Third Eye Blind to land at EAA

Third Eye Blind - Deep Inside Of You

The Dublin-raised guitarist, with Third Eye Blind since 2010, didn"t know anything about the band when he agreed to join.

Third Eye Blind(Photo: Stephen Albanese)

OSHKOSH - Kryz Reid, a guitarist born and raised in Dublin, accepted an invite to join his buddy"s band in the U.S. in2010.

He knew very little about the group were they called Three Doors Down? or was it Three Blind Mice? but all Reid cared about was getting to play with his friend, drummer Brad Hargreaves, for a living.

"I went and learned all the songs by ear by listening to the records," said Reid, now in his seventh year playing alongside Hargreaves. "And then about four months later,when I did kind of the first big gig with them in Los Angeles at Loyola (Marymount)University, there was a huge crowd and they were all singing along and I go, "Jesus, Brad"s band, theyre pretty big.""

RELATED:Former Seals to make big leap at AirVenture

RELATED:AirVenture show to honor Pearl Harbor

Having grown up in Ireland, Reid had somehow made it through the late 1990s and early 2000s without getting acquainted with the music of Third Eye Blind.

And it wasn"t until after he"d agreed to join the band that hitslike "Semi-Charmed Life," "How"s It Going to Be," "Jumper" and "Never Let You Go"came into his life. It didn"t take long for him to learnhow impossible that soundsto many music fans on this side of the Atlantic.

"I know that sounds amazing to everybody in America," he said. "I was home (in Ireland) even like last summer. ...I was home for a couple weeks and I ran into a mate I hadn"t seen in years and he was like, "What are you up to now? What are you doing these days?" I said Im in the states, you know, Im in a band. "Whats the name of the band?" "Were called Third Eye Blind.""

"Cool, cool," the friend said. "Have you got a demo?"

Third Eye Blind, who"ve sold more than 12 million records since their breakthrough self-titled debut in 1997, land in Oshkosh Mondayto play the opening night concert at EAA AirVenture. The show immediately follows the afternoon air show on theBoeing Centennial Plaza.

Since the multi-platinum"Third Eye Blind," the band"s output includes four more studio albums, including 2015"s "Dopamine." The lineup has been shuffled that"s how Reid jumped in back in 2010 but two constants have remained Hargreaves and the band"s singer and primary creative force, Stephan Jenkins.

"I didnt know who Stephan was," Reid recalled. "It"s funny, years later I realized I"d seen Stephan on "MTV Cribs." After Id known him for probably fouror fiveyears, one day Im just looking at him and I go, "MTV Cribs!" It"s bizarre but even when I watched that I didnt know who he was, justsome guy in some band."

Third Eye Blind has re-energized in recent years, solidifying its lineup and changing course after Jenkins announced in 2012 that the next album would be the band"s last. "Dopamine" arrived last summer and already Jenkins and company are finishing up an EP that likely will land before the end of 2016. Reid said they"re already plotting another EP after that.

They"ve also loaded up the tour itinerary for the summer, including stops at major festivals like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza,Outside Lands, Reading and Leeds. As they near the two decade mark on their most widely-known songs, the band may be getting a boost from a little late "90s nostalgia. That allows them to play to the broadest of crowds where, for instance, many of the people at the show have gathered to see an air show first and a concert second.

"Theres always a group of what we call super-fans who will be there at these shows," Reid said. "They work it out. They have this amazing community amongst themselves where they all chat and talk and they get together and they pool the car rides, they fly places and rent houses for the weekend the highlight of the weekend is the show."

This time around, the wide-swath audience that"ll take in the AirVenture gig might get a little bonus surprise. One the locals might appreciate, at least.

"We have a song about a girl from Oshkosh actually," Reidsaid, "(It"s) called "Sherri is a Stoner." Its about this girl that was dating one of our crew guys before. She started as this regular-type girl, house-wifey type, and she was a nice girl and all this but she liked to smoke weed."

"She actually came out with us on tour with us for a few dates to work merchandise because we needed a few extra hands. And we were on stage in soundcheck and she walked across the venue the venue was empty and Stephan started singing "Sherri is a stoner." I just started playing these chords and we wrote this song, "Sherri is a Stoner." We went into the studio and we just loved it so much, Stephan wrote a whole song lyrically after all that. "From Oshkosh, Wisconsin" is actually the lyrics. Well probably play that."

Shane Nyman: 920-996-7223, snyman@postcrescent.com or on Twitter @shanenyman

If you go

What: EAA AirVenture opening night concert featuring Third Eye Blind

When: Performance follows the afternoon air show on Monday

Where:Boeing Centennial Plaza, EAA AirVenture grounds, Oshkosh

Cost: Free with AirVenture admission

More: EAA AirVenture runs July 25-31 in Oshkosh. Other concerts include Survivor (July 26) and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (July 29). For more information, visiteaa.org/airventure.

Read or Share this story: http://post.cr/2ab3FtG

Source: http://www.postcrescent.com/story/entertainment/music/2016/07/20/third-eye-blind-land-eaa/85884230/