SHOWS / / Third Eye Blind @ Red Hat Amphitheater – June 17, 2017

Photos and words by Colleen

I may not play organized sports anymore, but the best artists make me feel part of a team. Strangers, friends and artists come together for a show, and to get a win, we have to give it our all. Third Eye Blind is among the best of captains. Out of the eleven times I’ve seen them, we’ve never lost a game. This was no different Saturday night in Raleigh, North Carolina where the band and fans alike came together for the Summer Gods Tour, celebrating Third Eye Blind’s twentieth anniversary of its self-titled, debut album.

The band drilled through 22 songs with incessant energy, while a crowd of all ages and backgrounds gave it right back. As I gazed into the crowd, I understood each person jumping, dancing, shouting along and showcasing unwavering devotion to the music at hand. When I discovered Third Eye Blind’s entire catalogue circa 2010 (yes, that late) no other catalogue had felt that close to the sounds inside my brain. I hope you all find your sounds, or continue a search to find them. I digress.

Frontman Stephan Jenkins leaped, jumped and tumbled for two hours (for real, the crew tapes down a stage-sized mat for such feats), putting my high school plyometric workouts to shame. To cap the memorable night, right before “God of Wine,” Jenkins gave a final heartfelt send-off.

“This is like my life song…and I think this song just came from absolute, total desperation. Sometimes when you’re in that state I’m just like ‘I might as well just absolutely live completely in the truth,’ and I’m really really glad I did, and I hope the same for all of you.  Thank you for loving us, thank you for keeping our music alive.”

Third Eye Blinds’s latest EP, We Are Drugs, is out now via Mega Collider Records. Buy it here. Make sure you see the Summer Gods Tour and buy tickets here.