After threatening to become the Spin Doctors of the late '90s with "Semi-Charmed Life" and disinterring the bones of Jane's Addiction on "Graduate," Third Eye Blind has found its own voice. Unfortunately, on a disquieting proportion of this second album, that voice is the most wretched falsetto since the last Smurf revival. (Check "The Red Summer Sun" or "Deep Inside Of You" for the most extreme Axl-Rose-attacked-by-groin-seeking-ferrets damage.)
Aside from that irritant and some dullish riff-raff on which "blue" turns to gray, this is bracing stuff. Like many modern rockers, First Eye Stephan Jenkins likes to use his catchy passages sparingly; unlike most, he's undeniably gifted at concocting them, and they brighten up most of the songs here, from the compact, punky opener "Anything" through the basic rockerama of "1000 Julys" and "Never Let You Go" to the semi-charming psychedelia of "Camouflage" and the nonfalsetto portions of "The Red Summer Sun." Jenkins also demonstrates a rapper's knack for assonance (juxtaposing "castle walls" and "basketballs" to good effect).
In going for a less-polished sound without sacrificing the hooks, Third Eye Blind has found a promising trail to blaze--though, vocally, it should definitely take the low road.
