Thornley was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
post-grunge
Post-grunge is a derivative of grunge that has a less abrasive or intense tone than traditional grunge. Originally, the term was used almost pejoratively to label mid-1990s rock bands such as Bush, Candlebox and Collective Soul that emulated th ...
and
hard rock band formed by
Ian Thornley
Ian Thornley (born July 21, 1972) is a Canadian rock guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He is best known for his band Big Wreck as well as Thornley, his solo project during the 2000s.
Career
Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Thornley stud ...
in 2002. The band was started when Thornley returned to
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
after the break-up of his earlier band,
Big Wreck
Big Wreck are a Canadian-American rock band formed by Ian Thornley and Brian Doherty in Boston, Massachusetts in 1994. The band was rounded out with David Henning and Forrest Williams. They disbanded in 2002 and Ian Thornley pursued a solo car ...
. With the help of
Chad Kroeger
Chad Robert Kroeger ( Turton; born November 15, 1974) is a Canadian musician who is the lead singer and guitarist of the rock band Nickelback. In addition to his work with Nickelback, Kroeger has been involved with a variety of collaboratio ...
of
Nickelback
Nickelback is a Canadian rock band formed in 1995 in Hanna, Alberta. It is composed of guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist, keyboardist and backing vocalist Ryan Peake, bassist Mike Kroeger, and drummer Daniel Adair. It wen ...
, Thornley signed to Kroeger's
604 Records. The last line-up of the band as Thornley had Paulo Neta (guitar), Dave McMillan (bass guitar), Christopher Henry (drums) and the former member of Big Wreck Brian Doherty (guitar). As of 2010, this line-up plays under the name
Big Wreck
Big Wreck are a Canadian-American rock band formed by Ian Thornley and Brian Doherty in Boston, Massachusetts in 1994. The band was rounded out with David Henning and Forrest Williams. They disbanded in 2002 and Ian Thornley pursued a solo car ...
.
History
The band's first album, ''
Come Again'', was produced by
Gavin Brown,
[ Biography of Thornley on All Music/ref> and released on 604 Records in 2004. Thornley toured North America extensively after the album was released and ''Come Again'' was ]certified gold
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
in Canada (50,000 units) by the CRIA
A ''cria'' (pronounced ) is a juvenile llama, alpaca, vicuña, or guanaco.
Etymology
The term comes from the Spanish word cría, meaning "baby". Its false cognate in English, ''crya'' (pronounced ), was coined by British sailors who explored C ...
, while also producing two No. 1 singles ("So Far So Good" and "Come Again"). Thornley was nominated for two Juno Awards in the wake of ''Come Again'': New Group of the Year and Rock Album of the Year. Thornley's single "Easy Comes" was used in the intro video for the PlayStation Portable game ''ATV: Offroad: Blazin' Trails''.
Thornley has stated in interviews that the return to the name "Big Wreck" serves to signal a shift from trying to write singles and write for maximum commercial success. This is an oblique reference to his time at the label of the Nickelback front man, himself known for admitting to writing to a formula that will provide maximum sales. Thornley was so unhappy with the commercialized sheen, and the meddling on the ''Come Again'' album (and its follow-up) that he, for a short time, released the demos for the ''Come Again'' album through his My Space page. A listen to these indicates exactly how much meddling and bad direction the songs suffered at the Kroeger-helmed label. The songs are much more raw and powerful than what was released. "It was just time to make a record and somebody brought it up that we should call it a Big Wreck album. There was no one leaning over our shoulders saying, 'You have to do this to get a hit.' And after the last couple of outings, I was pretty miffed with the whole recording process and people making me edit myself."
The band initially included Ken Tizzard
The Watchmen are a Canadian rock band. They were one of the most commercially successful bands in Canada in the mid to late 1990s. During their peak years, the band had one platinum record ('' In the Trees'') and three more gold records ('' McLare ...
(formerly of The Watchmen) on bass guitar and Sekou Lumumba
Sekou Lumumba is a Canadian musician, based in Toronto,Nazareth, Errol (April 1999). "Solo effort sparks fresh inspiration for Ivana Santilli", ''Words & Music'' 6 (4): 7. who has been drummer for such artists and groups as Ben Kenney, The Illegal ...
(formerly of Edwin & The Pressure) on drums. However, in October 2005, for unknown reasons, they left Thornley and moved on to other personal projects. Thornley continued touring immediately.
According to Ian Thornley's October 2006 interview with Tina Peek of ''Crusher'' magazine, a second album was scheduled for release in early summer 2007. It was expected to be accompanied by a DVD entitled ''Thornley Live'', which was shot across Canada in late 2005 by radio and television arts students from Ryerson University
Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU or Toronto Met) is a public research university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, although it also operates facilities elsewhere in Tor ...
. In a November 2007 interview with the Oshawa based CKGE-FM
CKGE-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 94.9 FM from Oshawa, Ontario. The station broadcasts an active rock format under the brand name ''94.9 The Rock''.
History
The station was launched in 1957 by Lakeland Broadcasting as CKLB- ...
94.9 FM "The Rock", Ian Thornley confirmed that the new album was then due to be released in early 2009, suggesting the reason for the delay was that "it's a bit of a headache getting a record made these days through the channels of a label ... so many people have to be on board". He also identified the likely producer as Nick Raskulinecz.[http://www.therock.fm/files/media/Thornley2.mp3]
For album's support Thornley toured with Three Days Grace
Three Days Grace is a Canadian 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.
Based in ...
, Thousand Foot Krutch, My Darkest Days
My Darkest Days was 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 si ...
, Nickelback
Nickelback is a Canadian rock band formed in 1995 in Hanna, Alberta. It is composed of guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist, keyboardist and backing vocalist Ryan Peake, bassist Mike Kroeger, and drummer Daniel Adair. It wen ...
, Hawksley Workman
Hawksley Workman (Born Ryan Corrigan, March 4, 1975) is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter who has garnered critical acclaim for his blend of cabaret pop and glam rock. Workman has released eleven full-length albums throughout his career. A mul ...
and many Canadian bands, and opened for Lenny Kravitz.
On December 12, 2008, Thornley released the first single, "Make Believe", from their second album ''Tiny Pictures
''Tiny Pictures'' is the second and final studio album by Canadian rock band Thornley. The album was released in Canada on February 10, 2009, and in the U.S. on February 3, 2010. The first single, "Make Believe," was released to radio on Decemb ...
''. The album itself was released on February 10, 2009. It was produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver, Rush).
For their second album, Ian Thornley recorded all guitars on the record including lead and rhythm guitar as well as bass guitar. Daniel Adair, the drummer from the Canadian rock band Nickelback
Nickelback is a Canadian rock band formed in 1995 in Hanna, Alberta. It is composed of guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist, keyboardist and backing vocalist Ryan Peake, bassist Mike Kroeger, and drummer Daniel Adair. It wen ...
, played drums on the album. Chad Kroeger, also of Nickelback, co-wrote a track on the album with Ian Thornley along with Alain Johannes and Natasha Shneider of Eleven, who also co-wrote some of the tracks.
Thornley performed at Rock on the Range
Rock on the Range was an annual rock festival that was held at two locations. The first and main location was in Columbus, Ohio, United States at Mapfre Stadium (originally Columbus Crew Stadium; renamed in 2015) from 2007 to 2018, while the ...
Canada in Winnipeg, Manitoba
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
, on June 27, 2009.
Thornley also performed at Flemingpaloozza in Peterborough, Ontario
Peterborough ( ) is a city on the Otonabee River in Ontario, Canada, about 125 kilometres (78 miles) northeast of Toronto. According to the 2021 Census, the population of the City of Peterborough was 83,651. The population of the Peterborough ...
, on September 7, 2009, as part of Fleming college's orientation.
Thornley was also featured at the Paralympics in Vancouver on March 12, 2010.
In 2010, Thornley and Brian Doherty rekindled their friendship which led to the latter filling in for a Thornley show, and then joining the band as they naturally reconnected as musicians.
The band embarked on a Canadian tour titled "An Evening with Thornley and Big Wreck". As a result of the tour's success, the band took on the Big Wreck name, and all existing members of Thornley effectively became members of Big Wreck.
In July 2011, Ian Thornley left 604 records and signed with Anthem/SRO. His new manager is Andy Curran. A new album by Big Wreck, '' Albatross'', has been recorded and was released on March 6, 2012.
Band members
* Ian Thornley
Ian Thornley (born July 21, 1972) is a Canadian rock guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He is best known for his band Big Wreck as well as Thornley, his solo project during the 2000s.
Career
Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Thornley stud ...
- vocals, lead guitar (2002–2011)
* Paulo Neta - rhythm guitar (2009–2011) also in Black Rail; formerly of My Darkest Days
My Darkest Days was 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 si ...
and Hurst
Hurst may refer to:
Places England
* Hurst, Berkshire, a village
* Hurst, North Yorkshire, a hamlet
* Hurst, a settlement within the village of Martock, Somerset
* Hurst, West Sussex, a hamlet
* Hurst Spit, a shingle spit in Hampshire
** Hur ...
* Brian Doherty - rhythm guitar (2010–2011)
* Dave McMillian - bass guitar (2010–2011)
* Brad Park - drums (2011)
*Ken Tizzard
The Watchmen are a Canadian rock band. They were one of the most commercially successful bands in Canada in the mid to late 1990s. During their peak years, the band had one platinum record ('' In the Trees'') and three more gold records ('' McLare ...
- bass guitar (2002–2005,2011) in The Watchmen
* Christopher Henry - drums (2010–2011)
* Sekou Lumumba
Sekou Lumumba is a Canadian musician, based in Toronto,Nazareth, Errol (April 1999). "Solo effort sparks fresh inspiration for Ivana Santilli", ''Words & Music'' 6 (4): 7. who has been drummer for such artists and groups as Ben Kenney, The Illegal ...
- drums (2002–2005) now in Heavy Young Heathens
Heavy Young Heathens are American film, film trailer, and television composers, consisting of brothers Aron and Robert Mardo. They are known for their work composing and performing music for television series including '' Big Sky'', '' Eastbound ...
and Ben Kenney
Benjamin Lee Kenney Sr. (born March 12, 1977) is an American musician from Brielle, New Jersey. He is the current bass guitarist for the band Incubus (since 2003) and had previously played in the Roots as a guitarist. He also records as a sol ...
's band; formerly of Edwin & the Pressure and Goodbye Glory
* Liam Killeen - drums (2006)
* Tavis Stanley - guitar (2005–2009) now in Art of Dying
* Cale Gontier - bass guitar (2005–2010) also in Art of Dying and Saint Asonia
Saint Asonia (stylized as SΔINT ΔSONIΔ) is a Canadian-American rock supergroup consisting of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Gontier, lead guitarist Mike Mushok, bassist and backing vocalist Cale Gontier, and drummer Cody Watkins. ...
; former guitar technician for Three Days Grace
Three Days Grace is a Canadian 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.
Based in ...
* Patrick Benti - rhythm guitar (2009)
Discography
Studio albums
Singles
1 : U.S. single only
2 : Canadian single only
Awards
Juno Awards
See also
* Rock music of Canada
*Music of Canada
The music of Canada reflects the diverse influences that have shaped the country. Indigenous Peoples, the Irish, British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical heritage of Canada. The music has also subsequently been ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thornley
Musical groups established in 2002
Musical groups from Toronto
Canadian post-grunge groups
2002 establishments in Ontario