10 Perfect Soft Rock Albums Of The '90s
7. Third Eye Blind - Third Eye Blind
In a post Kurt Cobain world, the rock scene could go in either one of two directions. You could either hop on the train of nu metal with bands like Korn tuning their guitars down and singing about their inner angst, or you could go the route of pop punk and get in touch with the more bratty side of your sound. Third Eye Blind did neither, and ended up with one of the greatest pieces of California sunshine of the decade.
Which is strange considering the fact that almost none of the songs on here are exactly kid friendly. Here we have songs like Semi Charmed Life that were about meth addiction and group sex, all set to a tune that sounds like it should be soundtracking some high school comedy movie. The irony of it all wasn't lost on fans though, who sent this record into the stratosphere, eventually spawning singles like Jumper and Losing a Whole Year with the perfect balance of rock and roll grit and pop smarts sprinkled in.
When Stephen Perkins does decide to take it down a notch though, he can really touch your soul on songs like How's It Going To Be, as he tries to come to grips with what happens when he's left on his ass after his girlfriend leaves him. The sound of these songs might be lighthearted, but just because it sounds softer doesn't mean it can't pack a heavy punch when it wants to.