Guitar Player
June 2005
Master Class

The Mesmerist

Kevin Cadogan shares the spellbinding open-tuned riffs behind Third Eye Blind and his new solo album Thousand Yard Stare

By Jude Gold

  Who  knows? Maybe it was because five days a week, its campus brought together one  of  the  most diverse, multi-cultural collections of 3,000 teenagers in the state  of  California.  Or  maybe  it  was  simple  genius trickle-down from theworld-renowned university just a block or two away, UC Berkeley. Or maybe it was that  creepy lead paint, asbestos, or whatever the heck it was they removed from the  walls  around the end of the decade. But for some reason, in the late ’80s, Berkeley  High  School was churning out phenomenal musicians (and probably still is  to  this  day)  at  an  astounding rate. For example, eight-string jazz/funk wunderkind  Charlie  Hunter,  gospel/soul guitar prodigy John “Jubu” Smith (Toni Tone Tony, Whitney Houston, Maze), modern rock virtuoso Geoff Tyson (profiled in the  June  1993 GP), Cake lead guitarist Xan McCurdy, and Grammy-nominated tenor sax  sensation Joshua Redman were just a few of the talented kids I met by being a student at that school.

 But  of all the gifted musicians roaming the halls of Berkeley High back then, I  wouldn’t  have  immediately  pegged  the  lanky  and  (at  the time) somewhat introverted  freshman named Kevin Cadogan I met in Classical Guitar class as the dude  who  would crack the code of mainstream rock stardom. However, by going on to  forge  one of the most unique, inspired, and truly underrated styles of ’90s rock  guitar—and  by  joining  forces  with  singer/producer Stephan Jenkins and selling  eight  million  albums  (and  counting)  as lead guitarist of Third Eye Blind—that’s  exactly  what  Cadogan  did.  Cadogan’s  jangly, orchestral, fully rockin’  open-tuned riffs interweaved perfectly with Jenkins’ haunting melodies, and tantalizing turns of phrase. For a few years there, this pair  of musical alchemists had the straw-into-platinum formula down, and theirs seemed  a  match  made in heaven. But it’s hard to say whether the two will ever collaborate again, because, simply put, there was friction—a lot of friction—and the  two  ultimately parted ways after just two albums. Though their differenceswere  largely  artistic,  they ended up saying their goodbyes through lawyers in lawsuits against each other that were ultimately settled out of court.

Cadogan’s  sterling  contributions  to  the  lexicon  of  modern  rock guitar, however,  remain, and, with possibly more custom tunings than Michael Hedges and Jimmy Page combined, Cadogan is about to show you how to play the flagship riffs from  Third  Eye Blind [Elektra] and his new solo disc Thousand Yard Stare [Loud Bang;  kevincadogan.com].  And if you’re like 90 percent of rock guitarists—that is,  you rarely deviate from standard tuning—then rejoice: You’re about to learn what those six tuning machines on your guitar’s headstock are really for.

Gorgeous
 Like a handful of rock guitarists at Berkeley High in the middle to late ’80s, Cadogan  was  taking  lessons  across town from a soon-to-be world famous guitar sensei  named  Joe Satriani. But while most kids seemed obsessed with becoming a black  belt  in Van Halen tapping, Malmsteen sweep arpeggios, Holdsworth  legato, and whatever else was the hottest guitar kung fu at the time—Cadogan was clearly a  different kind of player. By the time he was a senior, when most of the other rockers  were  still  shredding away like a noisy battalion of wood chippers, he was  the  guy  who would show up with stunning 4-track cassette recordings—fully realized  arrangements featuring lyrical themes, catchy hooks, and complementary timbres  that  would  stop  people in their tracks and render even the shredders silent.

  “Joe  was  very  much  a  great  teacher,  and  like so many other kids, I was extremely  lucky  to have him,” credits Cadogan. “But the speed playing that was so  popular at the time just didn’t move me the same way as the playing of, say, David Gilmour or The Edge. And I remember tuning up with Joe one day and asking, ‘Why  is  there  only  a  major  third between the second and third strings when there’s  a fourth between all the others? Why can’t I tune the guitar in perfect fourths?’  The  answer was something like, ‘You just don’t do that,’ and it made me  think,  ‘Wait  a  minute. Who says? Who says you can’t change your tuning to make  a  riff  easier  to  play,  or  to make a fretted note really stand out by retuning  the guitar so it’s played as an open string? Who says you have to play chords using the standard fingerings that everybody else uses?’ I’ve always felt a  calling  to  do  something uniquely my own on the guitar, and right away, the whole  breaking-the-rules  aspect  of  custom  tunings  made  the  guitar really exciting  for  me.  It instantly made me feel like my songs and my sound were my own. ”

To get a taste of that custom sound, try Ex. 1, the guitar theme Cadogan wrote for the never-released but often performed Third Eye Blind song “Gorgeous.” It’s in  the  tuning  just hinted at—perfect fourths tuning [E, A, D, G, C, F, low to high]—which  you  can get into by simply raising your second and first strings a half-step  from  standard.  The soul of this lick lies in the final two notes of bar  2,  a ringing open C and open F. Not only would this lick be more difficult to  play  in standard tuning, more importantly, it would lose its magical chime. This phrase also features some long stretches, so, if you’re in the mood to warm up on something simpler (but with a more elaborate tuning), why not play through Cadogan’s enchanted intro to…

…Narcolepsy
The  second  song on the gazillion-selling Third Eye Blind is in the rippling, full-sounding  tuning,  open-Dadd9  [F#,  A,  D,  F#,  A,  E, low to high]. From standard,  this  tuning  is achieved by lowering the second string a whole-step, the  third  string a half-step, and raising the sixth string a whole-step (which puts Dadd9’s 3, F#, in the bass). Like a big, fat, juicy piano chord, the tuning sounds  great  just  strummed completely open—which, as you’ll see when you play Ex.  2,  is  exactly the  inspiration  behind  Cadogan’s  shimmering  theme  to “Narcolepsy.”  FYI,  the  notes  in parentheses are open strings Cadogan strikes almost  by accident when playing the riff’s simple melody. They fill things out, sound  beautiful,  and  add  a bell-like quality—collateral beauty courtesy of a clever tuning.

 “This  tuning  reminds  me  of  a  lot  of  tambouras and other Indian instruments  that  are  designed  to sound great when strummed open; instruments that  sound  just  like  chimes  ringing  in  the wind,” notes Cadogan. “The fun part—and the challenge—comes in finding other chords you can create a bridge and a chorus with, like these, from later in the song [Ex. 3].”

Losing a Whole Year 
I  remember  you  and me used to spend the whole goddamned day in bed—it’s the intriguing  opening  lyric  to  Third Eye Blind’s “Losing a Whole Year,” and one deserving of a similarly intriguing guitar intro. The song’s open-F#m9 tuning [F #,  A,  C#, F#, G#, E, low to high], doesn’t disappoint. (From standard, you get there  by  raising  the sixth string a whole-step, lowering the fourth and third strings a half-step, and dropping the second string a minor third—that is, thre half-steps.)  It  is  not  only an interesting sound on its own, but this tuning also noteworthy in that it in no way hints at the song’s simple harmony and key. (As  you’ll  soon hear, the song is actually built on a basic IV-I-V progression in E.) To hear the fundamental E major sound of this tune, strike the E/G# chord in  Ex.  4.  If you can play this voicing, you can probably play the entire song intro  [Ex. 5] no sweat, as it requires little more than simply arpeggiating the same chord shape at the 7th, 2nd, and 9th, frets. Graduate “Another  thing  I don’t like about standard tuning is that it makes it nearly impossible  to  play licks where you barre a chord with your 1st finger and play ornamental  stuff with your other fretting fingers,” notes Cadogan, getting into open-D  tuning  [D,  A,  D,  F#,  A, D] by lowering his sixth, second, and first strings  a whole-step and dropping his third string a half-step (from standard). “For  instance, open-D frees up your fingers to do stuff like this [Ex. 6]. This is one of the riffs that really caught the ears of A&R people when we were first shopping for a deal.”

He’s  playing  his  catchy  intro  to “Graduate,” again from Third Eye Blind’s debut.  The  fun part about the main looped segment of this phrase (bar 1, which is  repeated  three  times)  is  that it’s entirely slurred—that is, it’s played using  only  hammer-ons  and  pull-offs,  entirely  without  a  pick. Be sure to re-hammer  that big, six-string G chord each time it comes around. “And the high F [fretted with the 4th finger] in those hammered-on D chords is important too,” adds Cadogan. “Don’t let it get lost, because it adds a lot.”

Thousand Yard Stare
True  to  form,  Cadogan’s  new  solo  album  is  full of inspired tunings and symphonic  sounding  riffs.  Since  we’re  still in open-D, here are two Cadogan themes from Thousand Yard Stare that share the same tuning: “So High and Solo” [ Ex.  7]  and  “Surfacing  Submarine”  [Ex. 8]. But one of the wildest tunings on either of albums covered in this lesson is the open Aadd9 tuning Cadogan uses to generate the sparkly arpeggios on “Painted” [Ex. 9]. The tuning is spelled E, A, E,  C#,  B,  E,  low  to  high, and, from standard, you get there by raising the fourth string a whole-step and the third string—get this—a tritone. That’s three whole-steps,  and  it  actually makes the string higher in pitch than the second string,  so  be  careful:  You  could  be risking a snapped third string if your strings are old.

 “In  general,  it’s  very important to have strings gauged on the heavier side when  you’re messing around with open tunings,” notes Cadogan who sometimes even has entire guitars (he typically plays MJ or Paul Reed Smith guitars) set up for specific  tunings. “I can’t imagine playing with anything less than an .011-.052 set.  I  don’t  usually  use  a  wound  G,  but sometimes that helps when you’re dropping  that  string  down in pitch a fair amount. Heavier gauges also stay in tune  better  when  you’re really banging on the strings—which I’ve always done, because  guitars just sound better when you hit ’em hard. I’ve always liked that sense  of  reckless abandon you see towards the guitar from British players like the  Keith  Richards  and  even  John  Lennon.  I like how there wasn’t too much reverence  for  the  instrument  in  that  music,  at  least not in the sense of traditional jazz or classical where there’s a ‘proper’ way to do things. I mean, my guitars get banged up.”

God of Wine 
 “Ay  Kevin,  so  what happened to the band?” It’s always a tough question for Cadogan  to  answer,  and  one  he  unfortunately  gets  all  the time. But in a Hollywood  bar  last  year,  the  question  was even more painful because it was coming  not  just from a friend, but from a personal idol—the Edge, whom Cadogan met while opening stadium shows for U2 a few years earlier. Before Cadogan could formulate  an  answer, the Irish guitar god  deftly divined, “Let me guess—musical differences?”

Though Cadogan still doesn’t have the pat answer for that question (“It’s like trying  to  explain  to  someone  why  your marriage failed”), he is doing great nonetheless—he  has  a family, he has released a new solo album, and he has just produced  the  self-titled  debut  of  SoCal rockers The Chemistry [on Razor and Tie]. But even his living room has a stunning view of the San Francisco bay that most  people  only  get from a 747, Cadogan naturally misses being on top of the world.  “I  don’t  have  the  occasion to go back and play these Third Eye Blind riffs  that  often,” he says as the spellbinding intro to “God of Wine” [Ex. 10]  pours  forth from his guitar. “It’s painful. It’s kind of like looking at a picture of a kid you lost custody of.”

The lick is in open-D5add9 tuning [D, A, D, E, A, D, low to high], which, from standard,  is  achieved  by  dropping  the  sixth,  second,  and first strings a whole-step  and  the third string a minor third (three half-steps). The notes in parentheses  are  subtle  ornaments  Cadogan typically plays but weren’t audibly played  on  the  recorded  intro  to  this  song.  Complementing this moody riff lyrically and melodically is Jenkins at his best. “Yeah he rocked that one,” agrees Cadogan. “The song has a real haunting quality, and the guitar and vocals interweave perfectly. When Stephan gets inspired, he really steps up to bat.” Then, with absolutely no intent to slam his replacement in Third Eye Blind, Tony Fredianelli, Cadogan postulates, “Maybe that was the problem with the last album and why it didn’t catch on as well as the first two—maybe the chemistry just wasn’t happening.”


HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
Aug. 22, 2002

Third Eye is hindsight; Cadogan looks ahead
By Tamara Conniff


Songwriter-singer-guitarist Kevin Cadogan was recently standing outside of the Whisky. He caught the eye of a number of fans who remembered him from Third Eye Blind. Amazed to see him standing there on the Sunset Strip, they asked how he was as if he were an old friend. They asked when they would get to hear his new music. When Cadogan was forced out of Third Eye Blind in 2000, he received more than 70,000 e-mails from concerned fans.

On Sept. 12, Cadogan and his new band, Bully, will take the stage at the Roxy in West Hollywood. For Cadogan, it's life coming full circle. He started out in small San Francisco clubs back in 1993, and by the late 1990s, he was playing giant arenas with U2, Oasis and the Rolling Stones. While the cards in Cadogan's hands have momentarily changed, his enthusiasm is unwavering.

"I just have to play, I just have to make music -- I'll play in pubs if I have to," Cadogan says. "I could not stop writing songs if I tried."

Cadogan co-wrote 70% of Third Eye Blind's commercially released songs, including the hits "How's It Going to Be" and "Graduate." With Bully (featuring drummer Robert Crommer and bass player Dan Bruce), Cadogan is combining his flair for writing pop hooks and trademark guitar style with an edgier rock backdrop.

"I think I've done some of my best writing over the past two years," Cadogan says.

Given that Cadogan was under the impression that he was 50% owner of Third Eye Blind along with lead singer Stephan Jenkins, it seemed impossible that he could be terminated from the band. He and Jenkins had agreed on a 50-50 partnership in 1994, when the band formed and the two started writing together, Cadogan says.

The band members who came on board thereafter were considered "hired players." When they signed their deal with Elektra Records in 1996, Jenkins and Cadogan's names were on the deal. But Cadogan says he later found out that five days before the signing of the record deal, Jenkins, without consulting Cadogan or the other band members, established Third Eye Blind Inc. and named himself as the corporation's sole owner and shareholder.

According to close associates of the band at that time, Third Eye Blind only had room for one star. Cadogan recalls one night in particular when tensions flared. During a show, a woman in the fifth row held up a sign requesting that Cadogan sing a song. Cadogan recalls that he bowed his head, glanced across the stage and locked eyes with Jenkins, whose hands appeared to be shaking. "My heart sank," Cadogan says. "I thought, 'This is just going to make things worse.' "
Elektra Records and Third Eye Blind declined comment for this column.


Many groups have embraced having more than one star -- Bono and the Edge, Keith and Mick. It adds to the ensemble's dynamic and gives fans more than one focal point to muse over. Unfortunately, Third Eye Blind was not such a band.
Cadogan filed a fraud and breach of contract suit in 2000. It was settled out of court two months ago, just one day before it was scheduled to go to trial.


With the case behind him, Cadogan has spent the past few months readying to shop his new music and relaunch his career. This time, he's taking the mike into his own hands.


"Maybe this was the path all along," Cadogan says. "When I was starting out in San Francisco, I had it in me. Now, it's time for it to come out."
NEW YORK TIMES
June 20, 2002

A Part of a Band as the Whole Band
By NEIL STRAUSS LOS ANGELES

What is a band? To most rock fans (and dictionaries), a band is a group of people playing music. But to lawyers and record labels, a band is something that exists on paper, a business relationship with owners, employees and sometimes even shareholders. Some bands function as a democracy, with each member owning an equal share and having an equal say.

Others are more like a monarchy (or in the worst of cases, a dictatorship), with one leader in charge of a bunch of hired guns. And then there's Third Eye Blind, the rock band that struck success in 1997 with the hit "Semi-Charmed Life."


The band, several people who worked with it said, was presented to some of its members and its associates as a democracy, but behind the scenes was set up as a corporation with a single owner and shareholder, its singer, Stephan Jenkins.


For the past two and a half years, its former guitarist, Kevin Cadogan, has been mired in a lawsuit with the band. In the suit, he accused the group of fraud, wrongful termination and breach of contract. On Tuesday, the day the lawsuit was set to go to trial in Federal District Court in Oakland, the parties reached a financial settlement and agreement, the terms of which have not been disclosed.


Two weeks before the settlement, however, Mr. Cadogan, who records and produces music in Berkeley, Calif., visited Los Angeles to discuss his experiences with Third Eye Blind. His stories showed just how complex the inner workings of a group can be.


Like many band relationships, the problems boiled down to the metaphor of who gets to hold the controls, who gets the credit for holding the controls and who gets paid for holding the controls. The band formed in Berkeley in 1994, shortly after a hip-hop duo that Mr. Jenkins was in broke up. Soon, he and Mr. Cadogan were working together as Third Eye Blind, agreeing, Mr. Cadogan said, to an equal partnership in the band and its earnings.


As record labels began to show interest, the mood began to change. Five days before the band signed with Elektra Records, Mr. Jenkins established Third Eye Blind Inc. as a corporation, naming himself as the corporation's sole owner and shareholder, without telling anyone else in the four-member group, Mr. Cadogan said.

The record deal, then, signed Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Cadogan as artists "professionally known as Third Eye Blind," but the payments were made to Third Eye Blind Inc., which in effect meant to Mr. Jenkins.
In fact, it wasn't until three years later, Mr. Cadogan said, that he even realized that he wasn't an equal partner.

Some of the band's business associates, however, feel that Mr. Jenkins deserved to control the group, since it was his vision and ambition that was largely responsible for its mainstream success.


Jason Slater, the original bassist in Third Eye Blind, said Mr. Jenkins often declined to record a good song of Mr. Cadogan's because it meant giving him credit.

"Stephan's been doing that same thing to everybody forever," Mr. Slater said. "He doesn't want to lose the façade of him being the musical genius, so he surrounds himself with people who are talented to pump himself up."


Right or wrong, Mr. Jenkins's musical and business instincts paid off, and the band's self-titled debut album went on to sell some six million copies


Business problems, however, weren't the only tensions within the band. "They were at odds with each other almost the entire time they were working together," Eric Valentine, a co-producer of the band's first album, said of Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Cadogan.

"They were two very strong personalities. But the stuff they collaborated on was my favorite of everything the band has done. That tension created a lot of good music but ultimately destroyed their relationship."


Mr. Cadogan said the breaking pointcame in 1999 when he discovered that Mr. Jenkins had issued every share in Third Eye Blind Inc. to himself. Mr. Cadogan then declined to sign a deal that would give the band $1 million to record an EP, or mini-album, until he and Mr. Jenkins could straighten out their affairs.

Around the same time, one of the band's early guitarists, Tony Fredianelli, was brought back into the fold, originally to play keyboards and guitar in concerts.


The EP deal was then renegotiated to exclude Mr. Cadogan, and on Jan. 18, 2000, the money was transferred to Third Eye Blind Inc. Exactly one week later, after a performance at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, Mr. Cadogan was told that he had been cut from the band, replaced by Mr. Fredianelli.

Mr. Cadogan said he returned to his hotel room to discover that, adding insult to injury, his hotel bill for the four-day stay had been put in advance in his name, not the band's.

The band's manager, Eric Godtland, did not return repeated requests for comment, and the spokeswoman for its record label was unavailable.


Since leaving the band, Mr. Cadogan said, he has not been paid a penny in royalties. Third Eye Blind is working on its first album in three years, due out this fall.


Looking back on his experiences, Mr. Cadogan, who now leads the rock band Bully, said, "We're taught algebra, geometry and calculus in school, but what we're not taught is basic law."


"I walked around as a kid with that shirt from the Clash tour that said `Know Your Rights,' he said, "but unfortunately I only saw the letters in the mirror and they were backwards, so I couldn't read what they said."


The lesson learned, he said, for fledgling rock stars is: "Learn about law, and about statutes of limitations.
"Then get good lawyers."

Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company
ALLSTAR
June 18, 2002, 10:00 am PT
Third Eye Blind, Kevin Cadogan Reach Out Of Court Settlement

Third Eye Blind and its former guitarist, Kevin Cadogan, reached an out of court settlement late Monday (June 18) in the latter's fraud and breach of contract suit, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

The details of the settlement are confidential.


Cadogan sued his former band members, management, attorneys, and record label in 2000 (allstar, June 23, 2000), just six months after he was unexpectedly kicked out of the band (allstar, Jan. 27, 2000). Cadogan accused the 3EB camp of breaking an original agreement to share 50 percent of any musical compositions and business dealings between he and singer Stephan Jenkins and transferring 100 percent ownership of the band to Jenkins behind his back.


As a result, Cadogan sued for unpaid record royalties, producer royalties, and shared mechanical and writer's royalties that had been allegedly withheld from him since his termination from the band.

A trial in U.S. District Court in Oakland, Calif., was set to decide the fate of the lawsuit this week (allstar, June 11), but it only lasted one day.


"I continue to be proud of the music I created as part of Third Eye Blind and many of the experiences I had with the band during our time," says Kevin Cadogan in a statement on Tuesday (June 18).

"Now that I can put this behind me, I'm looking forward to moving ahead with the full drive and focus that started my career in music in the first place, and I'm excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.

" A spokesperson for Third Eye Blind had no comment on the settlement at press time.


Meanwhile, Cadogan has formed Bully with bassist Dan Bruce and drummer Rob Commer with hopes of recording a new album in late 2002/early 2003.

A solo album of Cadogan's stuff is also expected to see a release on an independent label some time this year.


Third Eye Blind's latest offering, Crystal Baller, is tentatively due Sept. 24 on Elektra Records (but will likely move to October). The band begins a tour with the Goo Goo Dolls July 29 in Phoenix.-- Kevin Raub
MTV NEWS.COM
06.18.2002
Third Eye Blind Lawsuit Ends With Settlement

A resolution was reached Monday in ex-Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan's lawsuit against the band, its management and lead singer Stephan Jenkins.


Just after the nine-member jury was selected in U.S. District Court in Oakland, California, a settlement for an undisclosed amount of money was brokered between the band, its former guitarist and Eric Godtland Management, Cadogan said.
"A big weight has been lifted with the resolution of this case, and now I feel ready to rock," he said.


Spokespeople for Elektra Records and Eric Godtland Management had no comment on the settlement.
Cadogan shared songwriting credit with Stephan Jenkins on 16 of the 27 songs on 1997's self-titled debut and 1999's Blue, including the hits "Semi-Charmed Life," "Graduate" and "How's It Going to Be."
Following his split with the band in June 2000 (see "Third Eye Blind Split With Guitarist"), Cadogan filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the band and singer Stephan Jenkins, citing fraud, wrongful termination and breach of contract (see "Third Eye Blind Sued By Ex-Guitarist").


The ousted guitarist said that he was fired without warning because he didn't agree to a deal that would have yielded a $1 million advance to record an EP and start an Elektra Records imprint, while the other members did.

Following a show at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2000, Cadogan was left stranded in Utah with the hotel bill slid under his door, while the band was off to perform on "The Tonight Show" with Cadogan's replacement, original guitarist Tony Fredianelli.


Cadogan's new band Bully will soon be shopping for a label deal, while Third Eye Blind continue to work on their third album, Crystal Baller.

—Joe D'Angelo and Jennifer Vineyard
SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER
Monday, June 17th

Blind justice upcoming

Monday, Stephan Jenkins and his Third Eye Blind bandmates will head into an Oakland federal courtroom to answer a suit brought by their former guitarist, Kevin Cadogan.

Cadogan says he was fired after he repeatedly questioned the way Jenkins was handling the band's money. He says he has evidence proving Jenkins secretly set up business operations related to Third Eye Blind under his own name.

That's shady! Not only that, when Cadogan was fired, his "friends" slipped his hotel bill under his door and hopped on a private jet, leaving him stranded in Utah, of all places. Utah? That alone is worth a couple mil, wouldn't you say?
- Bill Picture

MTV Radio's The Morning Facts (Alt/Rock)
for Thursday, June 13, 2002

MTV MUSIC NEWS BRIEF WITH KURT LODER

CADOGAN VS. THIRD EYE BLIND... IN COURT MONDAY.

Going to court this Monday is the fraud and breach of contract case filed by former Third Eye Blind
guitarist Kevin Cadogan against the band and its singer, Stephan Jenkins.


Cadogan, a founding member of Third Eye Blind, filed the suit to recover his
portion of royalties from them since he was excused from the band.

The guitarist claims he was "unlawfully terminated and stranded immediately
following a Third Eye Blind performance in Park City, Utah on January 25th,2000.

" Since that day, he has been unable to collect any monies, despite the fact that he has writing contributions to the band's past two albums --
1997's Third Eye Blind and 1999's Blue.
Back to Articles
Los Angeles Times
June 12, 2002

CITY OF ANGLES
Their Day in Court
By GINA PICCALO AND LOUISE ROUG

Former Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan and former bandmate Stephan Jenkins will share an audience this month for the first time since Cadogan left the band abruptly in January 2000.

The venue: the Oakland courtroom of U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilkin.


Cadogan is suing Jenkins, the band and the band's manager, Eric Godtland, to recover hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid royalties for recording, producing and writing, as well as "shared mechanical royalties" for copyright ownership of the songs, according to Cadogan's San Francisco attorney Geoffrey Spellberg.


Cadogan filed a separate lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court in April seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in performance royalties, Spellberg said.


At the time of the guitarist's departure, the band had sold more than 4 million copies of its self-titled 1997 debut album. "The underlying theme [of the suits] is Kevin brought value to the band and then was kicked out," said Spellberg. "Then the band capitalized on that value .... The lawsuit is basically about those amounts that weren't paid."


Cadogan says he was unlawfully fired from the band when members left him in Park City, Utah, after a performance. The next day, Third Eye Blind performed on the "Tonight Show" with a replacement guitarist but allowed the broadcast of a band photo that featured Cadogan, the attorney said.


The case, which was filed in June 2000, is scheduled to go to trial Monday, Spellberg said.


Jenkins did not return calls for comment. In a March 2000 interview by The Times, he refused to elaborate on Cadogan's departure but said of his former bandmate: "He's a really good guitarist."
Back to Articles
Launch.com June 21, 2000
Former 3EB guitarist sues band

According to the Web site of former Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan (KevinCadogan.com), Cadogan is suing the band, singer/songwriter Stephan Jenkins, the band's manager, the band's lawyer and Elektra Entertainment Group.

His attorneys have named 10 defendants in a 10-count federal lawsuit that alleges fraud and breach of contract plus violations of the Lanham Act.


Cadogan asserts that Jenkins and co-defendants lied and intentionally deceived him in a carefully orchestrated plot to unlawfully exploit his intellectual property.

Cadogan co-wrote 16 of the songs on Third Eye Blind's multiplatinum albums, and has formed a new band, bully
Back to Articles
Published Wednesday, June 21st, 2000, www.rollingstone.com
Fired Third Eye Blind Guitarist Sues Band, Label


Ousted Third Eye Blind guitarist/co-songwriter Kevin Cadogan filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit Friday against his band, manager, lawyer and label in a San Francisco federal court.


His ten-count complaint, citing fraud, breech of contract and violations of the Lanham Act (the federal statutes governing trademark law), is expected to arrive in Oakland District Court by Wednesday, where it will be scheduled to be heard before Judge Claudia Wilken.

Cadogan told the San Jose Mercury News in April that he thought his firing from the band stemmed from his refusal to sign off on a deal that would give the band a reported $1 million advance to record an EP and start their own imprint via Elektra Records.


After disagreeing with 3EB frontman Stephan Jenkins over the deal, he found himself stranded in January following a performance at the Sundance Film Festival and replaced with guitarist Tony Fredianelli.

Cadogan, who has since formed the band bully, posted a statement on his Web site that claims "Jenkins and his co-defendants [manager Eric Godtland, lawyer Tim Mandelbaum and Elektra, among others] lied and intentionally deceived [Cadogan] in a carefully orchestrated plot to unlawfully exploit his intellectual property in violation of federal and common law."

In response, Third Eye Blind's management team, Eric Godtland Management, had this to say: "Bands with any degree if visibility are always targets of frivolous lawsuits. We have nothing interesting to say about this one."

Cadogan shared songwriting credit with Jenkins on sixteen of the band's twenty-seven songs on Third Eye Blind's two albums, 1997's self-titled debut and 1999's Blue. He also shared a win with Jenkins for Outstanding Songwriter at the California Music Awards in April.

A spokesperson for Elektra Records had no comment on the suit. Calls to Cadogan's management and Third Eye Blind's lawyer were unanswered at press time.

Jennifer Vineyard
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Published Wednesday, June 20th, 2000, www.kroq.com
Ex 3EB Guitarist Sues the Band

Ex-Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan won't be bullied by his former bandmates. Attorneys for Cadogan filed a lawsuit on Friday in a San Francisco federal court alleging breach of contract, fraud, and violations of the trademark-protection law the Lanham Act, aomng other charges.


The suit names more than 10 defendants, including 3EB frontman Stephan Jenkins and the band's label, Elektra Entertainment. In a statement released by Cadogan, the guitarist claims Jenkins and his co-defendants "lied and intentionally deceived him in a carefully orchestrated plot to unlawfully exploit his intellectual property in violation of federal and common law."


Cadogan was ousted from the "Semi-Charmed" band in January and replaced by Tony Fredianelli. Soon thereafter, Cadogan posted a note on his website claiming he was unexpectedly fired after a 3EB performance at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah and was left stranded in Salt Lake City.


A spokesperson for 3EB had no comment on the matter. The band is set to kick off its Red Summer Sun tour with Vertical Horizon in July.


Cadogan is currently recording an album with his new band, bully. The disc will be released on Cadogan's label, Tossed Out Records, a name which leads one to ponder "Bitter much?"

Jennifer Schwartz
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Published Wednesday, June 21st, 2000, www.vh1.com

After being sacked in January, ex-Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan is taking the band to court.

He's suing the group and seven other defendants, alleging fraud, breach of contract, and violations of the Lanham Act. According to a statement on his Web site, "Cadgoan asserts that Jenkins and his co-defendants lied and intentionally deceived him in a carefully orchestrated plot to ulawfully exploit his intellectual property in violation of federal and common law.

" Phew! Cadogan has since started his own band, Bully
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Spicy stories abound backstage at awards show
Tuesday, April 11, 2000, San Jose Mercury
CADACE MURPHY

I was all set to bring the hammer down on the California Music Awards, those erstwhile Bammies, which over the weekend staggered through ifs 23rd incarnation.

I was going to mercilessly rip emcee Johnny Steele, whose high point Saturday night at the Bill Graham Civic was when he called San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown a black version of the guy on the Monopoly box. And if that doesn't really sound tike a high point, then, oh yes, you accurately sensed the tragic irony of that statement.

Then I was going to skewer Bammie founder Dennis Erokan for teasing ticket buyers that Carlos Santana would appear. Santana did. Three times. On taped video segments. One was played twice.

Finally, I was going to launch into this holier-than-thou critic spiel about how the awards stopped being a prestige date when the Bay Area music scene started drying up, the Betty Ford Clinic started filling up, and the San Francisco Real World kids stopped showing up. Or am I the only one that still tears up at the memory of Rachel selecting a sexy dress for the 1994 Bammies, while Puck and Pedro duked it out over the peanut butter jar?

But I canât rip the show because this year's show had more soap opera backbiting drama than the Luke and Laura years on "General Hospital." Though some of that drama included tense dialogue between me and a Tower Record guy who threatened me after he discovered I was sitting in the wrong seat - he didnât exactly detail the threat, but I fear the next time I go to Tower I may, gasp! not get a receipt - most of it had to do with the resurfacing of ousted Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan, whose new band bully debuted.

For those not in the know, a quick recap: Last January, 3EB singer Stephan Jenkins, bassist Arion Salazar and drummer Brad Hargreaves ditched Cadogan after a gig at the Sundance Film Festival. Though the three remaining Eyes didnât explain the fourth's dismissal, Cadogan said Jenkins' issues of control and desire to cash in on a $ l million advance for a forthcoming album without first settling contractual differences within the band caused the split.

Boy, that made me want to ask if Jenkins really is as pompous, arrogant and money grubbing as he sounds. Since Jenkins had no comment, I asked Cadogan.

"Oh, absolutely. And more," said Cadogan, who rock-starred to the ceremony in a white stretch limo. "Stephan was like, 'Are you going to hang this up? This is a million dollars.' I was like, 'Man, how much money do you need?' " Cadoganâs band-mates, Cooldoe and Adam "Messiah" Johnson had stories of their own.

ÎI'm hired as a drum technician,"Said Cooldoe, "And then I have to wax Stephan's bike. And do his laundry. What was that?"

Johnson pointed out that "Horror Show." a song 3EB performs, is actually a rip-off of Lou Reed's " Heroin," but since Jenkins rewrote the lyrics and added a new bridge, he wanted 100 percent song-writing credit. Cadogan provided the punch line: "Stephan said, 'Hey, I stole it. It's mine.'

" The drama didnât end backstage. It carried out in front of the audience, when Jenkins and Cadogan jointly won as outstanding songwriters. Though Jenkins wasn't there, manager Eric Godtland took the podium to accept the award, much to the shock of presenter Eddie Money, who had no idea who the man was. Cadogan, meanwhile, was in the VIP room doing press.

"Unfortunately, Stephan Jenkins couldn't be here tonight," Godtland said "And Arion Salazar is someone who should have been nominated for this as well. He writes some of the songs, too." Talk about a Meow Moment. Not only was Cadogan originally recruited to he in the band because Jenkins wanted songwriting help, Cadogan has co-written 16 of 3EB's 27-songs body of work. Salazar has co-written two. Two is not "some."

Backstage Cadoganâs girlfriend and manager looked like she wanted to throttle Godtland. And heavens, she might have, if Cadogan hadn't been allowed to give an acceptance speech after the intermission.

"I was doing an interview and all of a sudden a guy with hair plugs and a goatee is up here accepting my award." Cadogan said. ãBut I really do appreciate this. And I really do thank all the fans for supporting me through this situation. You 're the reason I haven't allowed any grass to grow beneath my feet and keep going. Thanks all."

And if that wasn't a tear that threatened to leak out of the corner of Cadoganâs eye before he left the podium, then I don't know my soaps. Man, I can't waif for next year.

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Published Saturday, April 8, 2000, in the San Jose Mercury News
Ex-Third Eye Blind-er set to take stage

BY CANDACE MURPHY
Mercury News Pop Music Writer

JUST when tonight's Bay Area Music Awards were all but written off as a meaningless event -- two years ago the familiarly known Bammies morphed into the California Music Awards and last June the awards founding magazine, BAM, folded -- things finally got interesting.

Earlier this week, former Third Eye Blind guitarist Kevin Cadogan spelled out both his intention to play at the gala as well as what caused the rift between him and his former band.

Cadogan and his new band, bully, are scheduled to play two songs at the 23rd annual California Music Awards at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco. San Jose's Smash Mouth headlines a bill that includes Ledesi, Oleander and Stroke 9.

``We've been practicing up at my house,'' said Cadogan, taking a break at a cafe in Berkeley. ``We just got our first neighbor complaint last night. I was like, finally. We're not rockin' enough.''

Cadogan hasn't performed in public since his January dismissal from Third Eye Blind. His old band is tied with Rage Against the Machine for most nominations -- seven; Cadogan is nominated as outstanding guitarist.

No reason has ever been given for Cadogan's termination, even though he shared songwriting credits with front man Stephan Jenkins on 16 songs on the band's two albums.

``Stephan said in an interview that I was a `great guy,' and it was a `music biz' thing,'' said Cadogan, 29. ``And it was.''

The two had a tempestuous relationship for some time despite a record contract signed back in 1996, Cadogan said. Problems started when the band's lawyer set up a corporation in Jenkins' name without Cadogan's knowledge. At the same time, Jenkins was branching out, acting as the producer for a women's group, the Braids, and looking into starting other projects.

``He was looking into getting into some more glamorous things,'' said Cadogan. ``And that was like buying a boat with a friend, and then when the pink slip comes in the mail, finding out it's only in his name.''

Cadogan said things came to a head between the two when Elektra approached the group and offered a reported $1 million advance to record an EP. Cadogan refused to sign off on the deal, and Jenkins said he would go ahead and take the money without him. ``I didn't want to sign because I wanted to work out our legal position,'' said Cadogan.

``I didn't want to sign what is in essence a loan, be liable for that, and have Stephan go and set up a record company with it.''

Cadogan's stand resulted in his being stranded after the second of two gigs in Park City, Utah, as part of the Sundance Film Festival. Jenkins, drummer Brad Hargreaves and bassist Arion Salazar ditched Cadogan there and flew to Los Angeles to perform on ``The Tonight Show.'' Cadogan was replaced by Tony Fredianelli, one of the band's early members.

The band and the record company were asked to comment on the breakup. ``There's no comment on anything,'' Amy Meyer, tour publicist, said. ``They're gone. They're on the road.'' Jenkins has refused to comment on the situation in interviews promoting Third Eye Blind's ``Dragons & Astronauts'' tour -- a billing that causes Cadogan to roll his eyes and take a long drag off his cigarette.

After his ouster, Cadogan teamed up with former Third Eye Blind drum technician Cooldoe and backup musician Adam ``Messiah'' Johnson to form bully. The band's first album should be released in August on Cadogan's label, Tossed Out Records. Cadogan is looking forward to tonight's awards, and not just because it's bully's live debut. Cadogan will be the only representative of Third Eye Blind at the show, an interesting development should the fractured band win in the outstanding rock/pop album category for ``Blue.''

``Oh, I'm sure Third Eye Blind's manager Eric Godtland would do a video acceptance for the band, if it came to that,'' said Cadogan, adding that he wouldn't care if he weren't allowed to step on stage on behalf of Third Eye Blind. ``But I'm more excited bully is playing. As long as there's music in my head, I'm never going to be down. I believe in serendipity.''

California Music Awards Where: Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, 99 Grove St., San Francisco
When: 7:30 tonight Tickets: $30-$100;
available at Tower Records stores or through BASS, (408) 998-BASS
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Celebrity Fermented Presents
The Gaawanger, #1 in an irregularly ongoing series of booze-related madness
featuring drinks from famous folks

ForMen.com January 3,2000 by Spence Abbott

Delving into the sweet and tangy secrets of the Gaawanger

Picture this: it's an overcast Thursday evening and I'm making my way from San Francisco, over the Bay Bridge, to a well-known watering hole in the East Bay (I have decided to refrain from naming said establishment as Green Day, Rancid, and numerous other infamous local denizens are known to frequent this house of libation from time-to-time and their boozing privacy should be honored without question).

At any rate, on this night I'm meeting Kevin Cadogan, guitarist for Third Eye Blind. We were supposed to talk on the phone, but when I called his house his girlfriend said that he would much rather meet me in person, hence I find myself at the bar.

When I walk in, Kevin greets me by placing a tall, cool, drink in my hands. 'This is called a Gaawanger," he says matter of factly, while handing me the slightly opaque yellow beverage. I take a sip and a sweet, yet tart tang quickly assaults my mouth, fastly followed by a nice (and somewhat serious) alcoholic kick. "What's this called again?," I rasp as the alcohol trickles down my windpipe and makes my innards glow with that warm hard alcoholic fuzziness. "A Gaawanger," Kevin smiles back.

As we sit down in a vinyl booth, Kevin continues, relaying the history of this weirdly names beverage with all the aplomb of a vintage storyteller. "Gaawanger was a term invented by John Lennon used to describe what kids of the future would be playing today. There was this interview he [John Lennon] was giving with some feather-haired guy on the news and this guy asks Lennon what the future of rock-n-roll is, y'know if people were gonna be listening to the Beatles in 30 years.

And Lennon goes [here Kevin adopts his best Liverpudlian accent] 'Well I don't know. I mean kids, they're gonna be playing Gaawanger in 30 years so we wont know what....' Anyway, John went on some more about Gaawangers and such,. but I thought it would make a cool drink name, y'know? So I asked the bartender to invent a Gaawanger just completely based on that story."

So how long has the Gaawanger [the drink] been around? "About 10-minutes before you walked in," is exactly how Kevin put it when I asked him this very same question." So I'm tasting my first Gaawanger tonight, as well." [for the semi-historically accurate inclined, the Gaawanger was created on a Thursday evening in November of 1999 around 7:30 p.m.)

Now that you know the history behind the drink, it's high time we got to the bottom of what's in one. When I asked Kevin, "What's in a Gaawanger?' he replied "It's Gin, Grand Marnier, Pineapple Juice, and some freshly squeezed lime with just the right amount of pressure applied by Robin the bartender extraordinary. Robin's the sweetest girl in the world. She's great, so sweet."

So there's the story.
Now here's the recipe:
Here's everything you will need to make a tasty Gaawanger of your very own:
1 shot Grand Marnier
1 shot Tangueray Gin
juice 1/4 (fresh squeezed, baby!)
fill the rest of the glass with equal parts pineapple juice and ginger ale

Now drinking a Gaawanger with a member of Third Eye Blind is one thing, but road-testing the drink is another. To this end I enlisted the services of IGN For Men's head honcho Steven Horn, N64's Aaron Bolding, and IGN Movies Chris Bernier.

To make it even more interesting, we had the drinks mixed at another bar by a bartender who had no clue what we were ordering. Needless to say Steven, Aaron, and Chris are all now Gaawanger converts and we've all managed to convince our share of bartenders around town to whip up the tasty beverage for us. And why not? After drinking my very first Gaawanger Kevin boldly (and very seriously) told me "That's my goal. I want somebody to be able to walk into a bar in Kansas City and order a Gaawanger."

'Nuff said...now it's time to go out, suck down a Gaawanger or two and get your swerve on!

Spence D loves his Gaawangers shaken, not stirred.
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Angelfire.com-3EB - San Francisco radio rockers THIRD EYE BLIND enjoyed a charmed life with their triple-platinum debut. But can they avoid the sophomore jinx?
Interview by Spencer Abbott

Back in 1997, Third Eye Blind burst out of the San Francisco Bay Area and into the national pop music spotlight with a self-titled debut that yielded five smash singles-"Semi-Charmed Life", "Losing a Whole Yearä, "Jumper", "How's It Going to Be," and "Graduateä. Now, two years later, Stephan Jenkins (vox, guitar), Kevin Cadogan (guitar), Arion Salazar (bass), and Brad Hargreaves, (drums are poised to dispel the myth of the sophomore slump with their second effort, entitled Blue.)

While the bulk of Third Eye Blindâs debut was written in the Lower Haight region of San Francisco, the writing process surrounding Blue, was slightly more sporadic in nature, with the majority of it being written, according to frontman Jenkins, "in hotel rooms around the world." The album is decidedly more mature and eclectic sounding because of it.

The first single, "Anything," is a driving, crunching, guitar-laced affair that has found immediate acceptance on alternative and active rock stations across the U.S., proving that 3EB is not a one-, two-, or three-hit wonder, not a shot in the dark. GuitarOne recently caught up with Jenkins and Cadogan during the course of a day and got the scoop on the band's new record and the diverse sonic concoctions that fill its 13 tracks.

PART 2; DRINKS WITH KEVIN
Kevin was unable to make out lunch date, so he suggested that we meet in person at his favorite watering hole in Albany, just north of Berkeley.

Over drinks (the Gaawanger, a John Lennon-inspired mix of gin, Grand Marnier, pineapple juice, lime, and ginger ale that Kevin asked the bartender to create), we discussed his v


Q-This new album sounds way more diverse and eclectic than your debut.
A-Yeah, you can definitely hear the individual tastes of the band members on this album.

Q- It's sometimes hard to discern which parts are yours and which parts are Stephan's.


A-There are six songs where all the parts ore mine: " 1000 Julys." "Walking with the Wounded." " Camouflage," "The Red Summer Sun," "Darkness," and "Kiss Goodnight." Then there are some songs that I didn't really have much to do with at all, like "Never Let You Go."

" We had different studios operating at the same time, so while I was working on some songs, Stephan and Arion were working on other songs. When I finally heard "Never Let You Go" for the first time, it already had the main guitar part on it. So I felt like what was there was enough. "Wounded" and "1000 Julys" are the songs that I feel are the bust stuff I've done musically. "Camouflage" and "Darkness," too.

I'm just so proud of those four songs; I'm really excited about them. And I think "Wounded" is probably the finest example of Stephan and I working in our best together. It's probably the most cohesive song that we've done."

Q- Why is that?
A-The lyrics really hold together, and I think he captures the mood of what I brought to him in the music

Q- So you write your parts on your own, and then bring them to Stephan?
A-Yeah. Most of the time, I bring the music to him before he has the lyrics. His talent is in capturing the mood of what I'm doing. And I think that's why he enjoys playing with me. I think he knows that we're able to communicate on a musical level in a very unique way, which a lot of people are unable to do.

And the things that I'm very quick at don 't come so easy for him. And the things that I have to work hard on, he's very talented at doing.

Q- Is "Camouflage" your tribute to the Edge? There's a lot of harmonic work on it, and I understand that you became pretty tight with U2 while on tour with them.

A-"Camouflage" is my tribute to everybody, Iâm playing sitar, and there's a lot of other stuff going on there as well.

Q- What about the other tracks?

A-"10 Days Late" is an Arion song. "Slow Motion" is an interesting song because it was put on this record because of a lawsuit, which I didn't really know much about. It was a song that was written before I was in the hand, and it's the actual recording from about nine years ago. So I have nothing to do with "Slow Motion." But if you want to hear Kevin Cadogan, you have lo listen to "Wounded," "1000 Julys," "The Red Summer Sun," "Camouflage," "Kiss Goodnight." find "Darkness. " But on "Darwin," I have the lead line, which I'm really proud of.

Actually, "Darwin" is the hardest thing I did on this album. It doesnât sound like it's that impressive, perhaps, but if you try it, it's pretty hard to play that hammer-on thing with an open note at that speed. So I'm kind of proud of that. When I first started playing it, Stephan came up with the lyric about cells dividing, because he said my guitar part sounded like blood moving through the body. If you listen to hit lyrics, he sings: " The cells multiply and divide. " That's what I was talking about before - Stephan hearing a part and instantly being able to put words to what it sounds like. [Cells weren't] at all what I was thinking about when I came up with the part, but it fits.
"1000 Julys" is a great rock tribute song. I'm really proud of the riffs in there. The lyrics are great as well. Stephan really labored over the lyrics on that one. It took quite awhile for him to finish it.

Q- Do you remember the first song you learned to play?
A-The first song I ever learned was Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone." My mom subliminally force-fed me Bob Dylan when I was a kid.
I grew up with my mother and three sisters, and I was the youngest in the family. There was one radio and one record player, so my musical tastes were pretty much dictated by what my sisters were listening to, which was everything from Kurtis Blow to Abba. I was basically stuck with whatever was playing. But my mom listened to a lot of Dylan, so I started picking up just the songwriting, which was more about feeling and emoting than about actually creating perfect pitches and harmonies, Bob Dylan was about poetry.

Q- Stephan remarked that you were very orchestral in your approach to guitar.
A-That's kind of a good way of putting it. Yeah, I feel like my guitar is a little orchestra. I've got six strings to play with and I want to get as much out of those as possible. I'd like to have more than six.

Q- What kind of guitar do you favor?
A-My new favorite is the MJ Mirage Archtop. They're made by Mark Johnson, a local guitar company. They started out making semi-hollowbody, kind of Strat-sounding guitars. Now they have these Archtop that are just unbelievable. They're so beautiful. Really rich sounding and very airy. I feel like I'm talking about wine or something. One thing that I realized on this album which fans of guitar will probably be interested in, is that I had sort of an epiphany about my amps and guitars. How sad is that - to have an epiphany about your amps? But I decided that my whole philosophy of playing - because for much of the time I'm the only guitar player and need to fill a tremendous amount of sonic space with the guitar - is that I want to create open-sounding tunings, open chords, and the sense of a vast landscape; you know. I just want to paint a huge picture.

Q- Why not play a seven-string, or even a classic double- or quadruple-neck a la
A-Rick Nielsen? Well, I have a few double necks, and I plan to get into that, but that's for our Stonehenge period [laughs]. I have yet to break out the 12-strings, though.

Q- Back to your epiphany...
A-I was playing through these 4x12 closed-hack cabinets and using very saturated distortion pedals with 6L6s and tube rectifiers. But now I've switched over to open-backed combos, these 4x10s that allow the sound to project back, creating this kind of airy sound. And when you're using that in conjunction with a hollowbody guitar, you can get a very warm, airy sound. Itâs more like an obvious conclusion than an epiphany, which I should have come to a long time ago.
Feedback is a problem with a full-size hollowbody, though. I love the Epiphone Casinos, but I would never play one live because as soon as you step up on stage it just howls. But the MJ Archtop, because of the circuitry of its pickups, which I donât understand, has very little feedback, but you still get the resonance, the sound of the wood actually resonating.

Q- What about effects? How simple or elaborate is your setup?

A-One of the things that's fun about making a record is that you go around and collect weird stuff, like effects. So I found this cool company called Z-Vex. When I called them, the guy who makes the pedals picked up the phone.
That's how cool it is. And he hand-paints each one of his pedals. It's pretty expensive; but it's worth it. He makes some incredible, incredible pedals. There's this one pedal I used a lot on the record called a Sequa - very ingenious, It's like having 10 separate wall pedals, each with its own individual sweep in the envelope, which allows you to create these really cool loops. It's like being able to click each one of them on and off and different rates, so instead of a sweeping motion, you have a jarring rhythm motion. An example of that is the breakdown in "1000 Julys," where I'm doing a little Pink Floyd tribute. I actually used it quite a bit on "Camouflage." too.

Q- Since you brought up Pink Floyd...
A-David Gilmour is an extraordinary musician in that he can play the crap out of the guitar, but he plays so eloquently and each note is so beautiful. Like when he plays the solo on "Comfortably Numb," he'll hang on a note where most guitar players would try to fit in a certain quantity of notes, Gilmour just hangs on it and lets it sink in, right to the center of your spine. That's the kind of guitar playing that I really love. Whether you have great technique or not, you have to feel what you're playing.
It's all about feeling and not caring about what other people think. Maybe you don't know how to communicate with people in other ways, but you know how to communicate via your instrument. And David Gilmour is one of those people. He could do a lot more than he does, but he's like a poet who doesnât 't muddy his waters-you know, the old Nietzsche quote about poets who muddy their waters so as to appear deep? I think Gilmour likes a clean pond. You can see the Koi swimming in his pond.
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Third Eye Blind Rock Their Tits Off
JamTV May 6, 1999

Under cover of the cock-rockesque rubric Tittie, Third Eye Blind will preview material from the follow-up to their self-titled platinum debut tonight (May 6) at San Francisco watering-hole the Paradise. Assuming the songs don't send people running for the exits, the quartet will enter the studio next Monday to begin recording the new album.

This time around, guitarist Kevin Cadogan has written some of the songs, and by all accounts we can expect a slightly different direction for the band.

"It's going to be a guitar-driven rock record, longer songs, much less pop format," Cadogan explained. "But we're not going to get experimental with our second record, like the cliche shit.

We're going to stretch out a bit. We've got some really great songs. I'm really excited about them. I don't even want to play the old stuff anymore. I have a couple songs that I've written. We have nineteen songs that we've fleshed out, out of thirty ideas.

Over the next few weeks we'll probably whittle that to thirteen or fourteen.
" The lean, blond guitarist is coming into his own -- in more ways than one. Two weeks ago, Cadogan made the first overtures of reconciliation to 3EB's sworn enemy Green Day.

The two bands became adversaries after that little debacle at last year's KROQ Weenie Roast, when 3EB bassist Arion Salazar leapt onstage during Green Day's set and wrapped their bassist, Mike Dirnt, in a bear hug. Dirnt pushed Salazar aside and Green Day bodyguards stepped in.

Backstage, after the tussle, Dirnt was struck over the head by a bottle and ended up in a nearby hospital. Despite the earlier conflagration, 3EB strongly denied that their camp had anything to do with the incident. Green Day hired a private investigator to solve the case, but turned up nothing. Since then, the bands have had no contact, despite the fact that they live mere miles from one another.

But an opportunity for peace presented itself when Cadogan was in a Berkeley flower shop near his home buying a card for a fifteen-year-old boy who was stabbed with a screwdriver in a nearby town. The guitarist had read about the incident in the local paper and contacted the boy to ask if they could meet; he planned to give him one of the guitars he used on 3EB's last tour, autographed by the entire band.

"Since I grew up in this area, I can't stand hearing about any sadistic violence occurring," Cadogan said. "So I decided to hang out with this kid one day. I