"Chalk Outline" is the lead single from Canadian

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Three Days Grace Three Days Grace is a Canadian Rock music, rock band formed in Norwood, Ontario in 1992 originally as "Groundswell" and played in various local Norwood backyard parties and area establishments before disbanding in 1995 and regrouping in 1997. ...

's fourth album, ''

Transit of Venus frameless, upright=0.5 A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and a superior planet, becoming visible against (and hence obscuring a small portion of) the solar disk. During a trans ...

''. The band released many "snippets" of the song before August 14 to tease fans. It reached No. 1 on the U.S. Active Rock chart for a total of 10 weeks and won the "Rock Song of the Year" award given by ''

Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...

''. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' ranked the song at number 8 on their "Greatest of All Time Mainstream Rock Songs" list.

Composition

"Chalk Outline" was written by

Adam Gontier Adam Wade Gontier (born May 25, 1978) is a Canadian singer and guitarist. He is the lead singer, rhythm guitarist and main songwriter for Saint Asonia, but is best known as the former lead singer, rhythm guitarist, and founding member of the Can ...

Barry Stock Barry Stock (born April 24, 1974) is the lead guitarist of the Canadian rock band Three Days Grace. Biography Stock joined Three Days Grace in 2003, shortly after the band's self-titled debut studio album was released. Stock's addition in Thr ...

and

Craig Wiseman Craig Michael Wiseman is an American Country music songwriter and producer, and the owner/founder of the Big Loud enterprise. He has been writing since the late 1980s, and his songs have been recorded by Lorrie Morgan, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, ...

while production was handled by Don Gilmore. The song was recorded at Revolution Studios in Toronto, Canada. Bassist Brad Walst spoke with ''

'' about recording the track stating, "I remember sitting in the control room with roducerDon Gilmore for hours and hours and hours, trying to figure out how to get that punchy, heavy sound out of something other than a guitar."

Critical reception

The song was mostly met with positive reviews.

gave the song a 4/5 rating, saying that "Adam Gontier attacks the track with as much angst and aggression as ever." ''

'' calls the song, "a welcome change of pace that certainly piques interest in what else Three Days Grace gets up to on the rest of the album."

Music video

"Chalk Outline" has a lyric video, which shows the lyrics of the song over a clip of a man walking around a city. The band also released an official music video for "Chalk Outline" on October 5. The video shows

walking through a city, singing and gesturing to the camera while passing the other band members on the way, culminating with the four of them meeting in a dark room, performing the song. The video was directed by

Shane Drake Shane C. Drake is an American music video director and producer originally from Redding, California. He has directed videos for many artists, including Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Avril Lavigne, Trivium, Paramore, Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the ...

and was filmed in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. It is the band's last music video to feature lead singer

, who departed the band on January 9, 2013.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2012 songs Three Days Grace songs Music videos directed by Shane Drake RCA Records singles Songs written by Adam Gontier Songs written by Barry Stock 2012 singles Songs written by Craig Wiseman