metal band Disturbed. Donegan began playing guitar as a teenager and eventually formed a band called Vandal, which was an '80s-style hair band...

 has made great strides in expanding its sound to include more varied guitar work all around." Culturedose.net cited Believe as "one of the best rock albums of 2002."

Commercial success

Believe debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

chart, making it Disturbed's first #1 debut, and shipped over 284,000 copies in its first week. By January 2003, SoundScan had recorded over 1 million album sales.

The record was certified double platinum by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

 in the United States on September 23, 2008.

Track listing

A b-side from the album called "Dehumanized" was later released as a b-side on the "Stricken
Stricken (song)
"Stricken" is a song by American rock band Disturbed. The song was released on July 25, 2005 as the second single from their third studio album Ten Thousand Fists. "Stricken" was certified gold in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America on August 18, 2008 for selling...

" single (a song from the band's following album, Ten Thousand Fists
Ten Thousand Fists
Ten Thousand Fists is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Disturbed. It was released on September 20, 2005 and became Disturbed's second consecutive #1 debut on the Billboard 200 in the United States, shipping around 239,000 copies in its opening week. It has been certified Platinum...

). "Dehumanized" is also included on The Lost Children
The Lost Children (album)
-Personnel:Disturbed*David Draiman – lead vocals*Dan Donegan – guitar, electronics*John Moyer – bass guitar, backing vocals*Mike Wengren – drums, percussions*Steve Kmak – bass guitar Production...

, a b-side compilation. It is also interesting to note that all of the song titles (including "Dehumanized") are only one word in length.

Personnel

Disturbed
  • David Draiman
    David Draiman
    David Michael Draiman is an American songwriter and the lead singer for the metal band Disturbed. Draiman is known for his distorted voice and rhythmic singing style...

     - lead vocals, backing vocals
  • Dan Donegan
    Dan Donegan
    Dan Donegan is an American musician and guitarist for heavy metal band Disturbed. Donegan began playing guitar as a teenager and eventually formed a band called Vandal, which was an '80s-style hair band...

     - guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

    , keyboards
    Keyboard instrument
    A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

    , electronics
    Electronics
    Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...

  • Steve Kmak
    Steve Kmak
    Steve "Fuzz" Kmak is an American bass guitar player, best known for his work with the heavy metal band Disturbed. Kmak founded the band Brawl in 1994 with guitarist Dan Donegan and drummer Mike Wengren. They played small clubs in Chicago before singer David Draiman answered their ad, after which...

     - bass guitar
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

  • Mike Wengren
    Mike Wengren
    Mike Wengren is a drummer from Chicago, Illinois, best known for his work with the heavy metal band Disturbed, he is one of the founding members of the band, which was formed in 1996.-History:...

     - drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

    , percussion, guitar on "Darkness"

Additional musicians
  • Alison Chesley
    Alison Chesley
    Alison Chesley , known also by her stage name as Helen Money, is a Chicago based cellist and composer.Chesley was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She moved to Chicago to attend Northwestern University, where she received a Master's degree in Cello Performance in 1994. While at...

     - cello on "Darkness"

Production
  • Johnny K
    Johnny K
    John Karkazis, better known as Johnny K, is a Grammy Award nominated producer/engineer/mixer/musician and songwriter. He owns Groovemaster Recording Studios in Chicago...

     - producer
  • Andy Wallace
    Andy Wallace (producer)
    Andy Wallace is a Grammy Award-winning music studio engineer with a long track record of successful productions, beginning with the 1986 production of the Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration on "Walk This Way" with Rick Rubin...

     - mixer
  • Howie Weinberg
    Howie Weinberg
    Howie Weinberg is a music mastering engineer who has worked with numerous bands.- Career :He has worked at Masterdisk, New York City, since 1977...

     - mastering
  • Tony Adams - technician
  • Chris Glatfelter - technician
  • Mick Haggerty - art direction, design
  • Stephen Danelian and Luke - photography

Chart positions

Album
Chart (2002) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...

32
Austrian Albums Chart
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann...

42
Canadian Albums Chart
Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...

2
Danish Albums Chart
Tracklisten
Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl...

30
Finnish Albums Chart 33
German Albums Chart
Media Control Charts
The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie...

68
Irish Albums Chart
Irish Albums Chart
The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically...

42
New Zealand Albums Chart
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...

1
Swedish Albums Chart
Sverigetopplistan
Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association ....

35
Swiss Albums Chart
Swiss Music Charts
The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75...

91
UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...

41
US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

1
US Top Internet Albums 1

Singles
Year Song Chart Peak
position
2002 "Prayer
Prayer (song)
"Prayer" is a song released on August 14, 2002 by American rock band Disturbed as the first single from their second album, Believe. It was inspired by the death of vocalist David Draiman's grandfather as well as various circumstances after the September 11 attacks, and is about a conversation...

"
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 3
Alternative Songs 3
The Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

58
Canadian Singles Chart
Canadian Singles Chart
The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....

14
UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

31
"Remember
Remember (Disturbed song)
"Remember" is a song by American rock band Disturbed. The song was released on December 3, 2002 as the second single from their second studio album, Believe. Vocalist David Draiman says that the song is his favorite from the first two Disturbed albums....

"
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 6
Alternative Songs 22
UK Singles Chart 56
2003 "Liberate
Liberate (song)
"Liberate" is a song by American rock band Disturbed. The song was released as the third and last single from their second studio album, Believe...

"
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 4
Alternative Songs 22

Chart procession and succession

Certifications

Country Certification
Australia
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

Platinum
Canada
Canadian Recording Industry Association
Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada...

Platinum
New Zealand
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...

Gold
United States
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

2x Platinum
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