Ten - The Name Of The Rose
Hot on the heals of the debut Ten have released their second album. The version I'm reviewing was actually bought as a Japanese import direct from Now & Then (the record label). Due to requests from sister company MTM, Now & Then will now be releasing this version in the UK.
You will find the debut album reviewed elsewhere in these pages. I gave It a positive review, but I did say that I'd reserve judgment on Ten until I'd heard more material. I guess now I'll have to make up my mind.
The first album showed a number of influences and a variety of styles. This time out Ten do a better job of forging their own identity. It's now possible to tell that Ten have a style of their own. The album fits together better as a unit. If I had to do a comparison, then the closest that I can come is the sadly defunct AOR/Pomp rockers Magnum. This is British hard rock with intelligent use of keyboards and rich melodic vocals. I'm actually loath to use the Magnum comparison because Magnum slogged their guts out for years and never really got the recognition they deserved.
First up is the title track. After a relatively sedate start, the guitars kick in and you realize that Ten were holding back on the debut. 8.5 mins of pure 'Magnum' style rock. This is followed by the excellent Asia style mid-tempo 'Wildest Dreams' and the straightforward 'Don't Cry'.
I never thought that I would ever mention the like of That That or Boyzone in these pages. They crept into the review to Ten's debut and on 'Turn Around' they are a reference point yet again. The vocal harmonies on this track are ones the aforementioned would kill for. Thankfully the guitars turn up eventually to prove that this is a rock song.
The next songs reveal the pomp overtones in Ten's music. 'The Pharaohs Prelude' has a spoken passage over some synths and eventually merges into the surprising simply 'Wait For You'. For the next track a Tangerine Dream style synth sound is used for the intro to this brooding 8min number.
'The Rainbow' is a AOR meets hard rock. 'Goodnight Saigon' is straight ahead rock with the expected samples of battlefield comms and helicopters. They move up a gear on 'Wings Of A Storm'. 'Standing In Your Light' was originally meant to be the final track and so it's a power ballad. This is followed by the first bonus track 'The Quest'. The second bonus track , 'You're My Religion', sees Ten adopt a more 'metal' style and this one feels out of place compared to the rest of the album.
On this album Ten begin to define their own style - hard rock meets AOR with Pomp tendencies. Closest comparison would be Magnum - partly due to the Pomp bits and partly due to the vocals.. I find this slightly heavier style, compared to the debut, more satisfying. I've already given the debut a 9 rating. This one also gets a 9, but I'd chose this one over the debut.
Rating : 9
