Today's Lunch Hour: Shut Up, I Love Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind - Don't Believe A Word from Sneak Attack on Vimeo.
THOUGHTS FROM MY LUNCH HOUR by Andrew Daniels
Another lunch hour, more tasty treats for you to snack on. Welcome to the second installment of Thoughts from My Lunch Hour. Today I'm chowing down on turkey and cheddar and scoping the brand new video from 90's alt-rock heroes Third Eye Blind. Shut up, I love 90's alt-rock heroes Third Eye Blind. They get unfairly labeled as one hit/album wonders (97's self-titled, the "doot-doot-doot" song) but in reality wrote three really great LP's of honest, confrontational and uncoventional pop music and still amass a larger-than-cult following. I think they've got a fourth great record in them with the impending release of Ursa Major, which finally hits stores August 18 after a five-year layoff. Here's the pretty cool new video for lead single "Don't Believe A Word," which despite its political bend is the band's most accessible song in years. (Even if the bridge is kinda laughable.) Stephan Jenkins may or may not be a douchebag, and I may or may not be interviewing him in a few weeks, but dude can pen some choice words and melodies. Yeah, the stop-motion-happy clip is above, you guys. More assorted thoughts after the jump.
So remember when I told you yesterday that the title of Brand New's new one was And One Head Can Never Die and we were all perplexed together? Now AbsolutePunk is reporting that the band decided to change its mind and has re-named the disc Daisy. I mean, whatever. The name is just fine. They could call it Shit Sandwich and I'd still be ALL OVER IT. Good band is good band. Check back tomorrow for the album's new title, I'm sure. Still is out 9/22.
OH. On September 29, Anti- is releasing The Swell Season's Strict Joy. You know, the pushing-40-Irish man (that would be Glen Hansard of The Frames) and the much younger maybe-not-even-20 Czech beauty (Marketa Irglova) who used to date and star in the Oscar-winning indie darling "Once" but then broke up and now just make gorgeous music again. Those guys. I am officially stoked on it.
Hey PR folks: Did you read the letter that lovable asshole Bob Lefsetz sent yesterday? It was an interesting piece in which the industry guru declared his contempt for press releases. As usual, some parts of his diatribe are spot on and others are way off base, but it's certainly an interesting read. I wonder how many press releases he got following the e-mail. Read it here.
Just found out that I get to attend (and live tweet) the Bob Dylan show at Coca Cola Park in Allentown next Tuesday on behalf of my newspaper. Pretty sweet. I forget who it was - maybe Vince? - who once said that seeing Dylan is like seeing the Dalai Lama. You don't really enjoy it, and you can't really understand it, but it's basically a rite of passage. Who's seen Dylan? Anything I should watch out for?
Another blog shoutout: The Singles Jukebox. Basically a collection of great writers discussing the merits of new singles pervading the undergound and mainstream. Sometimes the focus is too much on R&B and hip hop, but I dig a lot of what these cats have to say.
Head P4K honcho Scott Plagenhoef reviewed the new Discovery LP today - gave it a 6.8 - and he's pretty much dead on. That record is very top-heavy. Starts out with undeniably strong summer jams and then entirely falls apart midway through. Still, it's got a couple of certified iPod bangers, and that's good enough for a carefree side project.
Ok, I'm outies, but here's a last plea to Vote Victorino! Get the Flyin' Hawaiian into the All Star Game. One hour left, sports fans. I'm off to enjoy a three-day weekend in Ithaca, NY. It's gorges.
Dictated but not read by Andrew Daniels at 3:28 PM
Labels: Bob Dylan, bob lefsetz, brand new, daisy, Discovery, New Video, phillies, third eye blind, thoughts from my lunch hour