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| When radio station WCPR in Biloxi, MS,
started getting phone calls for a song by a band from
nearby Escatawpa, the staff figured it was hearing from
the group's friends and relatives. But then the number
of phone calls exploded. "This went way beyond just girlfriends
and family calling with requests. I have never experienced
phones of this magnitude," WCPR operations manager Kenny
Vest told the Biloxi Sun Herald. The song was "Kryptonite,"
and the group is 3 Doors Down, a four-piece rock band
whose beefy sound and explosive dynamics generate a high-impact
blend of modern sonics and timeless rock conventions.
Produced by Paul Ebersold (Sister Hazel) and mixed by
Toby Wright (Alice in Chains, Korn), The Better Life,
the band's debut album for Republic/Universal Records,
offers tight, finely-constructed music that's driven by
an energy that is at the same time almost out of control
and supremely focused. Music has always been in the crosshairs
for singer-drummer Brad Arnold, bassist Todd Harrell and
guitarists Matt Roberts and Chris Henderson. Longtime
friends from Escatawpa, each of the musicians felt the
call early particularly Arnold, who as a child would "set
up pots and pans when I was little, just beat on stuff,
whatever I could find." Having older siblingsfour sister
and two brothersgave the fledging, utensil-banging drummer
and his friends a valuable musical grounding. Through
his brothers and sister, he developed a taste for commercial
rock before graduating to heavier fare. "I kinda like
everything," says Arnold. " Everything influences me everything
I hear." After one of his bands broke up about four years
ago, Harrell hooked up with Arnold and Roberts. The resulting
music clicked for all of them. Arnold soon found himself
not only pounding the skins but doing the group's singing
as well. "I always used to sing to myself when we were
playing, "he says. "I was always singing around the house.
Then one day I got a microphone, and nobody else would
do it, but I did and I enjoyed it." Arnold became the
band's lyricist as well, often coming up with material
in his high school algebra class. The trio played its
first gig at a friend's party, roaring through a repertoire
of four songs. "We knew one by Bush, one by Metallica
and a couple of originals, "Arnold says. We played 'em
over and over again." The repertoire grew in short order,
however, and the group started playing out. One of these
road tripsto Foley, Alabama also netted them a name. We
came out of this building, and some of the letters had
fallen off the front and it said 'Doors Down,' "Arnold
remembers. "At the time there were just three of us, so
we said '3 Doors Down.' The three became four about two
years ago, when Henderson, who'd played in previous bands
with Harrell, was invited in to bolster the group's sound.
Now they are five, having added drummer Richard Liles,
from nearby Hattiesburg, so Arnold can step out and front
the band. Meanwhile, the songs kept coming, and in 1997
3 Doors Down recorded some demos. They pressed a CD to
sell at gigs, and fans flocked out to see them live, numbering
more than 2,000 per show. That, coupled with the buzz
generated by "Kryptonite," brought major labels calling
and sent the band to New York City, where it showcased
at the legendary CBGB's and was signed by Republic/Universal.
"We like to rock," Arnold says, and that's borne throughout
The Better Life, which kicks off with "Kryptonite" and
moves through the ringing ebb and flow of " Loser," "Life
of My Own," "Duck and Run," and "Be Like That" as deftly
as it does the crunchy fury of "By My Side," "Smack,"
"Not Enough" and "So I Need You." All of the songs feature
the dynamic interplay of Roberts and Henderson's guitars
atop the muscular rhythmic bed provided by Arnold and
Harrell. "We've got good lyrics; everything tells a story,"
explains Harrell. But ultimately, the bassist and senior
member of 3 Doors Down feels the sound is what says the
most about the group. "It's a rock 'n' roll band, straight
up, " Harrell explains. "It's not really alternative or
metal or anything it's rock 'n' roll." |
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3 Doors Down under the Brooklyn Bridge
For more pictures click here
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