Division

10 Years

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 13, 2008)
• Original Release Date: May 13, 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Universal Republic
• ASIN: B000ZJVFFA
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #22,863 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

There's no shortage of good, timeless material on Division. "Actions and Motives" is a fist-pumping rocker interwoven with atmospheric guitar tendrils, the first single "Beautiful" is brooding and evocative, suffused with ringing, distorted guitars and melancholy harmonies and "Dying Youth" starts with a poignant classical guitar progression and yearning vocals before weeping strings and a stirring chorus take the track over the peak and somewhere between euphoria and despair. Then there's "Alabama," a psychedelic-tinged song flavored with sitar, Indian percussion and acoustic guitar.

As refreshing, accomplished and united as Division sounds, there was a period when it looked like 10 Years might never finish the record. "The title of the album is self-explanatory in the sense that we had to become so divided as individuals - and as a group - to create this," Hasek explains. "Because we all have such strong personalities and opinions, we had many different directions to look at things from. But when we all came together as a unit, we were able to make our best music ever." The band felt the added pressure of growing as musicians while living up to the success of The Autumn Effect and its hit single "Wasteland."

Ultimately, 10 Years overcame their insecurities by worked together as a cohesive songwriting team, and vibing off each other instead of following anyone else's advice.

"We got so fed up we just said, `Forget everybody,' and we started only listening to each other, which we hadn't been doing at all," Vodinh says. "We didn't care about each others opinions for a long time, and suddenly we all joined hands and said, `We have to become a brotherhood again. We have to bond together.' And that's when everything finally took shape."

In June 2007, 10 Years entered a Seattle studio with producer Rick Parasher (Pearl Jam, 3 Doors Down) and started tracking Division. Parasher was far more hands-on than Josh Abraham, who had produced The Autumn Effect, and, while it took a while to adjust to the change in approach, the band members benefited from his intense interest and experience. "Rick was in there every second of every day and he had a real vision," Vodinh says. "When we first got there, it wasn't exactly the same vision we had, but we slowly found a medium where we could all be on the same page."

"It was through this album that we really found ourselves," "Hasek says. "We needed to really go through that hard time to really respect each other and the life and opportunity we'd been given. A lot of people get thrown into this kind of lifestyle and they just use it up real quick and take it for granted and then use it up and it's gone. And they're left scratching their heads going, `What happened?' I'm pretty sure now that's never going to happen to us."

Product Description

Creativity isn't manufactured on an assembly line. It can't be scheduled or forced and when it's not coming there's nothing to do but wait. That's what the members of Knoxville, Tennessee quintet, 10 Years, discovered when they started writing songs for their second album, Division, the follow-up to their debut The Autumn Effect. Having spent the better part of two years on the road, the band members planned in October 2006 to take a month off and then dive back into writing mode. They aimed to re-enter the studio in early 2007 and have their second album done by that spring. But just a few weeks after they started coming up with riffs and melodies, it became clear they were going to have to throw away the calendar.

"We could have met our deadlines and gone into the studio in January," clarifies singer Jesse Hasek. "But we decided early on that we weren't going to allow ourselves to run through the motions. We felt like we really needed to challenge ourselves and do something fresh and different. And that took a little longer than we expected."

As it turned out, Division was well worth the wait. Musically eclectic, technically adept and emotionally poignant, the songs shatter preconceptions, revealing a tapestry of previously unexplored influences and a larger array of stunning melodies. Like The Autumn Effect, the new album is filled with enveloping textures and heart-stopping dynamics, but the arrangements are more developed and the songwriting more mature, revealing a cavalcade of styles including metal, hard rock, punk, alternative pop and even classical.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply brilliant, May 15, 2008

By	Dddd - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

I have written a couple of reviews for other albums on here, and I am amazed at the incredible brililance and quality of some (Alter Bridge- Blackbird; Hurt- VOl. II), but not all, of the rock released over the past 12 months out. Division from 10 years is quite simply, astounding.

I am not even quite sure how to articulate how good Division is, other than to say that it is so complex, layered, emotional, and brilliant, that it would just make me downright sick to my stomach if this album does not become an essential rock album for every single person in America who calles themselves a hard rock fan. I don't know what is happening to rock in America- it seems like albums such as Division should sell 20 million copies given it's quality, but I don't know. I certainly hope it provides big success for the band.

For anyone remotely considering purchasing this album, By all means, please purchase it with all deliberate speed, and listen to it a few times. let it sink in. You will find that songs you initially thought were brilliant, stay that way, and get better, and other songs on the album that you might not have thought were brilliant initially, will envelop you with the layers, textures, and soaring vocals, and will stay with you all day and night. It is exactly what happened to me. Into my third listen, I just opened my eyes, and said, "This is brilliant." I honestly believe that you will be grateful that you got it. I have said this before about some other albums, major marketing muscle needs to be put behind this album- the label needs to make an investment here. People need to be exposed to this band.
Thank you all for reading, and i hope you enjoy Division as much as I did.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Sophomore Effort from an Underrated Band, May 16, 2008

By	Dan H. (Minnesota) - See all my reviews

First of all, these guys are extremely underrated. Not many people have heard of 10 years and that is a shame because they write damn good music. Division is on the softer side when compared to their debut, but the songs are written very well and they are very deep. There are alot more acoustic and clean-toned interludes on this album than previously, but I would not say that is a con. The lyrics are amazing and that is to be expected, Hasek really knows how to write powerful and rich lyrics. The production on the album is also amazing. Great record! A must have!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very impressive production, May 23, 2008

By	L. Forshee "WV Rock Chick" (WV) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Just saw this band at Rock on the Range and I have to say, they were fantastic. I had never heard of them until I saw their name in the lineup and I'm really glad I didn't miss them. Their sound is heavy but melodic and well written. I highly recommend this band and hope that they overcome their underrated status because they are very much deserving. Phenomenal overall production and now that I'm on board as a big fan, I'll be spreading the word as well. Check these guys out! You won't be disappointed!