Three Days Grace
DATE: Sunday, December 17, 2006
VENUE: Val Air Ballroom – Des Moines, Iowa
WEBSITE: www.threedaysgrace.com

I was very skeptical to see Three Days Grace for two reasons.

I thought when they were a 3-piece during their first album and when I saw them in concert then, they sounded horrible. Honestly, it was quite possibly one of the worst live performances ever.

Two, I had heard that the band had matured and their sound was much better, and it probably helped that they added another member to the band.

So, at very best, I was expecting 3DG to be "good".

The band started their 80-minute set with one of their newest hits "Animal I Have Become". The song set the tone for the crowd for the rest of the night. The crowd was wild, lots of moshing, lots of crowdsurfing, but everyone was into the show from the very beginning to the very end. About halfway through the set lead singer Adam Gontier slowed things down by coming out by himself, sitting on a stool, and playing an acoustic version of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game". Not only was it a nice change of pace, but the song sounded fantastic.The band's encore started with the song "Overrated" – which at the ending of the song saw the guys break into a mini-version of Filter's "Hey Man Nice Shot". The 17-song set ended with the band's very first hit single "I Hate Everything About You".

OVERALL Not only was were they "good", or even "better than good", but Three Days Grace was "great". A lot of energy – especially from Gontier and drummer Neil Sanderson- from the band, great crowd interaction by Gontier, and overall it was just a great set and great performance.

One minor thing I noticed is that it seemed like Gontier's voice was starting to fade. I know they had played on consecutive nights, and the show in Des Moines was the last show of the tour, so I'm sure he was just tired, and that did come across but it did not hinder the show that much. However, one big knock that I will rip is guitarist Barry Stock

First of all, this isn't the 60s or 70s, the robot movement is dead. Seriously, he looked like a zombie on stage and his movements when he played guitar look like a robot – and very ridiculous. I almost had to tune him out of the show and pretend I was only watching 3 guys on stage instead of 4, cause whenever I would see Stock I would start laughing my ass off. And I know I wasn't the only person that felt that way – friends of mine and random people I talked to felt the same way. But other than Stock looking like a joke (couldn't the guys find someone that looked normal and play the guitar normal?) and Gontier's voice noticeably starting to fade at some points throughout the night, it was a great show. I definitely recommend checking out Three Days Grace when you get a chance – just stand behind a speaker or something so it blocks off the side of the stage where the guitarist is playing so you don't have to see him.

The set list from the show included the following songs:
Animal I Have Become
It's All Over, Pain
Never Too Late
Riot, On My Own
Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" (solo acoustic performance by Gontier)
Get Out Alive
Over And Over
Time of Dying
Just Like You, Home
Scared
Wake Up
ENCORE:
Overrated
I Hate Everything About You