THREE DAYS GRACE | Outsider | Album Review

Three Days Grace has practically lived on the radio and as one of the frontrunners of rock music in general for nearly fifteen years. If you listen to radio, it won't take very long for 3DG to appear on the rotation. Even though original frontman Adam Gontier has now been missing from the band's lineup for five years, it still has not decreased their presence as being a major force to be reckoned with in the scheme of mainstream rock. With a lot of momentum going forward, Three Days Grace present to us its sixth album in the form of "Outsider", which is the second project involving new frontman Matt Walst formerly of My Darkest Days. His presence in Three Days Grace has been met with polarizing opinions from the fanbase, with some stating that Walst does not have as strong of a voice as his predecessor, while others have now accepted his place in the band even though I don't think there is a person that prefers him more than Adam. This was further cemented with the band's previous album "Human", where while it was a technically sound attempt at radio rock with a few good tracks, a lot of it is really hard to remember fondly. This is a flaw that has plagued the band even before Adam had left the band, since "Life Starts Now" and "Transit Of Venus" had a lot of the same problems but still weren't anything bad or unlistenable aside from a few isolated moments. So, where does "Outsider" lie in the Three Days Grace discography? Is it another "One X" or is this just a repeat of "Human"? 

Earlier this year, fans were presented with the leadoff single to this album entitled "The Mountain", which is obviously rising fast in radio airplay, and after that two more singles came through the woodwork in the form of the titular track "I Am An Outsider" and the album opener "Right Left Wrong". One weird thing to consider is that all of these tracks kick off the record, which basically means that fans and other listeners have already heard the first three tracks of the album before its official unveiling. Getting back to the first single released from the record, "The Mountain" especially works as a radio friendly song that has a motivational theme throughout its lyricism as well as some very well-founded riffs and an overall excellent flow from verse to chorus. This is a track that definitely makes me excited for the album, and is proof that this incarnation of the band can deliver something exceptionally good. The single released after that, "I Am An Outsider" continues that idea while not exactly being a perfect track by any means. It is slightly weaker than the single that came before it, but it still works. Matt Walst's vocal performance, the muscianship behind the song, and the production by Howard Benson and Gavin Brown really make this track and "The Mountain" memorable although not revolutionary. Oddly enough, I'm pretty certain that these two are the best tracks on the album because the other song "Right Left Wrong" doesn't have as much going for it other than a great intro. 

That's really what can be said about the entirety of the album as well, even though I feel this is a step-up from "Human" and I'm seeing some semblance of quality even from lesser tracks like "Me Against You" and "Chasing The First Time". All of them would fit perfectly along the radio rock construct that has been established and would seem perfect as future singles for the band. The huge difference is that while most of these tracks are well-paced and have some good ideas, I have a feeling they will not register as high in the future. The tracks that I aforementioned are perfect examples of this, but there are some that I feel have a good chance of staying resonant as time goes on, like "Love Me Or Leave Me", "Villain I'm Not", "Stranger Days", and especially the track "Love Me Or Leave Me", which has a more ambient and atmospheric vibe that makes it worth listening to and has an interesting direction that makes it a standout track. However, on the negative side there is the track "The Abyss", which closes out the disc. This is proof that a tiny bump in the road can lead to devastating results, indicated by the end of the track where Matt Walst lets out a very misplaced scream vocal that completely ruins whatever atmosphere the track had going for it. It is VERY evident that he probably should NOT chart this island on future albums or else it will immediately go south, because his screaming vocals are pretty bad. For this reason, I think this track is probably the worst closing track I've heard in a long time and bring this album down at a very considerable rate. Once again proving my point that one misplaced detail can tarnish something valuable. 

Graciously though, it's not possible for one complete goose egg to destroy the rest of its counterpart songs, and "Outsider" retains the quality it does have within, though it isn't the biggest amount. Overall, I am a little bit disappointed with this album probably because I may have had my expectations too high. After hearing two excellent songs before the disc's release, "The Mountain" and "I Am An Outsider", two tracks which are worth the purchase of the full album alone, I was expecting a lot more in the way of depth and allure. Granted, I'm not ignoring the few tracks that actually have that like "Love Me Or Leave Me", but looking at the personnel working on this disc and considering the previously stated fact that two of the album's strongest tracks were released first, I wanted more of a punch than I got with this disc. However, it isn't something where it made the album bad or anything, it just made it slightly above the average mark. For fans of this style of music, there's plenty of stuff that I think will engage you throughout this album, and there is no absence in catchy hooks and marketable ideals to be found on this album. But, as for the Three Days Grace discography, this is yet another album that does not come close to their first two albums, even though in hindsight this isn't really all of that bad and some of these songs are excellent. Three Days Grace may inspire some with the material written here, and it's still a good album for the style it it encompasses, but for any outsiders, there is obviously much needed room for improvement. 

RATING: 6/10 

What did you think about the record? Was it good? Was it bad? Let me know in the comments below. And of course, these are only my opinions. If your opinions are different, awesome! If they're similar, then that's great, too. So, don't hesitate- comment to me about it down below. Take care.