Review Summary: The album that was and wasn’t.
In Feeding The Wolves, 10 Years look more like a generic hard rock act than ever. There’s immediate, catchier songwriting, guitars have a satisfying crunch, and harsh vocals are included for the first time. The pieces are here to give 10 Years some vigour, and it works. There’s more energy than the two previous albums with constant, driving beats and gang vocals bringing to mind Billy Talent. There’s one problem, it feels artificial - unnatural.
When comparing this album to their previous offerings, 10 Years barely sound like themselves here. Jesse’s unique vocal tone and singing style is buried under the restrictions of the songs, and also a glaring vocal effect. In the acoustic versions (included on the album) he sounds much better. Another problem is the lack of nuanced songwriting, which 10 Years excelled at in Division. They milk the motif of rapid fire beats and brazen energy as much as possible in this album, resulting in a host of similar tracks. The dynamics are of one mind, and the handful of ballads don’t bring the nuance needed to ignite the sparks of creative.
The issues mentioned make it seem like Feeding The Wolves is a subpar album, but I wouldn’t say that. Instead, it is entirely consistent with catchy choruses, and great singing. It’s another solid album for the band with another new vibe, which 10 Years are consistently good at bringing to the table at every outing. The songs are bops, though how much you like them will depend on how much generic hard rock/alt rock you can stomach. This kind of music is practically begging to be played at a Christian summer camp, just switch the lyrics of one song to, “we are the righteous ones”.
It is an astoundingly safe album all together. Rather than focusing on the edge of guitars, the production strongly favours the vocals. Thankfully, the vocals are solid, but the guitar lacks punch to go with the energetic speeds of songs. I’d say it’s intentional, because the resulting ear worms are pleasant enough without overstaying their welcome. It’s a bunch of catchy tunes that your family can enjoy, with just enough spank to leave a decent lasting impression.
There’s an argument here that presents itself. Perhaps the album is a failure, after all, 10 Years went for adrenaline boosting tunes yet the album is somewhat tame. I will concede that the album could have gone a lot harder. The general, prevailing moody alt metal of The Autumn Effect is much more effective at getting across scathing lyrics than the practically cheesy, mainstream hard rock choruses in Feeding The Wolves. Shoot It Out is one of the few tracks that go absurdly hard, and it remains as much of a banger as heard when it first came out.
Feeding The Wolves is a by the numbers record that sets its pace and doesn’t dare go beyond it. The kind of out of the box experience I expect from 10 Years is simply not here. The entire product is streamlined and enabled to fit alongside their contemporaries better. In doing so, they lost a lot of what made the band special. The lyrics certainly don’t indicate a band going against the grain. The safe radio rock on offer may have vim but their voice is that of any other band.
Ultimately, you get what you see in this release. I see generic, but well made tunes and a fairly fun time. While the songs could’ve been heavier, we nonetheless got a hard rockin’ album that doesn’t apologize for its mainstream approach. It revels in its fist pumping anthems, and fairly youthful energy while shooting out memorable tracks. If you’re a fan of 10 Years or this type of music, you can hardly go wrong with this record. It is such a shame that it is the album following Division, and will forever be under its shadow.
This album heavily taps into the “mainstream is bad” argument that too many metal heads seem to abide by. Compared to a Breaking Benjamin release, this album may lack a few riffs, but compared to themselves it’s simply another 10 Years album. The emotional core with heartfelt lyrics may be lost, and perhaps some of the creative songwriting, but the impact of edgy, catchy tracks remains. The decision to indulge in chunkier tracks is merited and what would’ve been popular at the time. It’s not selling out, it’s knowing what was the next logical step for the band, and I believe this was the correct choice. Not only that, but I enjoy this album to this day. It’s not a weak album by any means, it’s different, and a welcome release to be included in their large discography.
