Our Darkest Days

Our Darkest Days is the fourth studio album by American punk rock band Ignite. It was released on May 15, 2006 through Abacus Recordings. Following the release of their third studio album A Place Called Home (2000), the band left their label, went through line-up changes, and the members focused their time on the side project California United. Despite starting pre-production for a new album in early 2005, they did not start recording until November 2005, and eventually finishing in January 2006. Sessions were held at Maple Sound Studios in Santa Ana, California, and Paramount Studios, Hollywood, California with producer Cameron Webb.

Our Darkest Days
Studio album by
Ignite
ReleasedMay 15, 2006
RecordedNovember 2005 – January 2006
Studio
  • Maple Sound, Santa Ana, California
  • Paramount, Hollywood, California
GenreMelodic hardcore
Length35:56
LabelAbacus Recordings
ProducerCameron Webb
Ignite chronology
A Place Called Home
(2000)		 Our Darkest Days
(2006)		 A War Against You
(2016)

Our Darkest Days received generally favorable reviews from music critics, some of whom praised the song writing and frontman Zoli Téglás' vocals. The album's melodic hardcore sound evokes the sound of 7 Seconds and AFI (specifically their 1999 album Black Sails in the Sunset). After recording finished, Ignite toured the US between February and April 2006 with Comeback Kid and First Blood, which lead into a tour of Europe with With Honor.

Background and recording

Ignite released their third studio album A Place Called Home in June 2000 through TVT Records.[1] By April 2001, the band had left the label, citing a lack of European distribution for the album.[2][3] In March 2002, the band announced that they had signed with Vans Records, a label started by Jim Lindberg of Pennywise.[4] Guitarist Brian Balchack was replaced by Kevin Kilkenny for touring, until the latter decided to focus on being a motorcyclist.[3] Frontman Zoli Téglás and bassist Brett Rasmussen spent time in 2003 with their side project California United, with the Lonely Kings drummer Jon Barrysmith and Jet Leg guitarist Nik Hill.[5] In June 2004, Ignite played their first shows in the United States for two years, prior to a tour of Europe.[6] Balchack re-joined the band to aid in writing new material.[3] In August 2004, it was reported that the band had eight new songs for their next album, and planned to write up to another ten for it. Between September and November 2004, they toured across Europe, Brazil and Australia.[7]

In January 2005, the band said they were in the process of pre-production, looking for a new label for their next release, and posted "Bleeding" on their Myspace profile.[8] In June 2005, they went on a brief West Coast tour with H2O.[9] On July 20, 2005, the band signed to Abacus Recordings, and expected to release their next album in early 2006. The following month, they embarked on another of Europe.[10] Ignite recorded a new album between November 2005 and January 2006.[11] Sessions were held at Maple Sound Studios in Santa Ana, California, and Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California, with producer and engineer Cameron Webb. Sergo Chavez and Paul Miner did additional engineering.[12] Partway through recording, Téglás was involved in a theatre adaption of Quadrophenia.[13] Webb mixed the recordings at Maple Sound Studios, before the album was mastered by Kevin Bartley at Capitol Studios in Hollywood.[12]

Composition and lyrics

Musically, Our Darkest Days has been described as melodic hardcore,[14] drawing comparison to the work of 7 Seconds and Black Sails in the Sunset-era (1999) AFI.[15] Téglás switched his typical shout-y vocals for more melodic singing, which were compared to the Scorpions frontman Klaus Meine.[16][17] Alongside the other members of Ignite, Brandan Schieppati of Bleeding Through and Pat Kilkenny contributed background vocals.[12] It contained the band's most personal writing up to this point, as well as tackling the toic of the war in Iraq; the name alludes to the George W. Bush administration.[3] The opening track "Intro (Our Darkest Days)" lasts for a minute, before seguing into "Bleeding", which was influenced by how hard Webb pushed Téglás to do his vocals while working on the album.[18][3] With the mid-tempo "Fear Is Out Tradition", Téglás discusses the US media "ensur[ing] that a large proportion of [Bush's] compatriots live in a constant fear of the rest of the world".[3][19] The Bad Religion-lite "Poverty for All" is about the situation between Hungary and the USSR, where the Hungarians were oppressed and suffered from poverty as a result of intervention from the USSR.[3][16]

"My Judgement Day" tackles working with popular artists such as the Misfits and Motörhead (who also recorded with Webb). "Save Yourself" is about alcohol addiction; Téglás would frequently have parts and drink alcohol while on tour. "Three Years" details the long gap between the release of A Place Called Home and Our Darkest Days, while "Know Your History" explains the band's issues with their past labels.[3] The latter track, which featured lead guitar from Alex Grossi, evoked the material of the band's earlier, Revelation Records-released albums.[12][18] "Strength" deals with how the band's line-up has constantly changed since the end of the 1990s. A cover of U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday" (1983) was intended for release on A Place Called Home, though was vetoed by TVT Records. It appeared on the later European edition of the album; Ignite decided to include it on Our Darkest Days as they knew the album would have a worldwide release. "Live for Better Days" is an acoustic track, which Téglás said was influenced by the work of Coldplay. A short hidden track follows, featuring Téglás singing about his home country of Hungry in his native language.[3]

Release and reception

Promotion

In February and March 2006, the band toured the US with Comeback Kid, First Blood, and Sinking Ships.[20] The trek was extended into April 2006, with This Is Hell replacing Sinking Ships.[21] The artwork is a photo of the St. Peter Harbor, which Téglás lived minutes from. The majority of the goods originate from China; a military base is located eastwards of the port and is armed nuclear missiles aimed at the country. The cover is meant to show this paradox in US politics. An idea for a music video centred around the band building a house for family was planned. It was scrapped when Bon Jovi did the idea first.[3] In June and July 2006, they toured across Europe with With Honor.[22] The 2007 tour edition was released by Century Media; it include new song "Last Time", a demo of "Bleeding", and the music video for "Bleeding" (directed by Christopher Sims).[12] Around this time, a music video was made for "My Judgement Day".[23]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[16]
Blabbermouth.net7.5/10[14]
Metal.de9/10[24]
Ox-Fanzine8/10[19]
Punknews.org[18]
Rock Hard9/10[17]

Our Darkest Days was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. AllMusic reviewer Greg Prato said Ignite where difficult to attach a genre to, and "[a]ny band that refuses to be pigeonholed in the early 21st century should be commended". He added that it "may have taken for what seemed like forever to get their fourth long-player released, but Our Darkest Days is sure to not let down fans" of the band's past works.[16] Blabbermouth.net writer Scott Alisoglu was impressed that the band could come up with material that was "unequivocally heavy, yet competently arranged, and that are infectious without sounding stereotypically emo or cheesy". He praised Balchack and Hill for offering "life to the tunes without sacrificing aggression".[14] Ox-Fanzine's Tobias Ernst complimented the band's "very mature" sound, adding that it was "nice that the guys still have so much to say" lyrically.[19]

Punknews.org founder Aubin Paul highlighted Téglás' vocal range and the band's technical prowess, adding: "With Our Darkest Days, Ignite has ended a nearly six-year absence from recording, and has delivered a record worthy of the wait".[18] Buffo Schnadelbach of Rock Hard said praised Téglás' "passionate singing", which was backed by the "greatest melodies, riffs and hooks" provided by the rest of the band members.[17] Exclaim! writer Sam Sutherland saw it as "one hell of an album" that was "frustratingly catchy and inspiring thanks to its resoluteness in turning bad experiences into positive lessons".[15] Chad Bowar for Lollipop Magazine expressed a similar sentiment, stating that "even though the lyrics cover serious topics, the songs are very melodic, with great hooks and memorable choruses".[25]

Track listing

All songs written by Ignite, except "Sunday Bloody Sunday" by U2.[12]

  1. "Intro (Our Darkest Days)" – 0:51
  2. "Bleeding" – 2:02
  3. "Fear Is Our Tradition" – 3:06
  4. "Let It Burn" – 2:51
  5. "Poverty for All" – 2:13
  6. "My Judgement Day" – 2:25
  7. "Slowdown" – 3:05
  8. "Save Yourself" – 2:30
  9. "Are You Listening" – 1:22
  10. "Three Years" – 2:39
  11. "Know Your History" – 2:13
  12. "Strength" – 1:43
  13. "Sunday Bloody Sunday" (U2 cover) – 3:41
  14. "Live for Better Days" (includes hidden track) – 5:15

Personnel

Personnel per booklet.[12]

References
  1. Paul, Aubin (June 12, 2000). "Ignite Rekindled". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  2. White, Adam (April 23, 2001). "Ignite Leaves TVT". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  3. Pinter, Zoli (June–July 2006). "Ignite Ein Licht am Ende des Tunnels". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  4. White, Adam (March 25, 2002). "Ignite signs to Vans Records". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  5. White, Adam (April 18, 2003). "Ignite Sideproject / Album Status". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  6. Paul, Aubin (May 20, 2004). "Ignite in the US, Europe". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  7. White, Adam (August 26, 2004). "Ignite travels the world". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  8. White, Adam (January 8, 2005). "New Ignite song online". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  9. White, Adam (April 16, 2005). "Ignite shooting for live DVD / dates with H2O". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  10. Paul, Aubin (July 20, 2005). "Ignite signs to Abacus Recordings". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  11. Paul, Aubin (January 6, 2006). "Ignite finishing up vocals for upcoming Abacus debut". Punknews.org. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  12. Our Darkest Days (booklet). Ignite. Century Media Records. 2007. CM77564-0.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. Paul, Aubin (November 7, 2005). "Ignite's frontman starring in Quadrophenia production". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  14. Alisoglu, Scott. "CD Reviews - Our Darkest Days Ignite". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  15. Sutherland, Sam (June 1, 2006). "Ignite Our Darkest Days". Exclaim!. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  16. Prato, Greg. "Our Darkest Days – Ignite". AllMusic. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
  17. Schnadelbach, Buffo (May 17, 2006). "Ignite - Our Darkest Days". Rock Hard (in German). Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  18. Paul, Aubin (May 16, 2006). "Ignite – Our Darkest Days". Punknews.org. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  19. Ernst, Tobias (June–July 2006). "Review - Ignite - Our Darkest Days CD". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  20. Paul, Aubin (January 12, 2006). "Trustkill signs First Blood (Terror); dates with Comeback Kid, Ignite, Sinking Ships". Punknews.org. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  21. Paul, Aubin (January 24, 2006). "Comeback Kid/Ignite full tour confirmed". Punknews.org. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  22. Our Darkest Days (sleeve). Ignite. Century Media Records. 2006. CM77571-3P.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  23. "My Judgement Day" (sleeve). Ignite. Century Media Records. 2007. 77714-3P.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. Nightstalker. "Ignite - Our Darkest Days Review". Metal.de (in German). Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  25. Bowar, Chad (September 29, 2006). "Ignite – Our Darkest Days - Review". Lollipop Magazine. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
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