By WAYNE BLEDSOE
Scripps Howard News Service
Friday, June 08, 2007
Three Days Grace's name only has a heavenly connection if you happen to be in debt.
"The name came from when we had day jobs," says Grace singer Adam Gontier. "Brad (the band's bassist) was going to be an accountant, and he'd heard the term 'three days grace period' to pay off a debt or something like that. He brought it to us and it sounded pretty cool. ... A lot of people think we're a Christian rock band because we have the word 'grace' in our name. We are so far from being a Christian rock band."
Three Days Grace came to the attention of the world in 2003 when the group's debut album spun off the modern rock hits "I Hate (Everything About You)," "Just Like You" and "Home." The album became a platinum seller.
Since that time, the band has released two more successful albums and been on what seems like a constant tour of the United States and Canada.
"It's definitely more of a word-of-mouth thing with us," says Gontier. "Bands like Nickelback and Daughtry and that sort of thing, they've gotten where they are thanks to pop radio. I guess we haven't been fortunate enough to have our songs be light enough to get on pop radio. It's all been about hitting the road doing shows and getting those people to tell their friends and growing a fan base that way."
The core members of Three Days Grace met as freshmen in high school in Norwood, Ontario.
"I ended up hooking up with Brad (Walst) because we had the same love of music," says Gontier. "He didn't play anything at the time. I suggested him getting a bass, and he did."
Gontier says that Canadian bands including the Tragically Hip and Our Lady Peace were some influence on the two. However, the Seattle scene was a much bigger one. The Seattle group Sunny Day Real Estate was a particular inspiration.
Gontier and Walst then connected with drummer Neil Sanderson, who lived in nearby Peterborough, and began the band Groundswell.
Although the group amassed a good local following, Gontier says that wasn't such a big deal.
"We started out in a very small town of 1,500 people," he says. "We were a big fish in a very, very small pond."
The group moved to Toronto in 1997, took on the name Three Days Grace and began a rigorous touring schedule when the members weren't occupied with their day jobs.
"Touring Canada can be tough -- especially in the winter," says Gontier.
The distance between large cities, not to mention the extreme cold and snowy weather made trips a challenge.
"We tried to hit all these little redneck bars where we'd do cover songs," says Gontier. "You know, just to make money we'd play covers even though we had a lot of original material."
The band's work ethic paid off. After six years of hard knocks the group connected with Gavin Brown of the band Big Sugar. Brown was becoming a respected producer and helped the group record its debut.
Gontier says the group has changed quite a bit since its early years.
"At first we were into really riff-y stuff rather than just cool songs. Now we focus on what a good song is. I'm a big fan of The Beatles. On every song they wrote every part they wrote could be a chorus. We've evolved and learned to like different kinds of music, whatever it is."
The band is always working on new material.
"It's hard to tell where the music will go, but we're always coming up with ideas."
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