Amazon.co.uk Review
Signed to a major label and sweeping into the US Top Ten with their first single (the overplayed "Semi-Charmed Life"), this Bay Area band were ripe targets for those snipers in the alternative rock world who complain about bands not paying their dues. The truth is that 1) 3EB (as their merchandise proclaims them) probably never imagined a hit of that size and 2) it's not one of the best songs on their debut album. Their melange of
Smashing Pumpkins, The Edge-style guitar and collegiate hip-hop yields much better results with the piercing tones of "Graduate" and the lyrical playing style evident in most of their songs. Far from being just hype, 3EB have actually produced a better-than-average record for the American alternative rock market with very few weak moments.
--Tim Perry
CD Description
This San Francisco band's first album is a study in contradictions, presenting heavy, often melancholy, themes in the guise of catchy, tuneful power pop. The irresistible single "Semi-Charmed Life" is just one example of Kevin Cadogan and Stephan Jenkins' agile lyrical stylings. The delirious tempoaptly reflects both a high feeling and a sense of desperation, of things spinning out of control.
The album is chockfull of searching lyrics set against a background of lush, rhythmic music. "How's It Going To Be" has a palpable sense of nostalgia and loss. The funky "I Want You" expresses a yearning for connection: "Children love to sing but then theirvoices/Slowly fade away/People always take a step away/Fromwhat is true/That's why I like you around/I want you".