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Lately I have been sitting in the confines of my apartment
reviewing material that I enjoy. I feel guilty. Instead of
reviewing all of the albums that pour my way, I have been hand
selecting items that I have been entertained by, thus, my
previous reviews have been nearly through the roof. At the
same time I feel honoured. I have been having a wonderful time
listening to music lately. Music has always inspired and
motivated me, but more so the past week or two than at any
time in my life. At this point in my life, music is more than
music. Music to me is a handful of important messages sewn
into a mix of melody and rhythm. But lately...oh man...lately
music has been life. Why am I droning on and on about this
personal revelation? Well I guess the point is moot, however
for clarifications sake, the albums, which I have recently
focused on or will focus on in the near future, are my life
blood. Expect absolute realism in my words, with honesty and
blatant expression pouring from every crack. This is not
intended to lend the impression that my previous reviews are
fluffed or irrelevant, instead they are written at a time when
music was just music. On we go...
Third Eye Blind cast themselves into the slot labelled 'Current
Flavour of The Month' when they dropped their debut way back
in 1997. Back when Kevin Cadogan still ran an amazing guitar
for the group. Back when they were in the limelight of nation.
Back when it was difficult to find a poor song. A month after
their initial drop the band failed at falling from the status
of being my current favourite. If anything, 3eb's self titled
gained momentum. I knew at this point that these guys would
always excite me with their approach to the music scene. Great
stuff, so I thought.
A few years passed and their sophomore album hit the shelves.
'Blue' again found the impressionism cast by Cadogan, Jenkins
and Co., but this time things were different. The band had
taken a major influential swing. This time finding a poor
track was slightly too easy and the overall loaded gun track
list was nowhere to be found. The album was still very good,
but it was not near the potential that we had all been graced
with back in 97. The band still had my respect, but I thought
that there was a chance that Third Eye Blind had hit their
sophomore slump, or so I thought.
The band geared up a tour and the advertising/promoting gig
was in the making. The band played here and there, eventually
leading them to a severe focal point. 3eb
found their way to the Sundance festival and
departed, a member short. Kevin Cadogan
had been left behind, he was no longer Blindman. The member
who had been an integral part in most of the hit singles from both their debut and
sophomore effort was no longer with the band. What the hell?
The news of his departure, or more like his dismissal, shocked
me. At this time I began using the internet to try and
investigate the matter, I found very little. Unfortunately, my
search did uncover an unpleasant fact. Stephen Jenkins had
dismissed band members in the past. I began to grow impatient
with the matter and placed Third Eye
Blind on the back burner. With Cadogan
being ousted and the
sophomore album average at best, my disappointment for the
band was at an all time high. The next album would be a real
piece, or so I thought.
So, here we are in 2003
(May 13) and Third Eye is back
in the spotlight with their new release, Out of the Vein (An
album title that was originally titled Crystal Baller). At
this point, Cadogan has been replaced by Tony 'the monkey'
Fredianelli, the guitarist for 3Eb way back when very few
people knew of their existence. Cadogan is off doing his thing
with his new band, once labelled Bully For You. Ironically,
the band consists of ex-Third Eye Blind members. But none of
that is important. What is important is the fact that a new
album is out with a brand new sound; a sound that is very
difficult, if not impossible, to define. Accompanying that
sound is a complete new approach that will either hook instant
fans or leave you wondering what went wrong. Fortunately I am
found up front and center within the first category, yet I
have been a fan since the get go.
In any event, this is an
outstanding album that exploits each and every member of the
band. Hargreaves, on the drums, can be heard laying down drum
beats/rhythms that fit perfectly. Fredianelli
and Salazar have the guitars and
can be found laying down their influence on the bands direction.
The guitars are often times wailing louder than before, in
relative terms of course. Jenkins can be viewed as the perfect
compliment to the instrumentation. Of course some of his
techniques do not sound text-book, it is hard to think of
hearing it any other way. Everything on the album flows
together beautifully. So beautifully that I would recommend
this to everyone out there. If you are human then you should
get a hold of this album and listen, listen close.
Without spoiling the album for all of those first time
listeners, I find it hard to believe that the band just now
learned how to add special effects throughout the disc, or at
least that is how it seems. The previous two albums have minor
tweaks embedded in their songs to enhance the experience, but
nothing compares to this endeavour. In fact,
almost every song has
special effects built in, so many that I initially found it
somewhat tacky. It has taken a few listens in order for me to
lose some of the tacky glow that shines brightly upon first
glance. It almost sounds as if they bumped the effect button
when they were recording and after that couldn't get their
fingers off of it. On some occasions I was like, Dang that
sounded smooth, but the next time I was thinking, 'why insert
that there?'. Just listen, you will see, more so if you have
listened extensively enough to their previous two set lists.
The addition of the oddities are not bothersome by any
stretch. You can live with them if you don't like them,
simple.
Here is a brief track by track:
Faster will be the first new 3EB track that spills from your
speakers, if you are following the order of course. The noise
omitting from your cabinet will not drop your jaw, but it will
introduce to the boys new sound rather well. If you are new to
the band, you will find the track uplifting, satisfying and
fun. These guys know how to pour everything they have into
their music and it shows, especially on Faster. 5 Stars.
Blinded is the first single from the album, however I am
rather disappointed that this track was chosen. The sound
spilling from this track would exemplify to listeners that
this album will be more-of-the-same. This track sounds as if
it could have been placed on 'Blue' amidst the rest of the
mediocre tracks. The track is not poor, but it is nowhere near
as good as what most of the other tracks have to hold. 3.5
Stars.
Forget Myself doesn't get the blood boiling either, instead it
may cause your heart to stop with boredom. If the album could
only have one weak spot then this would be it hands down. The
track is not flashy and does not travel far from the beaten
path. Once again, this could have been found on 'Blue' and
would have been best left off of this album, in my opinion.
This track was entirely too dull and had no bright
highlights. 1 Star.
Danger picks up where Faster left off as Jenkins and Co. get
back on track. The track is upbeat, enthusiastic, and filled
with adrenaline. This was also the first occasion where I
really noticed all of the background vocals, a nice touch. 4
Stars.
Crystal Baller is one of the best tracks on the album, if not
the best. What is so important about the track? The overall
sound, the display of flexibility, the depth, everything mixed
in to one complete package. The guitar rift is not only
catching, but it plays the vocal style like a puzzle piece. I
had a difficult choosing what exactly lured me to this track,
but so far (20 listens) I have been unable to put my finger on
it. I am sticking with the overall sound and layout of the
track. 3eb shows that they can put out a miraculous track with
or without Kevin Cadogan. 5 stars.
My Hit and Run weighs in slightly longer than the previous
gem, but quality-wise it falls a little short. Crystal Baller
left a mighty large pair of shoes to fill and sadly this track
is not able to fill such a feat. While the track has no poor
qualities attached to it, it seems due for the addition of
something else. A few times during your listen you feel as
though things are gaining momentum, yet each time it seems to
come up short of the finish line. Good idea, but just not a
hit. 3.5 Stars.
Misfits is out of the ordinary to say the least. The sound of
crickets at night welcome you to the experience, later to be
filled with a smooth Jenkins conversing with one of those
common background voices. At times you can hear voices coming
out of everywhere, an interesting idea. This
is another tune that
can be credited with an excellent overall feel. There we so
many aspects of this tune that I enjoyed. If you enjoy this
half as much as I have so far, you will have gotten your
moneys worth from the album. 4.5 Stars.
Can't Get Away follows suit once again showcasing and
signifying several attributes of the band, such as: Depth,
Style, Lyrical Importance, Flexibility, etc. At first, the
track may seem average, but once things are in full swing and
you have encountered all of the zany hooks you just may slant
that first impression. Alike most of the other tracks, I am
finding it near impossible to find things that I dislike. 4.5
Stars.
Wake For Young Souls takes a walk on the softer side, slower
side, the bare bones side. The track is full, but the general
sound is more laid back, as they take the easy going approach
to a sound is often times forgotten about. I was more excited
about this track than any of the others simply because of how
different it seems in contrast to the others. This is four
plus minutes of greatness. I am not sure if this will ever
seen single status, but I choose it as a suitable candidate. I
would not compare 3EB to John Mayer, but this may be as close
as it gets. This track is not easily forgotten. 4.5 Stars.
Palm Reader finds itself in the 10th spot. The track lost my
attention at times, but at no point did I feel as though this
was not a gallant effort. The track is probably the most basic
of all of the upbeat tracks, but it does contain some
excellent guitar work. I found it too bad that the only thing
that I came away appreciating was the brief guitar solos. This
was just a lot of on-n-on that didn't end until it was too
late. 2 Stars.
Self Righteous sure adds a weird spin to things. First off, it
began similar to a rap skit with Jenkins and some chick up and
commenting. After chatting and giggling she began singing the
chorus. Suddenly she was no longer present and Jenkins was off
singing to a rift in a dark gloomy fashion,
while the background sounded of the bongos. This track is a prime example to the unorthodox singing
style, however it works and unbelievably it does grow on you.
This track is a real slow mover, but the addition of the
woman's voice is uncharacteristic and appealing. I sat back in
my chair upon first listen in order to conclude
that this track
may be one to skip in the future, but after giving it a few
more moments of my time I noticed something. This track is a
sleeper. I predict many people shrugging this tune off, while
the importance of it goes unnoticed. Give this a chance, even
if you are not impressed from the first time around. 4 Stars.
Company blasts off, shooting into hyper mode almost
immediately after its start, maybe too quickly. The transition
between super slow to fast forward was a rough one; one that I
have still not adapted to. I have found certain parts of
Company to sound excellent, but for the most part I have not
enjoyed what I have heard. To put it plain and simple, this
song doesn't fit my style. Some will love it, some will hate
it. I am in the middle, but much closer to hating it than
loving it. 2.0 Stars.
The ending track is more of a two part track, with a hidden
track being attached after the conclusion. Good Man is also a
slow roller, but more electrified than the previous creepers.
I enjoyed the lyrical message more than the track, yet I still
find myself repeating this every now and again. I would
classify this as one of those be-in-the-mood type of songs. I
am sure some days will get more listens than others. I don't
think that you will find anything overly exciting, but what
you will see you will generally enjoy. 3.5 Stars.
The bonus track is an unofficial bonus track, a track that has
no title. While you may not set this aside from the rest of
the tracks I find it hard to believe a band that does so much
right from song to song. Each song sounds loaded to capacity,
but never so full that it sounds ugly. This track in
particular emphasises excellent song writing.
The
basics of this track seem
nonexistent, yet the execution sounds perfect. 4.0 Stars.
--
Yes I know, I sound like the typical 3EB fan boy, but I really
stick behind every word in this review. One thing that I have
failed to mention adequately
is the lyrical content. At one time I would have known
3EB for their quirkiness in their
messages; messages that seemed to have been encoded in ways
that meant more to them on a personal level than a listeners
perception. Thankfully the band has evolved their ways into
incorporating relate-able song lyrics. In fact, the lyrics in
Out of the Vein are amazingly well written. I am not branching
out to say that I understood what every track meant, however,
each of the tracks made sense in some way. I am sure that if
you pay close enough attention that you will do the same.
I am sure that this album will get criticized by several
breeds, but unless they have given this album a chance to
succeed in their mind then I am paying no attention. Some will
label this album as more wish-wash from a diluted music pool
that has seen no great artists since zeppelin and the likes of
more classic rock artists (or several other artists that I
have not listed), some will complain that it falls into the
other sell out garbage that is overabundant nowadays, some
will just say that it sucks.
BUT!! to all of those who are
willing to listen, this album is extraordinary on many levels.
The lyrical content is vivid and refreshing, while the
instrumentation is not breathtaking, but more so exhilarating.
For a band that releases once every few years, this album will
be the perfect album to flush the anticipation that has been
building since your first listen to 3eb. I had been awaiting
this album for several months and feel as though this is
exactly what I was in need of. From the star rating above it
may look as though the album has a few severe blemishes, yet I
do not see it in the same light. In relative terms, a few
tracks are unable to get it done, but overall this is one
healthy track list. I donate 4.5 Planets and feel as though 5
Planets would not be exaggerating. I recommend this to
everyone out there, black, white, short, fat, etc. Get Out of
the Vein, listen, and enjoy this for the next several months,
until we have another new album to deal with.
Track Listing:
01. Faster
02. Blinded
03. Forget Myself
04. Danger
05. Crystal Baller
06. My Hit And Run
07. Misfits
08. Can't Get Away
09. Wake For Young Souls
10. Palm Reader
11. Self Righteous
12. Company
13. Good Man
XX. Bonus
Ramz Rating:
4.5 out of 5 Planets
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