For whatever reason, I’ve been on a ’90s kick lately. It started when I got Pearl Jam Twenty on Netflix (which was awesome, by the way), continued when HBO kept showing Titanic last week, and came to a head last night when I saw Third Eye Blind at Rams Head Live.
This was the first time I had seen the band in more than a decade and, besides newer songs on the setlist and shaggier hair on frontman Stephan Jenkins, not much has changed. Jenkins and company ripped through an hour-and-a-half long show, which started with “Thanks A Lot,” off the band’s self-titled, and most successful album, which the set heavily relied on (with tracks like “Losing A Whole Year,” “Jumper,” “Graduate,” and “Motorcycle Drive-By”). Other highlights included the poppy “Crystal Baller” and new favorite “Bonfire.”
One big difference was Brad Hargreaves’s extended drum solo during “Jumper” that ended up turning into a mini-electronic dance party. That, paired with Jenkins throwing out glow sticks to the crowd during the set, made it seem like Third Eye Blind is trying to appeal to the next generation. Seeing as a majority of the sold-out crowd was in their late 20’s to early 40’s, that is probably a good idea. Jenkins also announced that the band is about to go back to San Francisco to work on its fifth studio album.
After a brief pause, the band came back out to predictably play “Semi-Charmed Life,” an obvious crowd favorite. The set ended with “God of Wine,” the final track on their self-titled album. The entire show was a fun experience—albeit mostly for nostalgic reasons (I may or may not have listened to “Motorcycle Drive-By” on the way to work this morning). But, if Third Eye Blind wants to appeal to an entirely new generation, it might need more than drum solos and glow sticks.