Funny enough I was with my father at the time (somehow, he became quite the Godsmack fan in the past decade) and direct support Hinder. While Hinder was already known to me (and don't get me wrong, I was excited about seeing them for the first time as well), I was curious what the five piece group from Knoxville was capable of.
While there isn't much hype and theatrics to an opening act on tour, it was an introduction to a (currently) lifelong love for their beautiful mixtures of hard rock, and melody. The vocals of Jesse Hasek combined with the [sometimes] eerie drum/guitar mix made for an instant hook, followed by another live performance 2005, and the almost instantaneous purchase of The Autumn Effect (arguably one of 10 Years greatest releases).
So obviously some time has passed since 2005 and their third release (aka The Autumn Effect). Since that time, 10 Years has been steadily climbing the charts, jumping on bigger US based tours, threw out an acoustic album (+ tour), and have now started touring in promotion of their seventh studio alum titled "From Birth To Burial".
A big success (IMO), "From Birth To Burial" sees the guys coming back full circle to their original heavy sound that we saw on Killing All That Holds You, and even seeping through on albums like Feeding The Wolves. I know it's been some time since I have heard Jesse scream into the mic like "Triggers and Tripwires", and really left me feeling like a rendition of the Deftones just went through the speakers. Obviously, there are some significant differences between he two, but someone's comment about their style had me thinking the same thing. For From Birth To Burial, the group lineup consisted of:
Jesse Hasek – Vocals | Ryan "Tater" Johnson – Guitar/Vocals
Brian Vodinh – Guitar/Drums/Bass
Really, it's kind of... the title comes from we've been alive in this industry for a decade now, no pun intended, it's just... we're gonna sum up everything that we've done this far up to where we're at. You live and die by this music and that's what it's about. There are some bittersweet parts of it, with the growing pains of it, and the highs and the lows of it all. That's kinda what the first song on the record, the title track, "From Birth to Burial" is about.
I think that people in this day and age, our society loves for our stars to be over the top stars, but even in our business and in the entertainment business it's kind of smoke in mirrors. We go home and we're normal people, most of us have families and stuff to pay for, instead of this over the top, gold teeth, party, Vegas, all the time type stuff is sold. It gives you more of a personal side of it. -Jesse Hasek
The album was released on April 21st, 2015 via Palehorse Records. The album was produced by the band themselves.
(Album artwork courtesy of 10 Years, and Palehorse Records)
1. From Birth to Burial
2. Selling Skeletons
3. Vertigo
4. Triggers and Tripwires
5. Luna
6. Crimson Kiss
7. The River
8.Ashes
9.Survivors?
10. Miscellanea
11. Moisture Residue
10 Years’ dark, satirical social commentary of From Birth to Burial sets the band on par with predecessors such as Nirvana, Pink Floyd, or the Dead Kennedys. Songs like “Vertigo“ could be taken as a literal piece along with “Triggers and Tripwires,” “Luna,” “Crimson Kiss,” “The River,” “Miscellanea,” and “Moisture Residue“ with the album as a whole having a desperate need to be heard. This could be one of the band’s heaviest album to date, in more ways than one. Inevitably, it is a cohesive piece which demands it be listened to from start to finish and not pieces apart for single serving downloading that has become so prevalent in modern society. -Cryptic Rock
While I am not in a position to review the album (being that I have only heard about 75% of is thus far), I still highly recommend for you all to check out. It's a good blend of hard rock, some nu-metal screaming, a touch of some Tool influenced groove, and some melodies that would (as said before) rival the Deftones. Be sure to check out their past releases as well if you find them to be intriguing.
(Photo courtesy of 10 Years)
From Birth To Burial doesn’t exactly break any new ground, but it takes everything that 10 Years has ever been over their sixteen years as a band and combines it all into the most honest package they’ve ever put out. The album flows perfectly from track to track, peaking and sinking in all the right places to leave a lasting impression. It’s not perfect, but it’s perfectly nuanced, and that’s all you could ever ask for. -Project Backstage
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