Mandy's Blog

Band member Daniel Adair

amandamccrary — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:19:16 +0000

Born and raised in Vancouver, Daniel Adair began playing drums at the age of 13. His father was also a drummer and had a set of 1967 Ludwigs in storage, which Daniel decided to set up one day. Later that day after watching some drummers in music videos and listening to Hemispheres by Rush, he heard music differently for the first time and decided that he had to learn how to drum like that. He soon became obsessed with drums, air drumming in his room all night and playing along to albums all day. He continued to self teach himself until the age of 22 influenced by Neil Peart, John Bonham, Tim ‘Herb’ Alexander, Lars Ulrich, and Vinnie Paul Abbott, among many others. Contrary to popular belief he was not self taught, included in the thank you’s on the first album are the Hodgsons, who are Norm Hodgson from Brisbane, Australia who actually taught him to play the drums. Through his late teenage years he regrettably didn’t play much but was soon hired by a music store in Vancouver. In January 2005, Daniel left 3 Doors Down to join the Canadian band Nickelback. Seven months later they released the album ‘All the Right Reasons’ which has been his biggest success as it debuted at #1 on the Billboard and they continue to support a world tour after multiple successful singles. During his time with Nickelback, Daniel has also appeared on albums and performed with Theory of a Deadman, Bo Bice, Martone, Thornley, Faber Drive and Lynyrd Skynyrd. He is currently touring with Dave Martone. The follow up album to Nickelback’s multi-platinum All the Right Reasons is called Dark Horse. The first single, Gotta Be Somebody, was released on September 29 in North America, while the album’s release is currently set to November 18, 2008. The album is produced by famed producer, Mutt Lange.

Band member Mike Kroeger

amandamccrary — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:13:04 +0000

Michael Douglas Henry Kroeger, more commonly known as Mike Kroeger. Born in 1972 in the small farming community of Hanna, Alberta, Canada, Mike Kroeger is the bass player for post-grunge powerhouse Nickelback. He is the older half-brother to the band’s lead singer and guitarist, Chad Kroeger, and is responsible for Nickelback’s name, as it’s apparently derived from the amount of change he would give customers for a cup of coffee while working at the local coffee shop in Hanna. Mike now lives in Vancouver. He is the bass guitarist for the band Nickelback. When performing Mike uses 5-string basses as needed for the band’s songs. Mike uses Spector and Lakland electric bass guitars. He is married to Angela Kroeger and has a son, and a daughter, named Dawson and Avalon; all of which often tours with the band. He was in a heavy-metal band before joining Nickelback along with Ryan Peake.

Band member Ryan Peake

amandamccrary — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:07:02 +0000

Ryan Peake (born Ryan Anthony Peake, March 1, 1973, Brooks, Alberta, Canada) is the Canadian rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist for the rock band, Nickelback. Other members of the band include lead singer Chad Kroeger, Mike Kroeger, and Daniel Adair. Peake is the second oldest member of the band and has a wife and children. Peake has also been in the band since its inception. Peake co-writes some of the band’s most popular songs and sings most backing vocals, with the rest being sung by their drummer Daniel Adair. During a period of transition for the band, Peake filled in as a distributor. Peake also sings some of the band’s cover songs, including “Super Bon Bon” and “Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)” in concert. On the 2009 Dark Horse Tour, Peake also sang a Kings Of Leon cover, “Use Somebody”. Peake has given credit to his wife for the concept behind Nickelback’s music video for “Savin’ Me”.

Band member Chad Robert Turton

amandamccrary — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:03:59 +0000

Chad Robert Turton, (also known as Chad Robert Kroeger) was born in Hanna, Alberta on November 15, 1974. Chad has an older half-brother named Mike Kroeger, who is Nickelback’s bassist. Chad is uncle of Dawson and Avalon Kroeger. Also in 2002, Kroeger wrote and sang on “Why Don’t You & I” for Santana’s Shaman. However, when Arista decided to release the song as a single in Summer 2003, Kroeger’s label, Roadrunner, refused permission, citing concerns that Kroeger appearing on a “high-profile single” would compromise the excitement over Nickelback’s fall 2003 release The Long Road. Kroeger is the one that recommended The Calling’s Alex Band, another Arista artist, as a replacement for re-recording the single. The recording with Kroeger on vocals can easily be found on most peer-to-peer networks to this day. Kroeger also wrote and played guitar on Bo Bice’s You’re Everything. On June 1, 2006 at around 1:30 a.m. Kroeger was pulled over by the RCMP in Surrey for speeding. A breathalyzer-type test later showed a blood alcohol level of .14, almost twice than the legal limit of .08. Kroeger’s lawyer, Marvin Stern, attempted to have the results of the later test ruled inadmissible as evidence on the grounds that the request to blow the officer’s face constituted an illegal search and seizure. The judge accepted that the search was illegal. Nevertheless, on March 4, 2008 the judge rejected the request to rule the evidence inadmissible.On April 1, 2008, Kroeger was convicted for driving with a blood-alcohol concentration over .08. On May 1, 2008, the court sentenced him to pay a $600 fine and prohibited him from driving for one year.

Nickelback Issues

amandamccrary — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:22:35 +0000

In 2003, a internet meme pokes fun at the similarities between the song How You Remind Me and Someday, referred to as “How You Remind Me of Someday”. Chad Kroeger, on the official Nickelback website said of the album The Long Road, “We’ve pushed things further in every way possible. Fans of real rock music are in for a surprise.” A student from Vancouver, Canada, however, synchronised the two songs together, showing that both songs appear to be of nearly identical length. As well, the rhythms match almost perfectly in syncopation. A British website put these two songs together in a similar fashion in a flash file, where one song is played through the left speaker and one through the right. In a press conference, bassist Mike Kroeger said to the Cleveland Free Times, “I think that’s remarkable for someone to notice that there is a hit quality. If all hits sound the same, then sorry. When you are a band that has a distinct style such as us or AC/DC, that happens. When you have a distinct style, you run the risk of sounding similar.

Nickelback’s Style

amandamccrary — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:20:40 +0000

Nickelback’s style can be described as hard rock with a melodic undertone, modern arena rock sound (many claim there are also a small amount of heavy metal and country influences). The frontman Chad Kroeger is the dominant element; his vocals sustain the songs through verse and hook. As with many bands, Nickelback’s lyrics deal mostly with either acquiring romance, the loss of romance, or the transition between love and hate in relationships. Earlier albums included songs discussing problems such as parental desertion and domestic abuse. They seldom if ever speak metaphorically. Their fifth album, All the Right Reasons (2005), sees a change in their subject matter. Kroeger deals with nostalgia, friendships and the passage of time in one of the 2005 singles, “Photograph”. “Rockstar” has the band reflecting on the consequences of their new status as recognized musicians and is a typical grunge style attack on commercialisation and manufactured artists. The album, however, has received negative reviews. All Music Guide called Nickelback “unspeakably awful” in the album’s critical review. Nickelback was the main support act for Bon Jovi on the European & American legs of the latter’s “Have a Nice Day Tour” in 2006.

History of Nickelback

amandamccrary — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:17:13 +0000

The core of the band hails from Hanna, Alberta. They are now based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Nickelback was helped early on by Cancon, the Canadian law requiring a certain percentage of music played on Canadian radio to be from Canadian musical artists. Their second full length album, The State, propelled them to the mainstream with two Top 10 hits and the follow up album Silver Side Up, with 2002′s most-played single “How You Remind Me”, gave them superstar status, scoring multi-format smashes on every album since. The band was playing their second song at the Ilha do Ermal festival in Portugal on August 19, 2002, when singer Chad Kroeger was suddenly sprayed with a full bottle of water, hurled from somewhere within the audience. Kroeger immediately tore off his guitar and confronted the crowd, and as he turned around, he was pelted in the back of the head with what looked like a large rock. “See ya,” he replied with a wave. With that, the entire band followed him off the stage. Both Kroeger and drummer Ryan Vikedal gave the audience the finger as they strode off. Kroeger was unharmed by the rock. Silver Side Up was released on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. On that morning, they were on their tour bus traveling across Pennsylvania less than 10 miles from where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed. They have received 6 Juno Awards and were nominated for 5 more in 2006. Their single “Photograph” was nominated for best single. Nickelback with their latest album, topped the nominees with 3 the nominations including Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group, Favorite Pop/Rock Album and Favorite Alternative Artist, for the 34th American Music Awards which are going to be held on Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Nickelback

amandamccrary — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:12:56 +0000

Nickelback is a post-grunge rock band formed in Hanna, Alberta, Canada in 1995. The name derived from the nickel in change Mike Kroeger’s brother frequently had to give customers back in his job at a Starbucks coffee shop in which he would say, “Here’s your nickel back”. The band has sold over 13 million albums in the United States and over 1.5 million albums in Canada, their worldwide albums sales counted near to 20 million. Nickelback’s latest release, All the Right Reasons has already sold more than 3.5 million albums in US and over 5 million albums worldwide while not even a year has passed since its release. They have been active from 1995 – present. The band members are; Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger, Daniel Adair. The past members were; Ryan Vikedal, and Brandon Kroeger.

Unstoppable

amandamccrary — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:06:45 +0000

With Unstoppable, Gary, Joe Don and Jay release their most powerful and accessible album to date, taking their career and country music another large step forward. The trio is as proud of the project as they’ve ever been. This album, Unstoppable is heavy on loss and heartbreak. There are a few lighter songs and some inspirational songs but you really feel the emotion and loss in this album. In Unstoppable, you can feel the guys themselves understand the mature and complicated topics that flow through many of their songs. This is their sixth album.

Me and My Gang

amandamccrary — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:56:59 +0000

Me and My Gang is the fourth studio album from the American country music group Rascal Flatts. It was released on April 4, 2006. The album sold more than 721,000 units and went double platinum in the first month of release. It sold 4,796,000 copies in the United States up to May 2009and was certified 5× Multi-Platinum. On April 25, 2007 Rascal Flatts performed “My Wish” on American Idol as part of the special, Idol Gives Back.

The singles released from this album included “What Hurts the Most”, which was a Number One hit on the Hot Country Songs and Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks charts. This was followed by the title track (which reached a peak of #6), and then the Number One hits “My Wish” and “Stand”. Later presses of the album also included a cover of Tom Cochrane’s “Life Is a Highway” (a cover previously included in the soundtrack to the 2006 film Cars) as a bonus track. This cover, though not released to country radio, charted at #18 on the country charts, overlapping with “My Wish”.