The Early November Band • Page 32

this occurred to me while watching TBS play live (whom I love but bare with me): TEN are one of the few bands in our scene to utilize the 3 guitar dynamic really well. Now in TBS defense their 3rd guitarist only plays live but honestly I couldnt even tell what he was doing. It looked like he was playing what John was playing just in a different octave but I dont quite understand the point of that in regards to how TBS write their guitar parts. Hell there are some songs where Eddie and John are just playing the same thing.

On the flipside, both live and on record TEN utilize Bill really well. He adds texture and solos and all kinds of groove, Joe and Ace also do the "rhythm guitar in different octaves" thing but it makes more sense for them just because of how they as a band write their guitar parts, plus sometimes Joe has his own part thats different from Bills and Ace just plays the rhythm. Also Joes adding piano/organ parts (which John from TBS does too but much more sparingly) which is another dynamic the bands had since TRTC.

Just something I've kinda been thinking about especially after Imbue and IC (which still hold up wonderfully of course). The Path also has a lot of great guitar/piano interplay with lots of different textures.

 

Great point, this band does it really really well. Brand new used to do it really well with derrick I guess around the devil and god era.

I almost feel like tbs does it just bc they have a member (Eddie) who can't make a lot of shows bc of family obligations so when that happens they already have a guitarist ready to step in..

 

i never felt like derrick added much as far as the guitar goes. it really felt like he was there to play the piano/keyboard parts and they just kinda gave him a guitar to play along with.

thats probably true too. theyve had this 3rd guitarist guy, who i just learned actually contributed to the last two records, since NA so idk if hes just a friend that they wanted to have in the band or what.

JEW is another example of having a touring member (Robin) who actually adds a lot to the show and contributes to the records from what I understand. Courtney was also a great presence when she was part of the band.

 

I feel like Ace gets better lyrically with each album. In trtc, I felt like there were times that it seemed like the lyrics weren't written with the vocal melody in mind and as such they can be a little clunky in their delivery. And TMTMTP fixed that but sometimes the content had diction that bordered on being too candid but he got the delivery/vocal part of it so down that it ended up feeling super genuine. And he's been doing that ever since, using his strengths to turn things that would otherwise seem like flaws into interesting turns of phrases. Love Ace

 

It's weird because I never think of Ace as a particularly "great" lyricist, yet TMTMTP in particular has some of my favorite, most relatable, yet simple lines ever. "It's not the heart that makes the man, it's the money in his hand," "just by being myself, I've gone and made my own disguise," "it's all about the pointless perks that we all pay for to pay for ourselves," etc. I really love that album so much and I'm sorry y'all have to deal with me never shutting up about it in here lol.

As far as the three guitar thing goes, TEN has really done that so well. It's always been one of my favorite things about the band, and for a long time I used to write my songs with three guitar parts bc of their influence. I love how they used that dynamic on The Mother and Imbue, especially, and Wearing The Tie has always been one of my favorite TEN songs since I first heard it bc they absolutely nailed it on that too.

 

Never shut up about TMTMTP.

 

Yeah for too long I thought I was a minority in my love for it / preference for it over trtc, def never stop gushing

 

You know what else this band does great and doesn't get enough credit for? Their basslines.

 

Serg is underrated. He always kills it. And he's one of the nicest guys ever.

 

I've never seen this band live, but from all the vids I've seen I'm always surprised at how tight of a live show they put on, considering they're not exactly a full time touring act, or at least not a heavily touring one. Ace might be the exception bc afaik he tours or toured plenty, but like wow they're great on stage and it makes me want to see them each time.

 

I wish they'd play wearing the tie!!!!

 

SAME. Probably the song I want to hear most live at this point, aside from The Truth Is. Cyanide too.

 

So... yeah, looks like they're aiming for a double album.

 

If we get the same contrast as Mother and Mechanic I'll be so excited.

 

Ace is so handsome omg i need a moment

 

Same. I feel like I should be worried that they can write enough solid songs to justify a double disc this late in their career, but Ace is a machine and has maybe a few songs I don't like in his entire catalog. Wondering if it'll have a theme/concept like TMTMTP or not. Part of me wonders if they plan for this to be the last record and so they want to put out as much material as they can before bowing out. Idk, I hope not, but it's hard not to draw a comparison to what happened with TMTMTP. They are all older and more mature now though, and seem to be treating the band as less of a main source of income, so maybe a super ambitious and long album won't do the same damage it did last time.

All that said, wowee am I excited. Sometimes it's hard to believe we even exist in a world where this band didn't stay dead after the hiatus, yet here we are and they've already given us two strong reunion records, and are now working on a third.

 

bumping this thread has now made me want to bump some TEN smash that motherfucking like button if ur ever so sweet u baked it in cakes 4 me

 

Wut u left bhind, it hurtz my t33th

 

Woohoo! They killed the last triple album, so a double gets me excited.

 

i was talking about this a little while ago with Mike/@Deathco_019 but Ace really sells that line so well. Theres a few other lyrics throughout TENS discog (the "quantum jump" lyric in Close To You for example) that would sound ridiculous but they come across so well and make complete sense in the context Ace puts them in as well as just HOW he sings them. i adore that

 

I gotta try this band's discog again. I really like TRTC but nothing else has really clicked for me.

 

oh hey speak of the devil

 

Yeah his delivery is always spot on. He just finds the exact right way to say every line to imbue (heh) them with the perfect level of emotion and elevate any lyrics that might otherwise be a little too cute. Even though he's always been on of my favorite lyricists, I do think a lot of that has to do with how he delivers them as well.

 

u callin' me the devil, punk?

 

If mike's the devil...