Welcome to On Second Thought, a series where we dispel the age old wisdom that you don't get a second chance to make a first impression. Or at least that people can change their mind about music that once thought was crap!

Three Days Grace
Label: Jive Records

The name of this band is horrible. That's the first line of my review because that was my first thought when I heard of this band. It sounds too much like 3 Doors Down and that's never a good thing. 

My second impression was how much I loathed and reviled their first single. Absolute crap. You know the song I'm talking about. It's called "I Hate Everything About You". Actually I think the working title was "I Hate Everything About This Lame Song". I remember being at my pal Trixie's house and her 13 year old kids were running around singing this garbage song over and over. I considered breaking my Michelob Light bottle and using the glass to slice my nuts***. Oh and the band had "cute" trendy mohawks in that video also. Wonderful. Needless to say, I filed this band under "MTV Shite" immediately. 

A few months later, I remember hearing a monster guitar riff from a song on the radio. It turned out to be their second single "Just Like You". Luckily, I had a pocketful of money that day. You see, I was headed to Video MaXXX to get my monthly fix of Chasey Lain and Sydnee Steele videos. 

Sadly, they were closed. Instead, I went across the street to Best Buy and bought this Three Days Grace CD on the strength of their 2nd single. (Oh and I also bought the "Hardbodied Chicks Vol. 4" DVD but that's for another review.) As for the Three Days Grace, I wasn't totally impressed from the first listen. I probably didn't give them a chance because I didn't really want to like them. I even did a review for a local paper where I basically powerbombed the CD through a flaming table. After a few more listens, I regretted that review....BIG TIME. 

OK, now I'm FINALLY gonna do a song by song review of this thing. By the way, why are you even still reading my long-winded ramblings? Go read something Keavin Wiggins wrote for gods sake. At least his s*** is coherent and makes sense. Alright, the CD kicks off with "Burn" and it starts out with...... FUZZ!!!!!!!! That's right, some exciting fuzz sounds for the first 30 seconds. Just when you're ready to fast-forward through, Soundgarden starts playing. Well not literally, but the Soundgarden influence is the first thing I notice when this song fires off. (Oh and by the way kiddies, it's a GOOD thing to sound like Soundgarden.) Wait though, then they kick it up another notch....and another! Indeed the first 30 seconds of jamming lets you know real quick that this band can get heavy duty when they want to. The lyrics could be better in this song, but the sheer power of the guitars make up for it. Great opener.

Next up is "Just Like You" and just like you, I've heard this song a million times and I don't feel like talking about it. Killer guitars. Very catchy. The 3rd track is "I Hate Everything About You" and I'll get a migraine if I try to review this rubbish.       

Now we get to their current single "Home" and this song rocks. It rocked the first time I heard it and it still rocks. Great vocals, grinding guitars, catchy lyrics. (NOTE TO GARAGE BANDS : Wanna get famous? This is your blueprint. Unfortunately, you're probably not good enough to play this stuff jabroni.) 

The following song "Scared" is the type of song you won't really notice on the first couple of listens, but by the 3rd listen you'll be singing along with the chorus like a deaf banshee.             

Then we come to my favorite on the album, "Let You Down". Geez, how do I describe this one? OK here goes : khyggftftrdhre. Got that?? See what happened was there are so many good things here my fingers went silly on the keyboard. I don't know where to start. This song is "dark". I don't mean dark like "Satan Rules, Kill Everybody"....I mean dark like spooky sounding but it still makes sense. Also, as with every other song on the album, the guitars will punch you in the Adams apple in certain parts. Above all though, this song shows off the bands biggest strength: ADAM GONTIER!!!! 

Now you're probably saying "Who the frig is Adam Gontier? What a generic name". Well he is the lead singer and yes, his name is generic sounding. Seriously though, this dude is good. I've always said a top-notch vocalist can make a good band great, and that is the case here. In this song, he changes his voice a few different times. He goes from singing cleanly to sounding almost demented in some parts. Listen to it and you'll see what I'm talking about. Great song that shows every strength of the band. 

"Now Or Never" is another one with a chorus you'll be singing along with easily. Good song, but "Let You Down" is a hard song to follow.  The next song, "Born Like This," leads me to believe that the other tracks must have been a warm-up for Gontier on vocals. He pulls out all the stops here. Singing, screaming, and even growling. The band sounds heavy and tight.

The band hit another high point with the next track "Drown". This is a very close 2nd for my favorite song here. Again, bits of the Soundgarden darkness are very evident here. The best way to describe this song is just bleak and hopeless. I really don't know another way to put it. Certain vocals here even venture into Alice In Chains darkness. Oh and listen for that crushing guitar every few seconds during the verses. If you're gonna download only one song to check out this band, download this one. The song as a whole isn't perfect, but certain parts are beyond perfect.

That brings us to track 10, a song called "Wake Up". This is a weird one because the verses aren't memorable at all, but it is IMPOSSIBLE not to sing along with the chorus. Oh you don't believe me? Give it a try sizzle-chest. Listen to this song 3 or 4 times and try to NOT sing along when the "Wake Up..." chorus starts. This song could go to number 1 on rock radio without a doubt. Catchiest chorus you'll ever hear. 

Tracks 11 and 12 are "filler" and don't deserve my review. I'm not even gonna mention the titles because they simply shouldn't be on the album. They just don't stand up to the other material here. 

Well Jesus, that review was longer than Tommy Lee's foot. Let me say that if you only like bands that growl in every song, you WILL NOT like this. Avoid it like Motley Crue's new tour. On the other hand, if you like heavy guitars with songs that actually make sense, then give this album a try. Use the 3 spin rule: Listen to it 3 times and I guarantee you'll already have some lyrics memorized. 

Is it Appetite For Destruction?? HELL NO......Is it Rubber Soul?? ARE YOU HIGH?? I'll tell you what it is. It's a damn good rock album by a band that most people won't even give a chance. That's why I chose this for my first review. It's too easy to group this band with other current radio bands. Actually most current bands WISH they had this talent. In closing let me say that this band has the secret ingredient that most bands dream of: The Perfect Vocalist. Listen to this guy and listen to his band. You might as well because I guarantee they're gonna be around for a while. They live up to the hype. No, scratch that, they SURPASS the hype.

- Jizzy Stradlin
 

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