I have been a fan of Ten ever since I heard their debut album more than 25 years ago. Back then they were deliberately following a musical path quite different to the rest of the compatriots, produced song-based melodic rock heavily reliant on the vocals of Gary Hughes and influenced by the likes of Whitesnake and Magnum. Go back to Gary’s debut solo album many years ago and it is no surprise to see Bob Catley involved as Gary’s vocal style is probably best described as mix between Bob, David Coverdale and Greg Lake, pure and clear yet always more of a baritone with a real richness to his style. The base of their sound are the wonderful keyboards (often piano) of Darrel Treece-Birch, and one can imagine the two of them in the studio working on the arrangements, as it is strange to realise there are actually three guitarists on this 2022 album, Dann Rosingana, Steve Grocott and John Halliwell, given the importance of the keyboards to the overall structure. The line-up is completed by long-time bassist Steve McKenna who this time round has a new partner in crime in drummer Markus Kullman (Sinner, Glenn Hughes, Voodoo Circle).
Like all touring musicians, Ten found themselves without any gigs, so went into the studio, but unlike many they used the time to record not one but two albums, of which this was the first, and was released in February 2022. Over the years I have been fortunate to hear most of their releases, going all the way back to 1996’s ‘X’, which was actually recoded in a similar fashion in that they worked on ‘The Name of the Rose’ at the same time, which meant they released their second album only four months after the debut – not something I can remember any other band undertaking. Interestingly, to my ears there is quite a difference between this album and the one which follows, which is only apparent as I have been playing them back to back, and that this one is more commercial with a great reliance on keyboards. There are still plenty of guitars of course, as Ten are very much a melodic hard rock band, but it is the arrangements which are different. It’s a great idea to have the two albums somewhat separated in style as it allows them both to have a distinct identity. Just listen to “Anything You Want”, which commences with just Gary and Darrel, before slipping into a Seventies-style commercial rocker which surely is aimed at the charts with loads of harmonies and sweetness. When I think of Ten one word always comes to mind, “class”, and this is yet another fine example.
Rating: 8/10
Links:
https://www.tenofficial.com/
https://www.frontiers.it/
