Ian Thornley | |
---|---|
Birth name | Ian Fletcher Thornley |
Born | Toronto, Ontario | July 21, 1972
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instrument(s) | Guitar, vocals, keyboards |
Years active | 1993–present |
Labels | Anthem/Warner |
Website | bigwreckmusic |
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.
Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Thornley studied jazz music at Boston's Berklee College of Music in the 1990s, and formed the band Big Wreck in 1993 with classmates David Henning, Brian Doherty, and Forrest Williams. They soon relocated from Boston to Toronto and eventually signed a US record deal with Atlantic Records. Their 1997 debut album, In Loving Memory Of... , was a significant hit that year on rock radio in both Canada and the United States. Big Wreck released a follow-up in 2001 called The Pleasure and the Greed , but went on to break up in 2002.
Thornley subsequently returned to Toronto, where he played as a session musician on albums by Nickelback, Sarah Harmer and Stephen Fearing before launching a new band, Thornley, who released their first album, Come Again , in 2004. The follow-up record, Tiny Pictures , was released in Canada on February 10, 2009, via 604 Records. The album was produced and mixed by Nick Raskulinecz.
Thornley also auditioned with Velvet Revolver for the position of their lead singer. However, this did not materialize as he did not feel comfortable being a lead singer without playing guitar. [1] The band eventually chose Scott Weiland as their lead singer. [2]
In the fall of 2010, Ian Thornley started touring with ex-bandmate Brian Doherty from Big Wreck. Ian had seemingly[ speculation? ] stopped calling his band "Thornley" and was touring under his full name. [3] On November 26, 2010, they were billed as "Ian Thornley and Big Wreck" at the Edmonton Grey Cup Festival.
Ian Thornley left 604 Records in 2011 and signed with Anthem/SRO. During this time, he reunited with his former Big Wreck bandmate, Brian Doherty, to resurrect the group. They then began work on a new album entitled Albatross, which was released on March 6, 2012. His group toured around Canada as Big Wreck from April to July 2012. The album "Albatross" debuted at No. 5 on the Canadian Albums Chart. This is the highest peak position ever for Big Wreck or Ian Thornley on the Canadian Albums Chart.
On February 5, Big Wreck performed at the Sound Academy in Toronto for Canada's Official Super Bowl XLVI party. They completed two tours in 2012 across Canada from BC to Ontario in the Spring/Summer (April to July), and later they joined Theory of a Deadman for the Jingle Bell Rock tour in the Fall/Winter of 2012 (November to December 2012).
The released their fourth studio album, Ghosts, in Canada on June 10, 2014, and in the US on July 15, 2014. The album has since been released in South Africa. The album debuted at #5 on the Canadian Albums Chart, [4] selling 4,000 copies in its first week. [5] The album also debuted at #4 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart, [6] which is the band's highest position on that chart in their history.
Thornley released Secrets in October 2015. [7]
Year | Album |
---|---|
2015 | Secrets |
Year | Album |
---|---|
1997 | In Loving Memory Of... |
2001 | The Pleasure and the Greed |
2012 | Albatross |
2014 | Ghosts |
2017 | Grace Street |
2019 | ...But For the Sun |
2023 | 7 |
2023 | Pages |
Year | Album |
---|---|
2004 | Come Again |
2009 | Tiny Pictures |
Thornley's early influences were "folk blues like country blues and acoustic styles", and later the electric blues of Buddy Guy. At the age of 15, he got into rock and roll, but it was mellower, melodic rock like Supertramp. He also cites Bruce Cockburn as an influence to his guitar playing. Ian's first concert was Bruce Springsteen. It was after that show that he knew that was exactly what he wanted to do. [8]
Slash's Snakepit was an American rock supergroup from Los Angeles, California, formed by Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash in 1994. Though often described as a solo or side project, Slash stated that Snakepit was a band with equal contributions by all members. The first lineup of the band consisted of Slash, two of his Guns N' Roses bandmates—drummer Matt Sorum and guitarist Gilby Clarke—as well as Alice in Chains bassist Mike Inez and former Jellyfish guitarist Eric Dover on lead vocals.
Scott Richard Weiland was an American singer and songwriter. He was best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Stone Temple Pilots from 1989 to 2003 and again from 2008 to 2013, recording six albums with them, and as the lead vocalist of the rock supergroup Velvet Revolver from 2003 to 2008. He also released one album with rock supergroup Art of Anarchy in 2015, as well as four solo studio albums and several collaborations with other musicians throughout his career.
Velvet Revolver was an American hard rock supergroup consisting of Guns N' Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum, alongside Dave Kushner formerly of punk band Wasted Youth, and Scott Weiland formerly of Stone Temple Pilots. The band formed in 2002 and was active until 2008, when Weiland left the band abruptly to rejoin Stone Temple Pilots.
Matthew William Sorum is an American drummer. He is best known as both a former member of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he recorded three studio albums, and as a member of the supergroup Velvet Revolver. Sorum is currently on tour with Billy Gibbons, with whom he also records, is a member of the touring project Kings of Chaos, and is a former member of both The Cult and Y Kant Tori Read. Sorum was also a member of Guns N' Roses side projects, Slash's Snakepit and Neurotic Outsiders, and has released two solo albums, Hollywood Zen (2004) and Stratosphere (2014). He was the touring drummer for the supergroup Hollywood Vampires from 2015 to 2017. His latest project is Deadland Ritual, featuring Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler, Billy Idol guitarist Steve Stevens, and Apocalyptica vocalist Franky Perez.
Contraband is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Velvet Revolver, released on June 8, 2004, by RCA Records. A commercial success, Contraband debuted at number one on the American Billboard 200 chart and was certified double platinum by the RIAA.
Adam Wade Gontier is a Canadian singer and musician. 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 Canadian rock band Three Days Grace. Gontier left Three Days Grace on January 9, 2013. In addition to his work with Three Days Grace and Saint Asonia, he has been involved in collaborations with other bands including Art of Dying, Apocalyptica, Breaking Benjamin and Skillet.
Thornley was a Canadian post-grunge and hard rock band formed by Ian Thornley in 2002. The band was started when Thornley returned to Toronto after the break-up of his earlier band, Big Wreck. With the help of Chad Kroeger of Nickelback, Thornley signed to Kroeger's 604 Records. The last line-up of the band as Thornley had Paulo Neta (guitar), Dave McMillan, 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 1992. The band was rounded out with David Henning and Forrest Williams. They disbanded in 2002 and Ian Thornley pursued a solo career with his own band Thornley. In 2010, Ian Thornley and Brian Doherty reunited for a cross-Canada tour, playing both Big Wreck and Thornley songs. In 2012, under the name Big Wreck, the band released their third studio album, Albatross. The band has since released the albums Ghosts in 2014, Grace Street in 2017, ...But For the Sun in 2019, and 7 in 2023.
In Loving Memory Of... is the debut studio album by American-Canadian rock band Big Wreck. Released in 1997, the album features the single "The Oaf," which became a Top Ten hit in the U.S. Subsequent singles, "That Song" and "Blown Wide Open", found airplay in the United States but experienced greater success in Canada where they both reached the Top Ten on the country's alternative chart. "Under the Lighthouse" was released as a single exclusively in Canada.
The Pleasure and the Greed is the second studio album by Canadian-American rock band Big Wreck and the last released before their break-up. In April 2001, the band made seven songs from the album available for download on their website. On April 30, the band released the lead single from the album, "Inhale", which achieved notable radio airplay in Canada. Songs "Ladylike" and "Knee Deep" were also released as singles and music videos were released for each of them. The song "Breakthrough" features Myles Kennedy, the now-former frontman for The Mayfield Four and the current frontman for Alter Bridge. The album was released on June 5, 2001 and debuted at #10 on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 7,408 copies in its first week.
Sekou Lumumba is a Canadian musician, based in Toronto, who has been drummer for such artists and groups as Ben Kenney, The Illegal Jazz Poets, Thornley, Edwin & the Pressure, Goodbye Glory, Ivana Santilli, Kardinal Offishall, Serena Ryder, 24-7 Spyz and Bedouin Soundclash.
The solo discography of Slash, an American-English hard rock and heavy metal guitarist, comprises five studio albums, three live albums, two extended play (EP), 10 singles, and two video album. Slash has also featured on 12 singles by other artists, released ten music videos, and made contributions to numerous other releases.
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 signed them to his record label, 604 Records. They are best known for their 2010 single "Porn Star Dancing".
"That Song" is a song by Canadian-American rock band Big Wreck. It was released in April 1998 as the second single from their debut album, In Loving Memory Of.... While not achieving the same success in the U.S. as the band's debut single, "The Oaf", it charted well in Canada, reaching number 31 on Canada's singles chart. Between 1995 and 2016, "That Song" was the most played song by a Canadian artist on rock radio stations in Canada.
"Albatross" is the lead single and title track from Big Wreck's 2012 album, Albatross. It is Big Wreck's first single released after reuniting in 2010 and their first single release since 2002. A 16-second preview clip of the song was released on October 24, 2011. The song was first streamed in its entirety on the Thornley/Big Wreck website on November 17, 2011, and was officially released digitally on November 21. The song held the No. 1 position on the Billboard Canadian Rock chart for six weeks straight. In 2012, the song won the CASBY Award for "Favourite New Single".
Albatross is the third studio album by Canadian rock band Big Wreck. It is the band's first album since their 2001 release The Pleasure and the Greed, and the first without original members Dave Henning and Forrest Williams. The album was released on March 6, 2012.
Ghosts is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Big Wreck. The album was announced on April 8, 2014, with the title track "Ghosts" being released as the album's lead single the same day. The album was nominated for "Rock Album of the Year" at the 2015 Juno Awards.
Grace Street is the fifth studio album by Canadian rock band Big Wreck, released on February 3, 2017. The album's lead single "One Good Piece Of Me" was released on November 4, 2016, following several teasers on the band's official Instagram page. The single proved more successful than the previous album's lead single "Ghosts", charting high on two different rock charts in Canada in its first week of airplay. The teasers were 40-second clips of instrumental music, which put together make a 7-minute epic which later was revealed as "Skybunk Marché", Big Wreck's first and only instrumental to date. Since the album's full release, the teasers have been removed from social media. The album was officially announced on November 18, 2016. Grace Street is also the first Big Wreck album to be released on vinyl. The album was released internationally on February 3, 2017. This is also the final album to feature co-lead and rhythm guitarist Paulo Neta before his departure, a month before the album's release.
...But For the Sun is the sixth studio album by Canadian rock band Big Wreck, released on August 30, 2019. After lead singer and guitarist Ian Thornley, shared several clips from the recording studio through autumn of 2018, via his Instagram page, the album's lead single "Locomotive" was released on February 22, 2019. The single was very successful on Canadian radio upon release, peaking at #6 and spending over 32 weeks straight on the chart. Over the course of the year, the singles "Too Far Gone," and "One More Chance," were released, and on July 22, 2019, the album was officially announced and the tracklist was shared with the public. This album marked a return to the band's signature blues-inspired alternative rock sound after the more progressive and experimental elements showcased on Ghosts, and Grace Street. The recordings only featured Thornley, bassist Dave McMillan, and drummer Chuck Keeping, as long-time rhythm guitarist and co-founder Brian Doherty battled lung cancer. He died on June 5, 2019, at the age of 51. The album was dedicated in his memory. This is also the final full-length album recorded with long-time drummer Chuck Keeping as he left the group in 2021 to focus on family life.
7 is the seventh studio album by Canadian rock band Big Wreck. It consists of three five-song EPs that the band released over the course of 16 months, entitled 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3, respectively. It was officially released as a composite album on August 29, 2023. At a length of over 70 minutes, this is the group's longest album to date. This would also be first Big Wreck album to be recorded without co-founding member and rhythm guitarist Brian Doherty due to his passing in June 2019, as well as the first since 2014's Ghosts to be recorded without long-time drummer Chuck Keeping as he left the group in Autumn 2020 to focus on family life. Canadian guitarist Chris Caddell of The Wreckage joined as their new rhythm guitarist, and former Thornley drummer and renowned Canadian session drummer Sekou Lumumba joined the band as their new drummer. Both are featured on the recordings.