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Three Days
Grace
Human
Brad Walst –
bass guitar
Neil Sanderson –
drums, percussion, backing vocals, keyboards, programming
Barry Stock –
lead guitar
Matt Walst –
lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Three Days Grace originally
began as a band called Groundswell back in 1992. They released one full-length
album before two of the members left the band. Two years later Gontier,
Sanderson, and Walst regrouped and changed the band’s name to the now name
Three Days Grace. The band signed with Jive Records and recorded their
self-titled debut album in 2003. The album hit mainstream success, although
being criticized by critics. The band came back strong after Gontier checked
into and finished his treatment in rehab. After his treatment was successful
the band headed to a cottage to finish writing their second release, one that
began while Adam was in rehab. The album hit stores in 2006 and offered up
several huge numbers including the first single “Animal I Have Become,” “Never
Too Late,” and “Pain.” The album hit #5 on the Billboard 200. Three years later
the band was back once more with their third record Life Starts Now. The album
spawns a few singles and debuted at #3 on the charts. After a label shift the
band headed back into the mixed with their forth album Transit of Venus. The
album was released in October 2012 and provided a different sound of the band.
It took some time to get use to, but there were things you can pick up and run
with. A few months later the band announced that frontman Adam Gontier resigned
from the band and was eventually replaced with Brad Walst’s brother Matt (of My
Darkest Days). The guys have arrived for a fifth time (first with Matt leading
the vocals) with the new album titled Human. The album hit in early 2015 and
the band’s heading out to support the record which features 12 tracks and gets
going with “Human Race.” The track begins
rather slowly, but it turns out to be a stellar track. It rolls along with
ease. The vocals sound great while the tunes in the back provide a nice
platform. The guitars have some nice spots while the drums create that nice
even beat. It’s a rather catchy tune. There are spots where it doesn’t flow as
well as the others, but it’s a nice little number to begin this new 3DG
chapter. “Painkiller” is a kickass track that I think I could listen to over
and over. The guitars are stellar while the drums drive the track along. The
track does repeat a little bit, but the way the vocals offer up the lyrics is
spot on. The track really pushes the limits in some aspects. The vocals dynamic
and stick with you. I really like this tune and I think it has the chops to
stay around for a while. “Fallen Angel” is a slow moving tune that will grab
you and hold you down. I absolutely love the chorus in this track as it sweeps
along. The lyrics are fabulous and you can just get lost in them. The vocals
work so well in this track and everything works as a unit. This is truly a
special track and one that I would love to hear live. “Landmine” takes a little
time to get going then on top of that it takes a very time before you really
get into. The chorus once again is top notch and easy to get in to. The verses
and the transitions are what take some time to appreciate. There is a little
pause that they out into the fold that gets you to the edge of your seat for
the end of the track. You don’t hear that trick very often, but it was done to
perfection on this offering. “Tell Me Way” is more of a serious track. The lyrics
are a bit darker and are centered on experience in my opinion. This track will
hit many fans hard and impact them in a direct fashion. They offer up a few
slower spots that really lower the volume of the entire track, but more
importantly brings the vocals to the front with minimal distractions. They then
pump the volume back into the track to round out the verses. It flows nice and
works well. “I Am Machine” is a killer track from the get go. I love the vocals
and the tunes in this track. You can really get into this track and scream the
lyrics right along with the band. Also, once you really dive into the lyrics
they are a bit scary, as they are really accurate in today’s society. This is a
solid track all the way around. “So What” is a pretty catchy tune. The track
offers up clear vocals and a nice little vibe that is easy to get into. The
chorus is solid for this short number. The track seems to fly by with the tempo
and the pace. It gets the job of kicking off the second half of the record done
and done right. It does repeat a little bit, but the addition of the unique
sounds offset that. “Car Crash” is a weird track that takes some time to get
used to. It has its moments where it sounds sweet, but there are also moments
that you kind of stand there with a puzzling look on your face. The vocals are
pretty solid and the tunes work well together, but there is just something
about it that makes it sound odd. There was a period of time were I wasn’t
picking up the lyrics well and had to look them up and the track does repeat a
bit as well. “Nothing’s Fair In Love and War” is a decent little number, but I
feel it will get lost in the shuffle. The vocals are solid and the tunes are
also good, but I just didn’t feel that connection with it. Thinking outside the
box, it just is missing the element that makes it stand out. “One Too Many” changes
up the vocal styles within the track. This grabs your attention and draws you
in close while you try to pick up the lyrics. It begins to roll along and you
can even feel the energy on the album. I feel like this one could explode on
the live train. I can see the party getting started with this one. It stands
out very nicely. “The End Is Not The Answer” is a low key track that is kind of
forgettable. The vocals are clean and the tunes are decent, but the track
doesn’t stand out among the others. “The Real You” wraps
up the album on a very slow note. They include some keys in this tune while the
vocals remain soft spoken nearly the entire time. The slow moving tune repeats
a lot, but still has you sticking around, at least for the first few times through.
The music seems pretty simple as they focus on the lyrics for this song. There
are long sections that are instrumental, but they really don’t add anything.
It’s a cool tune, but I think it will get odd rather quickly. Overall this
album is a decent one; however it takes some time to get use to with the new
vocals and to be considered Three Days Grace. I like the lyrics for the most
part. You can really tell that they worked on them for awhile. The music seems
like its classic 3DG and compliments the new vocals well. There are several
tracks that have and will continue to do work while there is a tune or two that
just doesn’t seem to measure up. They do seem to repeat a little much for me,
but like I said there are several tracks that you can take and run with.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
Tracks to Watch:
Painkiller, Fallen Angel, One Too Many
Track List:
- Human
Race
- Painkiller
- Fallen
Angel
- Landmine
- Tell
Me Why
- I
Am Machine
- So
What
- Car
Crash
- Nothing’s
Fair In Love and
War
- One
Too Many
- The
End Is Not The Answer
- The
Real You
Website (s): www.threedaysgrace.com
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