“I do remember making that first record really meant everything to me.
“I’m really grateful to have been a part of a record and band that spawned music that still gets played on the radio,” Salazar said. While a lot of popular music from that time sounds out of touch in 2017, the entirety of this debut record manages to stay with the times. One thing that makes Third Eye Blind special is that 20 years on, it doesn’t sound dated in the slightest. Fourteen songs was a lot to have on a debut and I’m glad it worked out that way.” So I argued that we should put as many songs as possible on the debut because there might not be another chance. He actually had a good point that after a certain number of songs we would be giving them away to the label, but relationships in Third Eye Blind - between myself and Jenkins specifically - were not in good shape and honestly I could not count on a second album being released. “The manager was trying to convince me that saving ‘Background’ for the second album would make more sense for us. “I’m specifically proud of that one because it almost got left off the album and most likely would have never been released if I hadn’t fought for it to be included,” Cadogan said. The song is one of the more overtly downtempo songs on the record, but it hits so hard, particularly in the final chorus when Jenkins screams, “‘Cause I felt you long after we were through.” I get goosebumps every time that part comes on, sometimes even rewinding it to before the breakdown that precedes it. And, as an opener on the record, it really gets things off to a powerful start.”Ĭadogan’s favorite song from the record is also mine, the rarely performed live “The Background,” a song Cadogan had to fight for to be included.
For me that tune sort of summed up what set the band apart from your average ’90s pop band.
We went crazy experimenting with soundscapes and triple-tracked the bass using lots of vintage gear Eric Valentine had on hand.” The day we spent tracking it is a great memory. “It was one of the last written before recording. “My favorite song has pretty much always been ‘Losing a Whole Year’,” Salazar told me. Cadogan and Salazar each shared their favorites from the record, and neither were big chart-topping singles. There’s not a single weak track among the album’s 14 songs. One thing that makes the self-titled record so special is that many of the deep cuts have resonated just as long as the singles. I spoke with all three ahead of the show about the self-titled record, as well as the excitement about playing these classic tunes again. Fredianelli joined up with the other two in the last six months or so, after sending Cadogan an audio clip of himself singing “Losing a Whole Year,” with Cadogan thinking - hey this could really work. There was a legendary well-documented falling out between Jenkins and the other members over the years.Ĭadogan and Salazar - along with another former 3EB member Anthony Fredianelli - are playing as XEB, including an April 22 show at the Troubadour where they’ll play Third Eye Blind’s debut album front to back. Other founding members Kevin Cadogan and Arion Salazar joined forces in the last few years or so - first as Cadogan Salazar and now under the name XEB. Released April 8, 1997, Third Eye Blind spawned five singles - three being top 10 hits: “Semi-Charmed Life,” “Jumper,” and “How’s It Going to Be.” Third Eye Blind has found a resurgence in recent years as festival favorites, though nowadays it’s just lead singer Stephan Jenkins using the name without any of the other founding members. Saturday marks 20 years since Third Eye Blind shook up the pop landscape with their bubblegum riffs countered by the heavy lyrical content on their smash debut self-titled record.