Best National New Act

Third Eye Blind

Signifying Like Better than Ezra in 1995 or the Gin Blossoms (remember them?) in '94, Third Eye Blind went from Nowheresville, USA (actually, San Francisco), to the magical realm of Heavy Rotation (on radio and MTV) in less time than it takes MTV to hold auditions for a new VJ. The band's self-titled debut CD on Elektra, which continues to spawn singles a year after its release, is in many ways an unremarkable album, with its slicked-up modern-rock production (grainy guitars, pounding drums, and the occasional desperate vocal signifying but not embodying angst and alienation) and the kind of safely solid songwriting that draws on everything from U2 to Jane's Addiction, Pearl Jam, Counting Crows, and any other purveyor of '90s alterna-anthems, without really referring to anyone in particular. Fortunately for Third Eye Blind, there are half a dozen other acts out there -- Matchbox 20, Our Lady Peace, and Days of the New come immediately to mind -- doing much the same thing with only half the skill and even less of the emotional depth that singer-guitarist-producer Stephen Jenkins poured into Third Eye Blind. In other words, Third Eye Blind are great at what they do -- even if what they do is merely pretty good.

-- Matt Ashare