Thanks to TikTok trends resurrecting decade-old (and older) pop-punk and emo hits and spreading them like wildfire to a new surge of listeners, there has been a nostalgic Noughties emo revival. Between the majorly sentimental lineup of the When We Were Young Fest and bands like My Chemical Romance, Paramore, Thursday, Blink-182, Sunny Day Real Estate, and others, snapping out of hiatus and flooding stages once again, it should come as no surprise that Pierce the Veil is rejoining the ranks.
Sad news to report that former Third Eye Blind bassist and Snake River Conspiracy founder Jason Slater has died, according to TMZ and Blabbermouth.net. His daughter, Alyssa Carlson, told the site the 49-year-old musician and producer passed away on December 9th, from liver failure at a hospital in Maui, Hawaii. Apparently, he kept this a secret from his family until recently. Slater formed put Snake River conspiracy in the Bay Area in 1999 with singer Tobey Torres and released an EP, a full-length Sonic Jihad (Reprise Records), and four singles. He put the band on hiatus when his producing career took off, producing four albums Queensrÿche including Operation Mindcrime II, and albums by Earshot, Enemy, and Slaves on Dope. Several musicians commented on his passing. Continue reading
Consistency can be admirable. So in that respect I can tilt my hat to Third Eye Blind who after 22 years and 5 albums still sound, well, uh, like Third Eye Blind. What that means is exclusively up to you.
It’s not like you needed that that shocking spoiler in the first paragraph. At this stage of the game, I don’t think anyone is expecting for Dopamine (Mega Collider) to rewrite the Third Eye Blind playbook. Main songwriter and frontman Stephen Jenkins continues to follow his muse and compose tunes about past relationships and substance abuse in that mildly 90s post-grunge style with just a dash of mild balladry.
And it’s probably with the more ballad leaning songs where Dopamine feels the dullest. ‘All the Souls’ is just straight up saccharine sweetness and empty calories. While ‘Blade’ never gets around to going anywhere. And hey, it’s cool. Public demand doesn’t seem particularly high for another ‘Jumper.’
On the more ambitious and experimental numbers like ‘Everything is Easy’ and ‘Exile’ is that Jenkins and his cohorts start to come alive most alive. The keyboards and atmospherics add fresh dynamics to the material. However it’s about showing restraint as well. The Queen-like ‘Get Me out of Here’ quickly gets way too awash in corniness and bombast for anyone to approach with a straight face.
And for those who prefer the Third Eye Blind sound from the Clinton/America Online era, ‘Rites of Passage’ feels like it would be right at home on their 1996 eponymous debut.
Although a little too long at 47 minutes, Dopamine, for the most part is a respectable slab of radio rock for fans of similar fare like OneRepublic or Imagine Dragons. Sure to musical elitists that’s more insult than compliment, but like I said before: what that means is entirely up to you.
6.0/10
HANSEL LOPEZ
K.Flay is streaming the music video for “Can’t Sleep” from her debut album Life As A Dog below. She will be supporting AWOLNATION on the road this summer, as well as Third Eye Blind and Dashboard Confessional for a handful of dates.
K.Flay confirmed U.S. Summer Tour dates:
Jun 06: Shoreline Amphitheater – Mountain View, CA (Live 105 BFD)
Jun 11: The Hollow (presented by EQX) – Albany, NY
Jun 12: Rock & Roll Hotel – Washington, DC
Jun 14: Knitting Factory – Brooklyn, NY (Northside Festival)
Jun 18: Mod Club – Toronto, ON (NXNE w/ Betty Who)
with Third Eye Blind & Dashboard Confessional
Jun 19: JBL Live at Pier 97 – New York, NY (w/ Third Eye Blind & Dashboard Confessional)
Jun 20: Penn’s Landing – Philadelphia, PA (w/ Third Eye Blind & Dashboard Confessional)
Jun 23: LC Pavilion – Columbus, OH (w/ Third Eye Blind & Dashboard Confessional)
Jun 25: DTE Energy Music Theatre – Detroit, MI (w/ Third Eye Blind & Dashboard Confessional)
Jun 26: FirstMerit Bank Pavilion – Chicago, IL (w/ Third Eye Blind & Dashboard Confessional)
with AWOLNATION
Jul 05: Garrick Centre – Winnipeg, MB (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 07: Union Hall – Edmonton, AB (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 08: Flames Central – Calgary, AB (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 11: Larimer Lounge – Denver, CO
Jul 13: Enso – Tulsa, OK
Jul 14: Club Dada – Dallas, TX
Jul 16: Drunken Unicorn – Atlanta, GA
Jul 19: Egyptian Room – Indianapolis, IN (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 21: Cabooze Outdoor Plaza – Minneapolis, MN (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 23: House of Blues – Chicago, IL (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 24: House of Blues – Chicago, IL (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 25: Sporting Park (Buzz Beach Ball 2015) – Kansas City, MO
Jul 26: Sokol Auditorium – Omaha, NE (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 28: Aggie Theatre – Fort Collins, CO (w/ AWOLNATION)
Jul 29: The Loading Dock – Salt Lake City
Jul 30: Knitting Factory – Reno, NV (w/ AWOLNATION)
Aug 01: Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles, CA (w/ AWOLNATION)
Sep 05: Bumbershoot – Seattle, WA
Sep 18-20: TBD Festival – San Francisco, CA
Sep 26: Pygmalion Music Festival – Champaign, IL
Sep 27: MidPoint Music Festival – Cincinnati, OH
K.Flay on Twitter
K.Flay on Facebook
Third Eye Blind and Dashboard Confessional will be teaming up for a North American summer tour in 2015. Confirmed dates are below.
May 29: Jacobs Pavillion at Nautica – Cleveland, OH
May 30: Farm Bureau Insurance Lawn at White River Park – Indianapolis, IN
May 31: PNC Pavillion at Riverbend Music Center – Cincinnati, OH
Jun 02: Walmart AMP – Rogers, AR
Jun 03: Chastain Park Amphitheater – Atlanta, GA
Jun 05: House of Blues – Lake Buena Vista, FL
Jun 06: Klipsch Amphitheater at Bayfront Park – Miami, FL
Jun 07: St. Augustine Amphitheatre – St Augustine, FL
Jun 09: Red Hat Amphitheatre – Raleigh, NC
Jun 10: The Uptown Amphitheatre at NC Music Factory – Charlotte, NC
Jun 12: Foxwoods Resort Casino/Grand Theater – Mashantucket, CT
Jun 13: Stone Pony Summer Stage – Asbury Park, NJ
Jun 14: Maine State Pier – Portland, ME
Jun 15: TD Echo Beach – Toronto, ON
Jun 17: Pier 6 Pavillion – Baltimore, MD
Jun 18: Blue Hills Bank Pavillion – Boston, MA
Jun 19: JBL Live at Pier 97 – New York, NY
Jun 20: Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing – Philadelphia, PA
Jun 25: DTE Energy Music Theatre – Clarkston, MI
Jun 26: FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island – Chicago, IL
Jun 28: The Cabooze – Minneapolis, MN
Jun 30: Sumter Amphitheater – Papillion, NE
Jul 02: Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion – Woodland, TX
Jul 03: Cedar Park Center – Cedar Park, TX
Jul 04: South Side Music Hall – Dallas, TX
Jul 06: Uptown Theater – Kansas City, MO
Jul 09: The Fillmore Auditorium – Denver, CO
Jul 11: The Joint – Las Vegas, NV
Jul 12: Comerica Theatre – Phoenix, AZ
Jul 17: Vina Robles Amphitheatre – Paso Robles, CA
Jul 18: Harrah’s Rincon/The Events Center – Valley Center, CA
Jul 19: Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre – Irvine, CA
Jul 21: Idaho Botanical Garden – Boise, ID
Jul 22: Marymoor Park – Redmond, WA
Jul 23: Cuthbert Amphitheater – Eugene, OR
Jul 25: The Masonic – San Francisco, CA
Jul 26: The Masonic – San Francisco, CA
