Ten Kens reviews, music, news

The origins of the band are rooted in 2003, when Ten Kens jammed and rehearsed as a three piece, utilising several different drummers for the first year, before deciding to rent a townhouse to write and record an album entirely by themselves. Once recorded, the fruit of their labours was burnt to disc and circulated, and following a spate of label interest culminating in their signing to FatCat, they decided to flesh out the line-up, began playing shows, and set about recording their debut album properly. A record very much informed by their earlier recordings, but sounding fresh and rejuv ...read more

The origins of the band are rooted in 2003, when Ten Kens jammed and rehearsed as a three piece, utilising several different drummers for the first year, before deciding to rent a townhouse to write and record an album entirely by themselves. Once recorded, the fruit of their labours was burnt to disc and circulated, and following a spate of label interest culminating in their signing to FatCat, they decided to flesh out the line-up, began playing shows, and set about recording their debut album properly. A record very much informed by their earlier recordings, but sounding fresh and rejuvenated, their self-titled debut was fuelled by a collective drive and ambition, and firmly placed them in the realm of their contemporaries, recalling the likes of Liars, Black Mountain, Black Heart Procession and Arcade Fire. Laid down in June 2007, the band recorded practically all day and all night for two weeks straight. The record, released in September 2008, was lapped up by critics and fans alike, and successful tours followed. Following this there was a slight change of line-up. Reorganised and revitalised, Dan Workman (Vocals), Ryan Roantree (Drums), Brett Paulin (guitar) and John Sullivan (Bass) decamped to a studio in their home town of Toronto for 3 months at the end of 2009. The band aimed to achieve a specific balance of sound to make recordings that were dynamic and powerful yet simultaneously raw and organic. Knowing that they would need a ‘healthy amount’ of studio time to achieve this, the band decamped to new guitarist and sound engineer Brett’s studio in Toronto. The amount of time they spent here quickly became unhealthy as the band lived and slept in the studio, barely aware of an outside world and seeing very little sunlight. However, whilst each member may have come out of the studio temporarily physically weaker, the band returns to the listener collectively stronger in both their conviction and delivery. Fittingly, the reclusive nature of the recording process has informed an album that is darker than the self-titled debut and incredibly focused; it sounds like an album that could only be made by four musicians with a shared artistic vision, devoid of any outside influence. - FatCat Records. « hide