Review Summary: 3DG follow up their platinum selling first album with a more mature hard hitting second album.
In this day in age when rock bands seem to be coming and going almost as often as we catch Britney Spears doing something hilariously embarrassing (shaving her head, claims of being a lesbian, going commando, checking into rehab two times for a total of two days...marrying K-Fed, the list goes on) one band seems to be a step ahead of the rest, and that band is Three Days Grace. Although One-X is only the bands second major label release, they seem to have a grip on how to make some great hard rock songs without watering their sound down.
Three Days Grace is…
Adam Gontier - Lead Vocals, Guitar
Neil Sanderson - Drums
Brad Walst - Bass, Backing Vocals
Barry Stock - Lead Guitar
One-X follows the same blueprint as Three Days Grace’s debut album: dark brooding vocals, a blend of heavily distorted and acoustic guitars, and simple drum and bass riffs. In all honesty, many of these songs could have very well been on their debut album, the song structures and overall sounds are truly that similar.
This is not to say however that the album is bad or even mildly boring, it’s actually very well put together. Quite a few things have improved over the last album; the vocals, as well as Adam’s voice have matured, and the riffs are more hard hitting throughout the album. The production value of this album is also a step above where their debut was; the volume on the guitars was turned slightly up, and the bass is audible on all tracks.
And now for what you guys really want to know…how are the songs? From the time the album starts to the time it ends there is an eminent dark sound that is present in every song, while still avoiding the metal and emo genres, even though One-X does have its share of hard hitters. The first single off the album, “Animal I Have Become”, is one of the heavier tracks on the album with its heavily distorted sound and dark lyrics. “Riot” and “Get Out Alive” are also some of the more brooding tracks on the album, with their moderately paced guitar riffs and heavy low end. As for the ballad of the album…wait there really is no ballad on the album. Songs like “Let it Die” and the title track “One-X”, and a little bit lighter than the rest of the album, but still have hard hitting chorus and bridge riffs. If anything is wrong with this album, it’s the fact that it doesn’t have a true ballad, but then again what’s wrong with 12 tracks of hard hitting, in you face rock anyway?
Adam’s voice has matured and his lyrics have come to fruition. The guitar riffs are a bit mediocre at times, but for the most part they tend to keep the pace of the album up. The bass is the only thing that truly bothers me on this album. They are simple and don’t really add much to the songs other than “Animal I Have Become” and “Get Out Alive”. Although I realize 3DG have never been the most technical of bands, the bass lines could have been a little bit better. The drums are also fairly simple, but they seem to do what it is best for the song as a whole as opposed to sneaking in a fill ever now and then. Overall the musicianship is slightly better, but no huge jump in talent or creativity.
Recommended Tracks:
- Animal I Have Become
- Pain
- Let it Die
- One - X
- Riot
- Gone Forever
Track by Track Rating: Out of 10
- It’s All Over - 7
- Pain - 9
- Animal I Have Become - 9
- Never Too Late - 8
- On My Own - 7
- Riot - 7
- Get Out Alive - 7
- Let it Die - 8
- Over and Over - 6
- Time of Dying - 7
- Gone Forever - 9
- One-X - 10
Positives:
- Lyrics
- Great Use of Acoustic Guitars
- Very tight and synchronized playing throughout
Negatives:
- Some people may not like the dark sound
- Bass Lines
- No Solos…but they’re not really a “soloing band”
Overall: Thumbs Up
