THREE DAYS GRACE On Having Two Singers In The Band: We Wanted To 'Freshen It Up And Make It Exciting'

Last month, Canadian rockers THREE DAYS GRACE released "Mayday", their first single since the return of original frontman Adam Gontier. The 46-year-old musician, who left THREE DAYS GRACE in 2013, is sharing lead vocals in the band's new lineup with singer Matt Walst, who has fronted THREE DAYS GRACE for the past decade.

In a new interview with "Whiplash", the KLOS radio show hosted by Full Metal Jackie, Adam was asked if "Mayday" is a good representation of the material that will eventually appear on THREE DAYS GRACE's next studio album. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think it's pretty close. Yeah, we've been doing a lot of writing and we've got lots of songs done and we're pretty close to finishing an album.

"I think it was pretty important for us to sort of get some elements in these songs that were super classic THREE DAYS GRACE with some newer elements as well," he explained. "So I think 'Mayday' is a good representation of that. It's a pretty heavy song, but it's got everything else that we wanted to have in there. So, yeah, I think it's pretty close."

Asked if there was ever any doubt "Mayday" would be the first song to introduce this iteration of the band, Matt said: "We found with 'Mayday' — we listened to, obviously, our ideas and our songs a lot, and with 'Mayday', we kind of all found we never got sick of it. Personally, too, I listened to it over and over again, and I didn't get sick of it. And it takes you on this kind of journey throughout it, and it's not super predictable. And, yeah, [we] just found it was fresh."

Matt also talked about how the idea for having two singers in THREE DAYS GRACE came about. He said: "I think one day I just talked to my brother Brad [Walst, THREE DAYS GRACE bassist] about it and was, like, 'It'd be sick if Adam came back. And we could both sing, and I can sing the songs of the past 10 years and Adam can even sing a few of those too.' And yeah, it just seems like a new life to breathe into THREE DAYS GRACE and to make it exciting, like the early days or just to freshen it up and, yeah, make it exciting."

"Mayday" was produced by Zakk Cervini and Dan Lancaster with vocal production by Howard Benson. In addition, the band released an epic CiRCUS HEaD-directed visual to accompany the track which can be found below.

Last month, THREE DAYS GRACE drummer Neil Sanderson told 100.3 The X Rocks about the progress of the recording sessions for the band's next LP:  "We're feeling pretty good because the [new THREE DAYS GRACE full-length] record's almost done. We've got stuff that we still need to record, but we're kind of in a position where if a new song comes along and it beats out one of the songs that we have, then cool. So, that's relieved a bit of pressure. It's not like we're sitting here with a single coming out and we don't have a record ready. It's pretty well ready to go. But waking it up every day, and, 'Okay, what's the task at hand?' If you look at it, like, 'Oh my God. We're going on a world tour next year. We've gotta finish the record right now. We need to figure out everything for what's going to happen live and rehearsals, then it kind of gets a little freaky, but we wake up and go, 'Okay, what can we do today? Let's do something,' whether that's… We're working on some video components for the show and we've got some new songs that we're excited about and just picking away at everything. We don't take weekends off and we might have to skip Christmas. But other than that… [Laughs]"

Asked if he and his THREE DAYS GRACE bandmates knew instantly that "Mayday" would be the first single from the new LP, Neil said: "I think the biggest question mark for us was just how it was gonna work with where each singer was gonna go and who was gonna sound sing what. We weren't really sure how that was gonna play out. But once we started just doing it and we were in a studio and we could just, like, 'Hey, try this. Try that,' and they started singing together and then they started working as two vocalists to map out how things make sense and are meaningful with who sings what where, once we realized that that was gonna be organic in nature and just it made sense and it created a new depth for this band, especially after 22 years of being out, that was when we kind of let go of the wheel in a way. In a way, we just kind of, 'Let's let it happen.' And so most of the songs were like that, where the guys kind of had a plan on where everything, how the puzzle pieces were gonna fit together."

Regarding what was different about the recording process this time around, Sanderson said: "Well, I definitely will say that we've kind of really leaned into being able to record and to collaborate remotely. And I think we got trained on that during COVID. And there's a lot of new studio technologies that it literally feels like you're in the same room together and you're recording together even though you're thousands of miles apart. So that was a big one.

"We put out a record called 'Explosions' just after COVID," he continued. "So that record was pretty well, almost exclusively done remotely. So we had that tool on our belt. And then I think when it was the notion that, just leaning into the fact that Matt and Adam just have really unique voices in their own right. And let's kind of hone in on those strengths and they don't need to sound like each other. I make the PINK FLOYD reference. Sometimes Roger Waters kind of has that frantic energy when he sings, and [David] Gilmour kind of has a bit more of a crooner kind of [delivery]. A lot of the time Gilmour would sing about stuff, like, 'Hey, everything's gonna be okay,' and then Waters would come in and be, like, 'Ah, no, it's not. And so that realization, that we can do that, and that creates the new level instead of trying to sound like each other or make it one thing, that was really freeing. It was really freeing in the studio to be able to know that we could do that."

In a separate interview with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station, Neil stated about Adam's return to THREE DAYS GRACE: "We had been talking and we've kept in touch. And the band was just talking about, like, how great would this be for us and for the fans and for the nostalgia of THREE DAYS GRACE. And then he got up on stage with us [for a guest appearance], and then we just thought, 'Let's make something new. Let's sit down and write a song.' And once we kind of got into that songwriting process, it just felt really natural and it felt right. And I think for the fans, we're giving them something that we haven't done before and hasn't really been done much in the past."

He continued: "At the end of the day, THREE DAYS GRACE, we're family. In fact, as you may know, Matt, one of our singers, is Brad's brother. And he kind of grew up around THREE DAYS GRACE and then slipped into the position. But we're really guitar heavy — we've got a lot of guitars going on and stuff — and those guys [Adam and Matt] both play guitar. So it's gonna be great to have another guitar on stage, too, as well as two singers. So it opens up the door for us to do a lot of things that we might not have been able to do before."

On the topic of the "Mayday" video, Neil said: "It was a really fun video to make. It was kind of especially cool for me because very rarely as a drummer do you get to make a video where you don't have to fake playing drums all day. [Laughs] And so, yeah, complete melee goes on on the plane. And it's kind of an analogy to just feeling like we're hurling through life at warp speed, and sometimes it doesn't feel like there is a pilot that's in control of things. But it's also a bit of a celebration, like, 'Hey, if we're going down, we're all going down together.'"

Asked when we can expect a new THREE DAYS GRACE full-length album, Neil said: "We're working on it as we speak. I was just with the guys on Zoom, and we're finishing it up. We basically hope to have it done by the end of this year and finish recording in January. And then, of course, we go out on tour. We're starting with DISTURBED and then we're putting together a headline tour for later in the year and lots of festivals and stuff. So we need to wrap the record up by January, and I think it'll probably come out a couple of months after that."

THREE DAYS GRACE teased a reunion with Gontier less than three months ago by posting a voicemail message in which Adam told Matt that he would "be at the studio soon, if you can just let everybody know."

Gontier said about his return to THREE DAYS GRACE: "I feel like it's been seamless, better than we were expecting. It's like we got back in a room together and picked up where we left off. We have been friends for so long, it's kind of natural to get back in the room together."

Walst added: "It's been so much fun and inspiring making this record. Combining over 20 years of THREE DAYS GRACE and doing something that no band has ever done. I'm excited for the fans to hear it!"

In April 2023, Gontier reunited with THREE DAYS GRACE onstage during the band's concert in Huntsville, Alabama. Gontier rejoined his former bandmates when they opened for SHINEDOWN at the Probst Arena At The Von Braun Center to perform two classic songs from THREE DAYS GRACE's 2006 album "One-X": "Never Too Late" and "Riot".

THREE DAYS GRACE later shared a post-performance photo with Gontier on social media and wrote in an accompanying message: "Soooo we did a thing."

In July 2022, Gontier said that a reunion with his former bandmates was "likely" to happen "down the road at some point." The Canadian-born musician made his comments just a couple of weeks after he and two members of the band's most recent lineup, bassist Brad Walst and his younger brother, vocalist Matt Walst, were inducted into the Norwood District High School Hall Of Honor in Norwood, Ontario.

Asked in an interview with Rock Feed if he would be open to working with THREE DAYS GRACE again now that he appears to be on good terms with his former bandmates, Gontier said: "You know what? Yeah. I mean, for sure. We've all grown up. It's been a while. There's no hard feelings or anything like that. We're all in touch now and we talk and text and stuff. We haven't really talked about doing anything — not yet anyway — but I feel like something like that is most likely down the road at some point," he added.

When interviewer Brian Storm noted that Adam's reunion with THREE DAYS GRACE would be a "big" deal, Gontier said, "And it would be a lot of fun." Storm then reiterated that the reunion would be "very big," to which Adam said: "Probably would be. You never know, man. We haven't really talked about it. But, yeah, I guess we'll see."

Earlier in July 2022, Brad Walst spoke about reconnecting with Gontier at the Norwood District High School event in an interview with Tommy Carroll of the 97.9 WGRD radio station. He said: "It's funny 'cause the high school's been calling us for years. And, obviously, we've all had kind of different schedules, and Adam's been doing his thing and we've been doing our thing. And until recently, to be honest, we hadn't really spoken that much — we'd text and stuff. But Adam's moved back to the area, and he's got a great family and a great wife. And we've all kind of been chatting and hanging out. Yeah, I called him and just said, 'They want the three of us' — they want Matt, Adam and myself. And everyone agreed, and it was, like, 'Okay, let's do this.' So it was pretty cool to see [our] high school, where you grew up… It's nice to be acknowledged."

He continued: "It's funny, 'cause I texted Adam, 'You made the Hall Of Fame.' He's, like, 'Yup. Straight-B student.' [Laughs] But I think just having us together in that room was way more powerful, for sure. So it was a pretty cool feeling."

In 1992, Gontier, Brad Walst, Phil Crowe, Neil Sanderson and Joe Grant formed GROUNDSWELL while most of the members were still in high school. That band broke up in 1995, but two years later Gontier, Sanderson and Walst reformed as THREE DAYS GRACE. Gontier left the band in 2013 and was replaced by Matt, the vocalist from another Norwood band, MY DARKEST DAYS.

In a 2007 interview with The Oklahoman, Gontier said that he met some of his first bandmates while they were freshmen at Norwood District High School.

"I ended up hooking up with Brad because we had the same love of music," Gontier said. "He didn't play anything at the time. I suggested him getting a bass, and he did."

Gontier said that Canadian bands, including THE TRAGICALLY HIP and OUR LADY PEACE were early influences, along with the Seattle rock scene, particularly the group SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE.

Gontier initially went into rehab in 2005 in Toronto after admitting an addiction to Oxycontin. The rehab stint influenced some material which would appear on THREE DAYS GRACE's "One-X" album, including the songs "Pain" and "Over And Over".

Gontier left THREE DAYS GRACE in the spring of 2013. At the time, the Canadian rockers cited unspecified "health issues" when his departure was announced. Adam later released a statement explaining he exited THREE DAYS GRACE to pursue new projects, and not to deal with addiction.

Gontier is currently a member of SAINT ASONIA, which also features STAIND guitarist/founding member Mike Mushok. The quartet is rounded out by Cale Gontier (bass) and Cody Watkins (drums).

THREE DAYS GRACE's latest album, "Explosions", was released in May 2022 via RCA Records.

Photo credit: Matt Barnes