Sometimes, you just want to talk about a thing. This is one of those times. I just want to talk about my love of this one album. Third Eye Blind’s first album, self-titled, released in early 1997. I feel like I literally became an adult while this album was on repeat.
Back in the day, before iPods and iPhones and other various forms of MP3 music, we had CDs. And we carried around a Sony Discman. And it said it had anti-skip technology, but that was a damn dirty lie! But I digress. My point is, I didn’t own any CDs that I could listen to straight through without hitting the “next track” button… except one. You guessed it. Third Eye Blind’s self-titled album.
This was one of those CDs that I could put into my anti skip sony diskman portable CD player on repeat for days and days on end. Sure, I had my favorites, but each song struck a nerve with me at some time or another, and every song’s lyrics still live in my mind and heart to this day.
I was young… puberty was a bitch, my parents had divorced, I hated my stepdad and my mom just had a baby. Life was less than appealing in those days. So, I spent a lot of time listening to music, feeling ways about stuff, and just generally being a melancholy, apathetic, aloof, angsty teen. This album seemed to somehow put me back together when I was in pieces, sooth my life anxieties, yet it also has that edge to it that would metaphorically scream, “fuck yeah! I’d be mad too! parents suck!” just when I needed it. What follows here is a track list of the only album that I love 100%, and sort of a brief ode to each song.
Losing a Whole Year – The resounding first line of this album: “And I remember you and me used to spend the whole god damned day in bed”… one of my favorite lyrics to scream at the top of my lungs! This song had an upbeat riff to it, even though the lyrics were decidedly your standard alternative fare.
Narcolepsy – “I can feel this narcolepsy slide into another nightmare.” This song is a good for teen angst. “There’s a demon in my head that starts to play a nightmare tape loop of what went wrong yesterday, and I hold my breath til it’s more than I can take, and I close my eyes and dream that I’m awake.” Incidentally, I can remember thinking it was ironic that both track 1 and 2 have to do with sleeping or losing sleep or being in bed because I listened to this a lot through my headphones when it was my turn to do my brother’s midnight feedings when he was a baby.
Semi-Charmed Life – Here it is, the quintessential song that people bought the CD for. A great song that, for me, has continued to be a good listening experience. It’s one of those songs that most people my age just have to sing along to. “I want something else to get me through this semi-charmed kind of life…” unknown to me at the time, the song is about drugs. I was an innocent child and when I think back to that innocent nerd kid singing these lyrics and not knowing what I was saying, I have to laugh. The part where he says, “and the four right chords can make me cry” is another favorite line of mine. So true.
Jumper – “I wish you would step back from that ledge my friend; you could cut ties with all the lies that you’ve been living in.” This song was kind of a sleeper hit. A long time after the album came out, after I already knew all the words to every song on it, they started playing Jumper on the radio. Odd timing, but it was cool with me. Then they overplayed it, like the radio ALWAYS does, so it was a little jaded for a while. It’s really a great song though. I knew a pathological liar in high school who was really a good guy deep down inside, but he literally kept everyone at arm’s length because he was such a liar. I always think of him when I hear this song… I wonder where he is these days.
Graduate – One of the harder songs on the album, this one feels good when being a standard angry teen or reckless teen or just plain feeling like you’re not moving forward in life. Awesome guitar riffs here, and the raw almost-yelling vocals hit the right spot every time for the times I wanted to just fucking throw something, but didn’t because I didn’t want my mom to be mad at me. :/
How’s it Going to Be – The third and final “top 40” from this list, this is another song that the radio ran into the ground for a while. But what an awesome song. I had lots of breakups with this song as the soundtrack, and for that matter, I had several ruptured friendships and other teen drama bullshit that went along well with this song.
Thanks a Lot – A little more of a punk beat to it, but it’s not too hard. “I woke you up and I slit the throat of your confidence”… man it’s hard to beat lyrics like that. This song drips sarcasm and I just love it.
Burning Man – This one is a neat song, with a cute and catchy riff that has always reminded me a little of a Sugar Ray song. It’s not that it’s so unlike the other songs on this album, but it does have it’s own distinct rhythm.
Good for You – “All I wanna do is be there for the things that you’re going through…” With it’s underlying sexual references and slightly shallow lyrics, if I had to cut a song on the album, I suppose this would be it. But to be honest, I still love it. It’s still a good song. It’s just that there’s nothing particularly memorable or specifically awesome about it. But it’s solid.
London – Love this one. This one has plenty of emotions running through it, from “I don’t wanna go to London” to “I wanna get my hands on you” and “I know just what’s on your mind”, and even “we’re no good for each other”. This song reminds me of some friends I had in school that were FWB and it ended up ripping their hearts out over and over and over again. I always thought the whole FWB thing was overrated, personally.
I Want You – Another fave. This one just feels right, when you’re at the dance, and you see the person you think is just the shit standing across the room, this song comes floating through your mind. “You do, you do, you do… you make me want you. I can’t get enough.” It’s a very nice love/lust song that’s not at all sappy or jaded. I still love it.
…and so we come to the last 3 tracks on this album, which are, collectively, quite possibly my favorite songs ever. (EVER? Yes. Perhaps.)
The Background – I shed a lot of tears to this song. Ohhhh the feels. “Everything is quiet since you’re not around. I live in the numbness now, in the background… the plans I make still have you in them”. I felt this way about several friends and relatives that I lost over the years. This is really, truly, completely, such a great song.
Motorcycle Drive By – “And there’s this burning, like there’s always been. I’ve never been so alone, and I’ve never been so alive.” “There’s things I would like to do that you don’t believe in. I would like to build something, but you never see it happen.” These lyrics sit right with me, as I’ve always been a loner and although there are a ton of people in my life that I love, there’s always this burning to do the things that I want to do, but others don’t believe in it. “I go home to the coast, it starts to rain, I paddle out on the water alone. I taste the salt and taste the pain but I’m not thinking of you again.”
God of Wine – This song is in my top 10 list of favorite songs of all time. It is absolutely woven into my soul. “I walk home alone with you and the mood you’re born into. Sometimes you let me in, and I take it on the chin.” “She takes a drink and then she waits, the alcohol it permeates, and soon the cells give way; it cancels out the day.” I just can’t get enough of this song.
I really hope you enjoyed this sick sad inner monologue about how awesome I think this album is, even though I’m pretty sure it was just another alt rock 90’s album to most people. Check out some of the songs and let me know what you think! Alternatively (ha pun), if you have an album that you listen to all the way through without skipping tracks, I wanna know!
-T. Ham
New Nostalgia 