Album · Killswitch Engage
Alive or Just Breathing by Killswitch Engage
Alive or Just Breathing is an album by Killswitch Engage, released in 2002. 1 song from it has charted on rock radio countdowns, with 1 countdown appearance in total. The biggest is “Self Revolution”, on 1 list with a best position of #64.
Alive or Just Breathing, Killswitch Engage's second studio album, came out on Roadrunner on May 21, 2002. It was the Westfield, Massachusetts, band's first shot on a major label, and they treated it that way, pouring everything into sessions that ran from October 2001 to February 2002. Adam Dutkiewicz produced it while also playing drums, with Joel Stroetzel on guitar, Mike D'Antonio on bass and Jesse Leach up front, writing all the lyrics and aiming them at something positive.
The result hits like a freight train with a conscience: bulldozer riffs, crushing breakdowns and choruses that open up wide. It has since been held up as a landmark of metalcore. The lineup didn't hold, though. Leach left soon after for personal and health reasons, Howard Jones took over, and Dutkiewicz moved to guitar, handing the sticks to Tom Gomes. Leach eventually came back, right around the album's tenth anniversary.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from Alive or Just Breathing on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Self Revolution | 1 | #64 | – | 2002 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.