July 22, 2003 - Three Days Grace and Three Days Grace

Two weeks after my last release a new band joins my library when Three Days Grace released their debut album "Three Days Grace" on July 22, 2003. But who is Three Days Grace? They are a 3-piece post-grunge/rock band from Norwood, Ontario consisting of frontman Adam Gontier (lead vocals, guitars) bassist Brad Walst and drummer Neil Sanderson. Three Days Grace range from hard rock to more made-for-radio rock and this debut was quite successful, spawning four singles. Let's see what Three Days Grace are all about!

The albuk begins with "Burn" and it starts with a long crackling that's a little dull, then they slam into the main riff led by some loud and solid guitars by Gontier. Walst is playing some cool bass in the verse while Gontier sings his first verse and his voice isn't heavy but he sounds pretty decent overtop. Everything sounds very smooth and made-for-radio and this is pretty good opener in giving you the perfect idea of what Three Days Grace are all about. The guitars aren't super flashy by any means, but they are loud and decently heavy and the latter half of the song had my head banging pretty nicely! Up next is the first uber-succesful single titled "Just Like You" and it's driven by a super simple but once again loud and hard-hitting main riff that is pretty catchy. Gontier's lyrics are also pretty simple, but he delivers them nicely and sounds decently heavy yelling the name of the song. The chorus is basically an even louder version of the main riff and this song is definitely a little repetitive, but I can see why it was such a succesful single, it is easy to get into! Track 3 is the next single and arguably TDG's biggest song "I Hate Everything About You" and it's driven by a quieter main guitar riff with Gontier singing a soft, high verse overtop to match the mood. As the verse rolls on the rhythm section joins in to make things louder and Sanderson nicely plays in the chorus with Gontier nicely yelling the name of the song overtop another simple, but hard-hitting chorus riff. The transition back to the verse is super smooth and maybe it's just the nostalgia, but I thought this was a pretty solid song for such an accessible single! The next track was also a pretty succesful single (though not as much as the last two) and it's called "Home". Sanderson plays some pretty cool drums on this one throughout and Gontier leads the way with another slow, hard-hitting and pretty damn catchy main riff and it's pretty hard not to bang your head along! Gontier sounds great yelling with emotion in the verse and he's playing a pretty cool guitar riff here as well! The chorus is super catchy and it's no wonder this was a single as well, these guys are just great at writing very accessible stuff, but it's still very much hard rock! After a couple slow rounds they quiet things right down for a second, then Gontier hold a nice long "I'm better off alooooooone" and they nicely slam into the final chorus to close things out. Track 5 is "Scared" and Gontier jumps right into a really cool stop-and-start main guitar riff and when Walst comes slamming in with the same riff on bass things sound pretty excellent! Gontier sings a solid verse overtop a creepy riff that sounds pretty cool as well and when they slam back into the main riff it hits hard every time! The chorus is hard-hitting and pretty heavy as well and I think this my favourite song off the album (and possibly in their catalog!) The quiet parts only make the loud parts sound even better and everything is really well done, nice job guys! Up next is "Let You Down" and Walst starts us off with a cool bass riff, followed by a pretty cool drum beat by Sanderson for a great backbone to things. Gontier plays a lighter guitar riff than I would have expected, but it sounds decent and so do his vocals overtop. The chorus is an interesting mix between light and creepy and chuggingly heavy and it's done pretty nicely! There's not too much more going on and although this is one of the lesser ones so far, that means we're doing pretty well! Track 7 is "Now Or Never" and after a quiet first chorus they move into a typically loud main riff led by some pretty simple guitars and some decently pop-y vocals by Gontier. The louder version of the chorus sounds solid as Gontier nicely yells the chorus overtop his hard-hitting guitar. This pretty much sums up this song which is pretty radio-friendly and not their best, but still decent enough. The next track is "Born Like This" and similar to the last song they start things off with a quiet, almost whispered version of the chorus before slamming into another loud, hard-hitting and not-too-flashy main riff. The bass is pretty cool in this verse and Gontier sounds pretty solid as well. The chorus riff hits nice and hard and is pretty catchy and this was a much better, more interesting song than the last one I thought. Track 9 is "Drown" and they jump right into a typical(ly loud and hard-hitting) chorus riff before nicely segueing into a lighter main riff with a loud guitar note pervading the air the whole time. The chorus riff is loud but pretty simple, but Gontier sings a pretty catchy and solid verse that is definitely the highlight. This song has a dark, creepy vibe to it and even though the music is all fairly simple things sound solid. It sounds like we might get a guitar solo at one point, but that continues to not be Gontier's thing as I don't think there are any on the album at all! Up next is "Wake Up" and Gontier leads the way by himself with a light but fast and cool guitar riff and he sings a pretty good verse overtop that is quietly epic and very accessible. The chorus is even more accessible yet still nice and hard rock and Gontier sounds great yelling out "where the HELLL ARE YOUUUU....when I need you". I'm surprised this one wasn't a single, I think it would've done really well! Track 11 is "Take Me Under" and they jump right into another lighter but super smooth main riff with some cool guitars and some nice softer singing by Gontier. Sanderson plays some cool drums that fit the mood nicely and after a couple verses they slam into a typically loud chorus with Gontier sounding pretty solid on vocals and guitar. After the next round they move into a solid new riff with some cool guitar and a repetitive short verse, then they nicely segue back to the main riff before predictably finishing things off. The final song on the album is "Overrated" and they start off with a pretty cool heavier riff before settling into a quiet and creepily epic main riff with some slow, epic guitar and a smooth, slow verse. The chorus is simple but it's plenty heavy and Gontier nicely yells the chorus overtop. After a couple rounds they make a nice return to the heavy opening riff, then wrap things up with a final chorus and a pretty cool fadeout.

That is the end of "Three Days Grace" and I thought it was a solid debut album from the Canadian trio! Three Days Grace found their style and usually stay within that formula, but it's a great mix of hard-hitting rock/metal and some really accessible singing and lyrics from Adam Gontier. Where will Three Days Grace go from here? I'll be here to find out!