The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me is the third studio album by American rock band Brand New. The album was recorded over the course of a full year, from 2005 to 2006, in studios in Long Island and Massachusetts with producer Mike Sapone; it was released on November 21, 2006 through Interscope Records, making it their major label debut. The album arose following the online leaking of several unfinished demos that were meant to be early blueprints of the upcoming record. Two singles from the album were released – "Sowing Season" alongside the album on November 21, 2006, and "Jesus Christ" on March 26, 2007. The album peaked at No. 31 on the Billboard 200, becoming the band's highest-charting record at the time of its release. In 2022, the album was certified Gold by the RIAA, denoting sales of over 500,000 copies in the United States alone. The album saw Brand New fully leave behind their pop punk origins in favor of an indie rock direction. Lyrically, it was praised for the band's continued progression and maturity as songwriters by delving into darker subject matters such as existentialism, death, depression and religion. The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me received positive reviews from critics. Publications including Pitchfork, Spin and Alternative Press compared the album to the work of Radiohead, and several pronounced it as one of the best albums of the decade. Its legacy grew in the years since its release, and it is now credited as one of the most important emo albums of all time by critics and fellow musicians. The band performed the album in full on a 2016 tour to commemorate the album's tenth anniversary.
I started off not too moved, but this turned out to be a bit of darker rock that really appealed to me! Jesus Christ really got my attention and I found myself loving this album from then on.
I think this album (and maybe even the band) are still generating steam. It’s still not been recognised even now - 20yrs after its release - for its genius and its reverberation among the soon-to-arrive musical forces at large. I had never heard this album though I had heard of the band. I was expecting whiny. I didn’t get that - I got pain and humanity. I don’t know if I liked it, but I felt the authenticity of the music.
Killer
I used to listen to this album a lot. The first four tracks are incredibly strong, and while I don't think the rest of the album quite hits the same highs, it's still a band at the peak of their powers. If only Jesse Lacey weren't a creep.
Often, when I catch myself mid-song saying: "woah, this is awesome", I know I have to give it a 5 star
Millstone is one of my favorite songs ever.
Hate to say that they’re nice with it…
When it came out I was a massive fan of Deja Entendu, and I had a soft spot for Your favourite weapon but I’d say this one hasn’t aged well. Not sure I ever listened to this album before, come 2006 my music taste had moved away from pop/punk/emo music. Listening to this I’m blown away with how good it is, kicking myself for listening to this earlier I feel obliged to give it five stars now..
The crywanking national anthem collection. One of my favorite albums of all time, just in general. A fucking fantastic, powerful and emotional Emo opus. And it's interesting, because the rest of Brand New's catalogue never did much for me. Just really, really clicked with this one.
The inflection point between pop-punk BN and emo BN, featuring none of their most famous songs (but a few really good ones). A very good album, which falls just short of full marks for me. A decent shout though
Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Millstone, Jesus Christ, You won’t know, Not the sun
Not a big fan 3
Seems like you had to be there as I didn't think this album was all that amazing. Sounded pretty down the line alt rock from the 2000s. Tad bit too long as well. My personal rating: 3/5 My rating relative to the list: 3/5 Should this have been included on the original list? No.
Decent alt rock. 3.5
Musically solid if mostly conventional within its genre. The lyrics were sometimes quite good, but veered into eye-rollingly self-serious territory too often.
This band has always been in an indie blind spot for me, so this is the first LP and honestly first songs I’ve heard from them. Enjoyed the spacious production and prominent guitar, but left my listen wanting – just felt the songwriting left something to be desired, as tracks tended to get a bit repetitive and lose their way. Slimmed down by 1-2 minutes each, this would be a killer, focused album. As it is, though, this is still an enjoyable listen and definitely a band which deserved documenting on the list for their sizable presence in the indie sphere.
This album was fine, but it also didn't really make much of an impression me. Like, I've listened to it 1.5 times, and I still couldn't really describe it other than that it is a rock album from the mid-00's. Not bad at all, but I can't really say that I got into it 3/5
Alternative rock, emo, indie rock, art rock. Ni fu ni fa.
Emo isn't really my thing. It wears on me a bit. This was fine, definitely not my jam, but it was okay to listen to.
I was raging when I thought I had to listen to this on YouTube, but that subsided when I found it on Apple Music. I didn’t hate it.
Their genre shape shifting had me flummoxed. They’d be rated higher if they picked 90s “Clerks” soundtrack band, early 2000s indie rock, or glam punk.
I didn't get on too well with The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me because I don't think it knows what it wants to be. It's part emo, part dark and brooding gothic rock, part alt indie, and I don't think it does any of it that well. Archers is a really good song at the end but it doesn't fit with the rest of the record. Welcome to Bangkok is atmospheric and I really liked it but, again, it stands out because it's not like the rest. I didn't dislike any of it but I just found myself struggling to connect with it being all over the place. 2.