III: In the Eyes of Fire is the third studio album by American metalcore band Unearth, released on August 8, 2006.[6] The album entered the Billboard album charts at number 35, selling approximately 22,000 copies.[7] The album had sold in excess of 85,000 copies in the US.[8]
The album was produced by Terry Date,[7] and was their second major release through Metal Blade Records. A special limited edition version of the album was released (in a digipak), containing a DVD showcasing their performance at the 2005 Sounds of the Underground tour, as well as a look at the making of the album.[7] It is the band's final album to feature drummer Mike Justian until 2023's The Wretched; the Ruinous.[9]
Background
In November of 2005, Unearth unveiled that they were writing a new album, a follow up to 2004's The Oncoming Storm.[10] Vocalist Trevor Phipps described the album as "faster, heavier and darker than anything we have ever done."[10] In a February of 2006 interview with Alternative Press, guitarist Ken Susi shared that the band would be recording their third full-length release in the upcoming spring.[11] That March, Unearth entered Studio X with producer Terry Date to begin recording.[12] Date would additionally handle mixing duties for the release.[12] The band provided updates from the studio as recording progressed via a series of videos published to the Metal Blade website.[13] In late March the band revealed that the title for the release; III: In the Eyes of Fire.[14]
On the album's lyrical themes, Phipps shared:
Last record we wrote about things brewing all around us in politics, environmental issues and war, but this record deals with the effects of those very things and the consequences we are all dealing with right now and will continue to deal with until changes are made. We are in our nations most critical point since the 60's and more importantly devastation looms in the near future if we continue to make mistake after mistake with unjust wars and environmental disregard. The title also represents the personal struggles we all face day to day and our constant battles to overcome adversity.[14]
In May, the band shot a music video for the track "Giles" with director Darren Doane.[15] The band published a trailer for the video in mid-June.[16][17] Additionally in June, the band made the track "Giles" available for online streaming exclusively through the Ozzfest.com website,[18][19] and made the album's track listing available.[20]
The album's release date was set for August 8 in the United States, and August 14 in Europe, with the exception of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland, in which it would be available on August 11.[16]
A day prior to its release, the album was made available for streaming online via AOL Music.[21]
Following the album's release in August of 2006, the band embarked on the "Sanctity of Brothers" tour alongside Bleeding Through, Terror, Through The Eyes Of The Dead, and Animosity[22] In January of 2007, the band completed a music video for the track "Sanctity of Brothers."[23] Directed by Soren, the video was the band's first to use special effects.[23] The video was made available for streaming online via MySpace.com in February of 2007.[24] Prior to the tour, the band appeared on 94.1 HJY of Providence Rhode Island to discuss the upcoming tour, as well as play clips of the album.[25]
In May of 2007, drummer Mike Justian would depart the band. In a statement the band shared that they had "grown apart as individuals.[9] Justian would return to the band in 2022.[26]
In October of 2007, exclusively via Headbanger's Blog, the band released a music video for the album's opening track "This Glorious Nightmare."[28]
In November of 2007, the band debuted live footage of the track "This Glorious Nightmare" on California's "longest-running rock'n'roll TV Show," "Capital Chaos."[29] The footage was shot at The Boardwalk in Orangevale, California on October 12, 2007.[29]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Trevor Phipps; all music is composed by Unearth.
Doug Spanenberg (director; "The Making of III: In The Eyes Of Fire")[16]
Reception
Commercially, the album debuted at no. 35 on the Billboard 200, selling 22,000 units in its first week of release.[30] The album would go on to sell over 110,000 copies in the United States, making it the band's best-selling release as of 2021.[30]
The album was met with positive reviews upon its release, with AllMusic calling it one of 2006's "finest heavy rock releases."[31]Blabbermouth.net praised the band for refusing to bow to contemporary trends,[2] with Exclaim! adding that although the release did not advance the genre, Unearth confirmed "that the hype [surrounding them] is deserved" with the album.[3]
"Big Bear and the Hour of Chaos," according to Phipps, was recorded in one full hour while the band was drinking a brand of malt liquor called "Big Bear."
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