MY DARKEST DAYS is one of those bands I was introduced to in concert before ever hearing their record. They recently opened for HINDER and I caught them in New York City.

After being impressed with their live show and the reaction from some in the crowd I figured I had to find out more about them. Their self-titled debut album was released in the last half of 2010 and it seems these Canadian boys have some big time friends in their corner. They were originally discovered by NICKELBACK’s Chad Kroeger and he signed them to his production company for their first record. They also had the help of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY main man ZAKK WYLDE as he contributed his guitar talents on their fist single.

The record opens with the NICKELBACK-inspired “Move Your Body”. The song is a hard-hitting yet slick modern rock track. Vocalist Matt Walst has a slightly higher register and somewhat smoother delivery than that of NICKELBACK’s Kroeger and it translates into a more commercial and poppy feel to the bands music.

The first single and video off the record is “Porn Star Dancing” and this is the track where they get some help from Kroeger and Wylde. The song features those big arena-styled backing vocals that NICKELBACK has made famous and the chunky riffs from Wylde add substance to make this track the obvious choice as first single. The video for the song (which was something like the 60th most downloaded video on iTunes at the time of its release) is pretty easy on the eyes also… if you get my drift!

After the first two songs, the band seems to find some of its own identity on tracks like the extremely melodic “Every Lie”. The song has a bit of a gothic vibe but maintains its rock roots. Subsequent tracks such as “Like Nobody Else” and “The World Belongs To Me” see the band furthering its guitar-based and edgy, yet melodic sound. The band seems to have been influenced by not only by straight-ahead rock acts like NICKELBACK but also groups like LINKIN PARK (with clean vocals) at times. One such track is the cover of DURAN DURAN’s “Come Undone”, where you get a full-on pop sound in the verse one moment and modern rock sounds ala LINKIN PARK the next. The band has truly put their mark on the song.

Other notable tracks on the record worth checking out are “Can’t Forget You”, which has shades of LIFEHOUSE in its moodiness and the great ballad “Without You”.

I like the sound the band has come up with. They give you a modern rock edge along with Arena rock energy and a bevy of other influences to keep things interesting. It’s all capped with a slick production and I think MY DARKEST DAYS is a band to keep an eye for the future.