ROCK 2000

TThird Eye Blind

Pop

Singer/Guitarist: Stephan Jenkins

Band: Third Eye Blind

Bio: U.C. Berkeley graduate Jenkins and his hip-pop quartet burst out of San Francisco in 1997 with a chart-topping, self-titled debut that both glorified and reproached the sex, drugs and rock and roll lifestyle of the trust- funded hipsters.

Why he is the future: Formerly half of a rap duo, Jenkins has the ability to meld subtle hip-hop influences in to radio-friendly, sing-along pop songs with huge hooks. But Jenkins is also the total package- good looking, cocksure and clever- and he uses it all onstage to help breathe new life into a flagging art: the big rock show, � la the Who and the Clash.

Guitar Approach: In addition to a 1959 reissue Les Paul and a 12-string Rickenbacker, Jenkins plays a custom-made Paul Reed Smith. "It has no volume or tone knobs, because 'd only crank them all the way up. It is no net pickup, because I only use the bridge puckup. It has one switch: On."

Signature Song: "Semi-Charmed Life"

Quote: "I just laugh when I hear people say rock is dead. I go, "Yes, its a bloated corpse and there's a miasmal stench rising off it, and we're all necrophiliacs in a snuff film." Rock is a perfect for, like haiku. It's cheaper to make than movies and moe readily available than theater. It's going to continue to evolve, because it deals with people in transition; rock will always be the soundtrack to the time in their lives when they rebel against the standarts and morals they've been given and forn their own identity."

GW Advice: Third Eye Blind would do well to follow a path similar to that of their heroes, the Clash and the Police, by continuing to break down the delineations between rock and hip-hop, and adding dancehall or dub to their guitar soundscape.