BIOGRAPHIES: THIRD EYE BLIND
from 3EB; CD Now; Rolling Stone

3EB.com

Lead singer and songwriter, Stephan Jenkins says, "I founded the band partly because the music scene was so conservative. We didn't do this to fit into the music scene around us. We did this because we didn't fit in." It took Jenkins a year and a half to fit all of the parts of the band together. When final member Brad Hargreaves joined up with Third Eye Blind Jenkins recalls, "Everything clicked. We've never looked for anyone else to come and change what we've got." 
As for the name Third Eye Blind, Stephan laughs, "It's not a mission statement or anything like that. I have always liked names with wit and irony. The name also reflects a certain sense of magic and dreams- we thought that was very lacking in music when we started- music for a blind time, if you will. It also takes the piss out of that phony spiritual thing. Third Eye Blind has always been about real things."

Third Eye Blind's second album "Blue" will be released in November. Intense and even painful at times, it also feels good. After two years on tour playing together almost every night, Third Eye Blind is closer musically. They are wilder and quicker, and have not strayed from their commitment to independence, individuality, and the quest for creative growth and new sound. The new album is a full-on, headlong rush from start to finish, not repeating itself, not relying on what's been done before. When other bands have made an industry copying their own sound, Third Eye Blind is once again off to something else. "Blue" exists as a muscular rock record, strong, energetic, vibrant, but it also challenges itself and vulnerably strips itself down to bare bones in places, exposing the intricate inner core from where these sounds come.

Many of the songs on "Blue" come from some highly energized jam sessions. The band experimented with making this record in the style of the Rolling Stones and The Beatles, using the studio as a place to be creative. "Everyone just picked up an instrument and started playing. One of us would have an idea and someone else would start to embellish it which would inspire something else," explains Stephan. "There was no plan in making this record, except to make something that excites us."

"Blue" is a purely band-driven record, and in different ways each member of the band individually surpassed their previous accomplishments to shine on the new album. Says Jenkins, "In some ways, I would call this record 'The Dawn of Arion' because he got so involved in the making of it. He co-wrote two songs and got involved in the arrangements and played keyboards. Brad Hargreaves played drums with a power and abandon that inspired the rest of the band. He was into playing jungle rhythms on this record, rejecting the current trend in rock of using drum loops. Every drum hit, Brad played. "Confounding people is our natural state," says Jenkins. "It's not about finding other people's stuff, it's about finding something of our own."

Third Eye Blind has found something all their own. Crowds at concerts far exceeding expectations, cars driving across the country, tattoos, and hundreds of websites point to a passionate culture largely independent of media influence. "We have a direct conduit to the people who listen to our music that is not filtered through what other people say about it. When fans see us live, they see a dedication to reinvention and spontaneity. They are part of a physically demanding event," explains Jenkins. "It's that human element that comes from the spark between the band and the people. The music ignites it. It's all about us live." Third Eye Blind continues to embrace and expand its own space with the new album "Blue" just as it has from the very beginning 

CDNow.com

Falling between Hootie & the Blowfish and Live, Third Eye Blind's catchy and melodic post-grunge made the group's first single, "Semi-Charmed Life," into a hit in the spring of 1997. The San Francisco-based quartet consisted of Stephan Jenkins (vocals), Kevin Cadogan (guitar), Arion Salazar (bass) and Brad Hargraves (drums). After earning an English degree from the University of California at Berkeley, Jenkins concentrated on playing solo shows in the San Franciscan scene. He spent four years playing in local bands before beginning a solo career; however, shortly after he set out on his own, he decided to form a band. After several lineups failed to gel, former Fungo Mungo bassist Arion Salazar joined the group, which was now called Third Eye Blind. At one of the band's shows, guitarist Kevin Cadogan, a former student of Joe Satriani who later became involved in the northern California ska and punk scenes, introduced himself to Jenkins. Cadogan joined Third Eye Blind in late 1995, bringing along former Counting Crows drummer Brad Hargraves, as well. As Third Eye Blind was getting off the ground, Jenkins was earning major-label attention through his production of the Braids' cover of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody," which became an international hit. Shortly afterward, he signed a publishing deal, which was reported to be the largest ever for an unreleased artist. By playing the Bay Area frequently, Third Eye Blind cultivated a dedicated fan base, and the group's original 14-song demo attracted the attention of major labels. The buzz was continuing to build on Third Eye Blind when the group finagled their way to a prized opening slot for Oasis's April 1996 concert at San Francisco's Civic Auditorium. At the time of the concert, the group was unsigned, but following their well-received performance, the band became the subject of a bidding war. The band signed wtih Elektra/Asylum because the label offered the most artistic freedom, which included enlisting Jenkins as the album's producer. Upon signing to Elektra, he was offered a production deal to help develop new bands.Jenkins produced Third Eye Blind's eponymous debut, which was recorded in San Francisco with the assistence of Eric Valentine, an engineer who also worked on their early demos. Third Eye Blind was released in the spring of 1997, and by the summer, its first single "Semi-Charmed Life" had become a number one modern rock hit. Blue followed in 1999.
~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

RollingStone.com

Third Eye Blind, the four-man band from the Bay area, rehearsed the songs for their self-titled album in a warehouse in San Francisco's Chinatown. Frontman Stephan Jenkins, guitarist Kevin Cadogan, bassist Arion Salazar and drummer Brad Hargreaves list U2, Perry Farrell, Camper Van Beethoven and David Bowie as early musical influences. 
Their 14-track debut album was released on Elektra in the spring of 1997 and produced the hits "How's It Going To Be," "Graduate" and "Semi-Charmed Life." That same year the band reached rock 'n' roll nirvana when they were invited to play select dates on both the Rolling Stones and U2 tours.