Three Days Grace

Three Days Grace is a Canadian rock group from Norwood, Canada. It begins as Groundswell in 1992, then reforms in 1997 under the name Three Days Grace with Adam Gontier on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Neil Sanderson on drums and backing vocals, and Brad Walst on bass guitar and backing vocals. Barry Stock joins on lead guitar in 2003. The group remains active from 1997 to the present and its current line-up also includes Matt Walst on lead vocals. Dani Rosenoer appears as a live member on piano, synthesizer and backing vocals.

Early history and name change

The band starts at high school in Norwood, Ontario, when Groundswell forms with Adam Gontier, Neil Sanderson, Brad Walst, Phil Crowe and Joe Grant. After breaking up in 1995, the group regroups in Toronto in 1997 as a trio and changes its name to Three Days Grace. The name refers to the idea of whether a person could change something in their life within three days. In Toronto, the band works with producer Gavin Brown, who helps shape its material into a demo album for EMI Music Publishing Canada. The song I Hate Everything About You draws label interest and leads to a signing with Jive Records.

Albums and commercial success

The debut album, Three Days Grace, is recorded in Boston and Woodstock, New York and released in 2003. It reaches number nine on the Canadian Albums Chart and number 69 on the Billboard 200, and is certified platinum in the US and double platinum in Canada. After Barry Stock joins, the band tours extensively in support of the record.

One-X follows in 2006 and is Barry Stock’s recorded debut. Adam Gontier writes much of it after a period of depression, drug and alcohol addiction, and rehab, and the album reflects those experiences. It reaches number two in Canada and number five on the Billboard 200, sells 78,000 copies in its first week in the US, and is certified platinum in the US and double platinum in Canada. Its lead single, Animal I Have Become, becomes the band’s most successful single and the most played rock song in Canada in 2006. The album also helps make Three Days Grace the top rock act in US and Canadian airplay in 2007.

Life Starts Now is recorded in Vancouver and Los Angeles with producer Howard Benson and released in 2009. The album moves away from the more openly angry tone of earlier releases and is described by the band as reflecting a sense of change and freshness. It debuts at number three on the Billboard 200, the group’s highest chart position. Its first single is Break.

Transit of Venus follows in 2012 on RCA Records after Jive Records is shut down. The album is announced alongside the single Chalk Outline. In 2013, Adam Gontier leaves the band for medical reasons, and Matt Walst, Brad Walst’s brother and a member of My Darkest Days, joins as lead singer and later becomes a permanent member.

The discography listed for the group also includes Human (2015), Outsider (2018), EXPLOSIONS (2022) and Alienation (2025).

Recognition and style

Three Days Grace is ranked by Mediabase as the top artist in airplay across all rock formats in the US and Canada in 2007, and Billboard names the band Rock Artist of the Year. The group receives four Juno Award nominations, including New Group of the Year in 2004, Best Group of the Year in 2007, Album of the Year for One-X, and Best Rock Album for Life Starts Now in 2010. At the Much Music Awards, I Hate Everything About You is nominated for Best Rock Video and Favourite Canadian Group, while Animal I Have Become, Never Too Late, Pain and Break also receive nominations across video and group categories. Animal I Have Become wins Mediabase’s award for most played rock song on radio in 2006, and Life Starts Now wins Best Album at the Casby Awards.

The band’s sound is generally described as alternative metal and hard rock, with the listed genres also including alternative rock, post-grunge and rock. Adam Gontier names Sunny Day Real Estate, Kyuss, Nine Inch Nails and Tool among the group’s influences, and says the band’s lyrics are influenced by the Seattle music scene.