The popular band from the late 1990s and 2000s will play OU's MemAud on Friday.
After two months of touring and a brief hiatus, Third Eye Blind is ready to return to the stage — and the band’s first stop is Athens.
“We can be playing literally anywhere and if the crowd is into it and we’re playing well, then it’s just magical,” Brad Hargreaves, Third Eye Blind’s drummer, said.
Third Eye Blind, a rock band formed in the ‘90s known for its hits “Semi-Charmed Life” and “Jumper,” is kicking off the Performing Arts and Concert Series at 8 p.m. Friday at Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium. Tickets are on sale for $55 for the first 10 rows and $35 for the remaining seats.
After taking a rest and allowing new ideas to percolate, Hargreaves said he and the band are looking forward to providing a high-energy show for the audience.
“Certain songs feel really good on certain nights for unknown reasons so you can be playing a song you’ve played a thousand times but it’s particularly good that night for some reason that I don’t even understand,” Hargreaves said.
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The show will include songs from the group’s latest album Dopamine along with older hits, Hargreaves said. The band created its latest album with the idea of reaching out to general radio listeners, but the 12-song album still creates a mood similar to the atmosphere of the group’s concerts.
“We try to (play) a nice retrospective of our albums,” Hargreaves said. “I don’t look at it necessarily as what songs we’re playing, but what effect did the songs have when you play them on the crowd.”
Hargreaves said each song builds onto one another with the hope of creating an exciting climax to end the show.
The band appeals to both a younger and older demographic, which can make for an interesting show, Andrew Holzaepfel, senior associate director of the Campus Involvement Center, said.
“For us, it’s an opportunity for the students looking for something to do the first weekend,” Holzaepfel said. “We’re making an intentional effort to try to do some things earlier in the semester to give students (an) opportunity to do things on the weekend right out of the gate.”
Students seem excited and tickets have been selling well, he said.
Andrew Guidarelli, a freshman studying aviation, plans on attending the show. He said he’s less familiar with the band’s current work but enjoys the songs from the ‘90s.
“I’m not a huge fan of their music, but I know of them and a few of their songs,” he said. “I dont really have anything else to do on a Friday night.”
Seryn, an ide-folk pop group based out of Nashville, will open for Third Eye Blind. The four-man band incorporates different sounds including guitars, ukuleles, accordions, banjos and more.
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