Up next on the chopping block is the band 10 Years. No, I haven’t really heard much of this band aside from that one single Wasteland which was on an MTV Headbangers Ball compilation CD (remember those things?) so I don’t know much about this band. So with that, let’s take a look……
Into The Half Moon- so this album actually reminds me of early Deftones. Like seriously for the casual listener they might think this is a follow up,to an album like Adrenaline. But it’s pretty good start and it’s one of those you’ve gotta find on YouTube. I do like the rawness and the aggression on this album and I’m gonna go ahead and give it 7/10
Standouts: Fallaway, Vicious (parasite), Nightingale
Killing All That Holds You- in my opinion this album reminds me a lot of early Breaking Benjamin. You can clearly tell this is one of their earlier albums due to the production. I don’t know in a way it sort of feels disjointed. There are some decent moments but as a whole, this album is just ok. I’ll give it 7/10
Standouts: Seven, R.E.S.T., Frailty
The Autumn Effect- so I get kind of an early Deftones vibe from this, but I will see the production is a lot better. Now this is the album that did give us that one single Wasteland and that single is kind of how rest of the album sounds. I don’t know why this album and that single were lumped in with metal bands because it is not a metal album. Maybe an alternative metal album but it’s not a very fast album. It doesn’t really have heavy riffs. But anyway, tell me the album is a little on the slow side and does kind of tend to drag out, but it’s a good album and I’m gonna go ahead and give it 8/10.
Standouts: Fault Line, Cast It Out, Empires
Division- when I listen to an album like this kind of wondering why this band got lumped in with metal bands. This album is just another example of that like why is this considered a metal band? But either way is kind of slow much like the last album and it sort of feels like a continuation of that record. I don’t know. I feel like at the end of the day these albums just tend to drag on. Again, not bad, but it does tend to get a bit stale. I’ll give this album 6/10.
Standouts: Actions And Motives, All Your Lies
Feeding The Wolves- I will say what I liked about this one is that we finally have some sort of heavy riffage. It’s not as slow as the other albums but to me, it does sound a little on the overproduced side. Looking into it it was produced by Howard Benson which explains things. I think it’s a slight step up but again I’ve been taken off like two or three songs. It would’ve been a little bit better. I’m gonna go ahead and give this album 8/10.
Standouts: The Wicked Ones, Fix Me, Waking Up The Ghost
Minus The Machine- ok!!! Finally we’re getting somewhere!! I don’t know what happened on this one, but it definitely feels like they wanted to try something different and it’s definitely different in a good way. To me this is the most cohesive album yet and it’s definitely not one of those wash rinse repeat albums, which is what I feel was going on with most of their albums up to this point. It’s almost like a breath of fresh air because there’s definitely the heavy rock aspect with the stuff they were doing before. I’m gonna give this album 9/10.
Standouts: Minus The Machine, Sleeper, Dancing With The Dead
From Birth To Burial-what I get from this is heavier and darker album. It’s heavier in terms of the Guitar work, but it’s also melodic. It does kind of feel more like their earlier albums with the heaviness thrown in but again it’s a step up from the first few albums. I’m gonna go ahead and give this one, 7/10.
Standouts: Selling Skeletons, From Birth To Burial, Miscellanea
(How to live) As Ghosts- I guess the album’s record title alludes to a rebirth of the band and this record definitely feels that way. It’s a very reminiscent of the Minus album and to me this should’ve come after that album. Looking into this album the band also wanted to have some more upbeat lyrics and you can kind of tell that the band seems happier to which they’ve even been quoted as saying they feel more positive about the future. As I said before, this is definitely a step up and I’m gonna go ahead and give this one 9/10.
Standouts: Phantoms, Novacaine, Vampires
Violent Allies- it feels like we finally have some consistency. By that I mean we’re not going from like a heavier rock album to a more slower kind of melodic sounding album. This one definitely picks up from the last album and dials it up a notch. Now I did read somewhere that the recording sessions were on the more difficult side, but they did put out a great album as the result of it. I’m gonna go ahead and give this album 8/10.
Standouts: Deja Vu, Start Again, Cut The Cord
When it comes to this band, I’m not really sure how I feel about them at this point. They do have some good albums, but in my opinion, lot of it is very derivative. One thing I did notice is that they do have a Deftones meets A Perfect Circle type of sound, but that’s not a bad thing. I don’t know at the end of the day. I just think that this band is OK. Again they have some decent albums, but has a whole it’s just average. I mean some of their albums felt like it took 10 Years to get through (see what I did there). I’m glad I put this band on the chopping block and if you’re looking for something that’s kind of on the more soft side of things with some heaviness thrown in then you might just like this band.
Final Grade: C+
Album Rankings:
- Minus The Machine
- (How to live) As Ghosts
- Violent Allies
- The Autumn Effect
- Feeding The Wolves
- From Birth To Burial
- Killing All That Holds You
- Into The Half Moon
- Division
Sinister Reviews 