First To Three

First To Three started as a high school jam band in 2006 with Kieran Howes on guitar and vocals, Phil Hardy on a newly rented piece of junk drum kit and bassist, Justin Gurinskas. Nothing more then to bang out some tunes and just have something to do on a Saturday afternoon. After a year of jamming Gurinskas left the band to pursue a metal drumming passion which led to the arrival of Ryan Clare.
Since the final roster of the band was put into place, First To Three has made a real presence in the Ottawa scene. Playing local shows at venues such as Mavericks, Cafe Dekcuf, The Cajun Attic, and placing second in a Supernova Talent competition early on all fueled FTT ability at putting on an amazing live show and created a hunger for the stage. As the band matured so did their sound and soon FTT was picked up by numerous events that had heard of their musical abilities. First To Three started getting more gigs in higher profile events such as local charity dinner (international gala at lac leamy) and a city wide student showcase jam in 2007 placing 1st. First To Three then concentrated on booking gigs as often as possible and writing new material. With the graduation from High School in 2009 a new ambition and common goal was set for the three musicians: “Let’s live off this.” This goal was quickly followed with the release of a self-titled EP recorded at studio 169 with producer Bryan Rukhstuhl in 2010. Entering into Live 88.5’s Big Money Shot (a competition that has funneled over 2 million dollars into developing young Canadian talent in Ottawa) FTT was chosen from hundreds of Ottawa bands and fought their way to the top 30, walking away with $5000 in talent support money. After being interviewed by Doug Ralph for local college radio station, “Do you hear what I hear?” and gaining publicity for the individually hand made EP’s, high energy live performance and catchy tunes, First To Three is well on their way of achieving their goal at making music a living.
With a wide range of musical influences spanning the classic rock of Jimi Hendrix and Deep Purple, to the Grungy goodness of Nirvana and Alice in chains, and past the catchy new alternative licks such as Cage the Elephant, First To Three offers listeners a sound that will satisfy all of their well tuned Rock Neuroreceptors. This Band lifts you up and leaves you wanting more.