Amplified Analysis: Ten Tonnes' Debut Album and Leeds Gig

By Edward Burnett


Having just seen Ten Tonnes live at Leeds Beckett Student Union this past Friday, I thought it high time I wrote a piece covering his debut album of the same name.

Ten Tonnes aka Ethan Barnett is a singer-songwriter from Hertford, England for those unfamiliar with the 23 year-old. His self-titled debut album was released earlier this year in May through Warner Bros. Records. Finally, Barnett comes from a particularly musical background with his older brother being none other than chart-topping solo-artist George Ezra.

Now the introductions are over with, let's delve deeper into the music itself. Although, as mentioned above, Ethan shares both blood and musical talent with sibling George, there is no need for lazy comparisons. Ten Tonnes manages to produce a totally different sound and one that inevitably energises crowds, which was conclusively the case at Leeds. Barnett brings a mix of indie-rock with lighter tones of indie-pop throughout his album, giving an upbeat yet also fresh all-round vibe. This combination of the various components of the wider indie genre are somewhat similar to the songs of Declan McKenna and both artists seem to attract largely diverse fanbases due to this unique mixture. Simply put, it is extremely hard to dislike this form of energising music.

Some of the key songs to listen out for within the album are the jumpy and energetic opener, "Lucy" and the calmer yet equally worthy of mention, "Better Than Me". Both Songs use a great amount of notable drum beats and electric guitar chords which when put together in this joyful concoction make for great songs which have multiple replay ability. Lastly, the slowest and undoubtedly most emotional song on the album, "Missing You", is arguably the biggest gem in the entire collection. During the Leeds gig, armed with only an acoustic guitar (swiftly changed from the electric he had been using all gig prior to this moment) and no backing members, Barnett was able to capture the whole crowd with this single love ballad. A song about heartbreak and desperateness, it perfectly encapsulates all the issues that come with the fallout of a breakup. Needless to say, the song managed to his a previously raucous crowd to one now holding flashlights aloft and tears aplenty.

With such a powerful song already released as one of his career's first and it's equally powerful effects, alongside the plethora of other equally stellar tunes, it's fair to say that the Barnett family have another bright star in the making.