My Darkest Days

My Darkest Days is a Canadian rock band based in Peterborough, Ontario consisting of lead singer Matt Walst, bassist Brendan McMillan, drummer Doug Oliver, and keyboardist Reid Henry. They were discovered by Chad Kroeger of Nickelback, who signed them to his record label, 604 Records.

In June 2010 the band went on tour with Sick Puppies, Janus, and It's Alive, and shot a video in Las Vegas to support their first single, "Porn Star Dancing", released on June 21, 2010. In August 2010, they toured with Trapt, Skillet, and Papa Roach. Chad Kroeger appears and sings in the "Porn Star Dancing" video, as does American rapper Ludacris (in the extended version only) and Black Label Society frontman Zakk Wylde.

Early years
The band was founded by Matt Walst in 2005, who was born in Norwood, Ontario, and whose older brother, Brad Walst, is the bassist for Canadian rock band, Three Days Grace. Instead of playing in his brother's band, Matt decided to form one of his own with his friends Brendan McMillan on bass guitar, Doug Oliver on drums, and Chris McMillan on lead guitar. Chris McMillan was later replaced by Paulo Neta. In 2009, a friend introduced Walst to Toronto–based singer–guitarist Sal Costa, who later became the band's guitarist, replacing Paulo Neta, who became the guitarist for Thornley. My Darkest Days has opened for many bands, including Three Days Grace, Default, Theory of a Deadman, Skillet, Papa Roach, Nickelback, and Hinder.

My Darkest Days won a contest called Rock Search put on by 97.7 HTZ FM in St. Catharines, Ontario in 2008 with "Every Lie". This gave them time in a recording studio publicity in Niagara, Ontario. It gave the band money to tour for a year as well.

Debut album (2009-11)
When Chad Kroeger heard My Darkest Days' music, he was so impressed he immediately signed them to his record label. Matt Walst gave Chad Kroeger their demo while touring together. The first song they wrote after being signed was "Porn Star Dancing," which became their first single. Kroeger decided he wanted to be featured on it, along with a friend of his, Zakk Wylde, lead vocalist and lead guitarist for Black Label Society and a former guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne. Kroeger and Wylde both appear in the video, which was filmed at the Hard Rock Las Vegas Vanity nightclub. A remix of the single was also released which featured Atlanta rapper Ludacris. On their official Facebook page, My Darkest Days announced their debut eponymous album was to be released on September 21, 2010. On the album, the song "Set It on Fire" features Australian singer/guitarist Orianthi on lead guitar, known from her work with Steve Vai, Carlos Santana, and Michael Jackson. Also on the album is a collaboration with country-pop singer Jessie James, on the Duran Duran cover "Come Undone".

The Saw 3D soundtrack released on October 26, 2010 features the song "The World Belongs to Me." My Darkest Days was named the “Best New Band of 2010” by hardDriveXL after hitting the No. 1 spot on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks ranking, as well as No. 1 on FMQB’s Active Rock list.

My Darkest Days’ first major–label single, “Porn Star Dancing,” went gold in Canada and in the United States.

In March 2011, My Darkest Days was involved in a bus accident where their Bandwagon RV style bus flipped and fell into a ditch in rural Idaho. No major injuries were incurred, but drummer Doug Oliver suffered a sprained ankle and the band missed one tour date in Boise with Three Days Grace. It was announced on their Facebook page that they will be entering the studio in October 2011 with Joey Moi of Mountain View Records to start writing new material for their next album.

Sick and Twisted Affair (2012)
The lead single from their second studio album, "Casual Sex", was released to iTunes on January 17, 2012 and was sent to Canadian rock radios on January 13, 2012. Their second album, Sick and Twisted Affair, was released on March 26, 2012. It features the singles, "Casual Sex" and "Sick And Twisted Affair". My Darkest Days went on tour with Nickelback, Bush, and Seether in April 2012. They were a part of Nickelback's Here and Now 2012 World Tour. Save Yourself, taken from Sick and Twisted Affair, was featured on the soundtrack for the hockey video game, NHL 13.

Joining Three Days Grace
In early 2013 Adam Gontier left Three Days Grace and the band invited Matt Walst to be their tour vocalist. On March 28, 2014 Three Days Grace confirmed Matt Walst had become their lead vocalist. Matt is the younger brother of Three Days Grace bassist Brad Walst, and had assisted the band with writing both their self-titled album, as well as Transit of Venus (album).

Current lineup

 * Matt Walst – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2005–present)
 * Brendan McMillan – bass guitar, backing vocals (2005–present)
 * Doug Oliver – drums, percussion (2005–present)
 * Reid Henry – keyboard, vocals, rhythm guitar (2010–present)

Former members

 * Chris McMillan – lead guitar, vocals (2005–2007)
 * Paulo Neta – lead guitar, vocals (2008-2009)
 * Sal Coz Costa – lead guitar, vocals (2009–2013)