Following the release of their third studio album A Place Called Home (2000), the band left their label, went through line-up changes, and the members focused their time on the side project California United.

Our Darkest Days received generally favorable reviews from music critics, some of whom praised the song writing and frontman Zoli Téglás' vocals.

[3] Frontman Zoli Téglás and bassist Brett Rasmussen spent time in 2003 with their side project California United, with the Lonely Kings drummer Jon Barrysmith and Jet Leg guitarist Nik Hill.

[12] Musically, Our Darkest Days has been described as melodic hardcore,[14] drawing comparison to the work of 7 Seconds and Black Sails in the Sunset-era (1999) AFI.

[15] Téglás switched his typical shout-y vocals for more melodic singing, which were compared to the Scorpions frontman Klaus Meine, Tool's Maynard James Keenan, and the Offspring vocalist Dexter Holland.

[12] It contained the band's most personal writing up to this point, as well as tackling the toic of the war in Iraq; the name alludes to the George W. Bush administration.

[3] The opening track "Intro (Our Darkest Days)" lasts for a minute, before segueing into "Bleeding", which Rasmussen said deals with the "lies our Government told us to get us into a war without taking the rest of the world's consideration into it".

"Three Years" details the long gap between the release of A Place Called Home and Our Darkest Days, while "Know Your History" explains the band's issues with their past labels.

[3] The latter track, which featured lead guitar from Alex Grossi, evoked the material of the band's earlier, Revelation Records-released albums.

The majority of the goods originate from China; a military base is located eastwards of the port and is armed nuclear missiles aimed at the country.

[3] Our Darkest Days was promoted with a headlining US tour, with support from Blacklisted and Set Your Goals; Ignite then appeared at Hood Fest 4.

[38] Following a few West Coast shows, the band played various European festivals in August and September 2007, including Pukkelpop, Resurrection, and Reading and Leeds.

AllMusic reviewer Greg Prato said Ignite where difficult to attach a genre to, and "[a]ny band that refuses to be pigeonholed in the early 21st century should be commended".

[16] Blabbermouth.net writer Scott Alisoglu was impressed that the band could come up with material that was "unequivocally heavy, yet competently arranged, and that are infectious without sounding stereotypically emo or cheesy".

[19] Buffo Schnadelbach of Rock Hard said praised Téglás' "passionate singing", which was backed by the "greatest melodies, riffs and hooks" provided by the rest of the band members.

writer Sam Sutherland saw it as "one hell of an album" that was "frustratingly catchy and inspiring thanks to its resoluteness in turning bad experiences into positive lessons".

[15] Chad Bowar for Lollipop Magazine expressed a similar sentiment, stating that "even though the lyrics cover serious topics, the songs are very melodic, with great hooks and memorable choruses".