Third Eye Blind guitarist living a semi-charmed life

Lead guitarist Kryz Reid isn’t one for keeping up much via electronic devices, by his own account. He sometimes doesn’t check his email, though surely he checks for details on concert dates for his band, Third Eye Blind.

“I’m not the most digitally glued-in person,” said Reid, a night owl, offhandedly during a late-night phone call from his home in San Francisco in early November, a few days before leaving for Tokyo. “I don’t even carry a phone all the time with me.”

He’s a lot more likely to get motivated by music. When Brad Hargreaves, a good friend and fellow musician, asked him whether he’d be interested in joining his pop-rock band about six years ago, Reid was happy to oblige — even though he didn’t know much about the group.

He flew to Maui for a private gig as an audition.

For the better portion of the week, the band went off surfing before rehearsals, he said. Not Reid, though.

“I dressed the same as I always did,” said the native of Ireland, who is prone to wearing black. “With the exception of flip-flops.”

The singer and bandleader seemed to enjoy himself during the island time, Reid recalled, bringing out a bottle of wine during an especially nice, acoustic version of the band’s song “Don’t Give In,” and stopping another rehearsal to watch a whale breaching off in the distance.

Reid took to carrying a notebook around with him to jot down ideas as they came to him.

The show went well, as did the visit. After the band’s performance, the singer turned to Reid and said, “You got the gig!”

And that is how Reid learned after the fact that he had joined a popular American band named Third Eye Blind and that the well-known singer was Stephan Jenkins, an outspoken artist.

“I got the gig on a Saturday, and then I went on tour for the next 11 months,” said Reid, who was based the first two years in his hometown of Dublin.

“I was constantly moving,” he said. “Then I moved to L.A., which was so hot, and that’s fine for a weekend. And then I moved to San Francisco.”

IT’S SAFE to say that Jenkins might not be enjoying the latest election results. Jenkins, who is politically minded, tends toward writing progressive lyrics, dating back to when the band first formed in 1993. Some of their more obscure songs, such as “Non-Dairy Creamer,” a song partially about two gay Republicans, as well as as the subject of “being real versus fake,” attest to Jenkins’ left-of-thinking lyrics.

Third Eye Blind was booked to play a private show in Cleveland this summer that coincided with the Republican National Convention. As it turned out, the audience contained many Trump supporters.

“The reaction for Trump was palpable,” recalled Reid. “I remember looking at Brad. The band completely changed the set and added ‘Non-Dairy Creamer.’”

A back-and-forth exchange went on between Jenkins and the crowd, with some reports describing Jenkins as taunting members of the audience. The next day, talk of the incident was trending on Twitter, with even more back-and-forth between Jenkins and some concertgoers.

“I don’t have a dog in this fight, being European,” said Reid. “Most of us sat back and laughed — it was just incredibly insane and bizarre.

“In the band we have similar values, and some feel stronger than others, but Stephan is really up on it.”

WHEN ASKED about Jenkins’ reputation in the public eye, Reid, who has known Jenkins now for six years, said, “I’m not sure I would know his reputation. … There are stories and stuff. But Stephan is more humble than anyone else I’ve met. He’s endlessly creative.”

The two have developed a side project, a mock band named the Dazzleships.

“It’s a daft little thing, with banter,” said Reid. “Silly English voices. We did a secret, little gig in February this year in San Francisco.”

When the crew came into the small chapel where the show was booked, the band gear had “Third Eye Blind” emblazoned on the side of it. And the small, secret show wasn’t so secret, after all.

“The place was completely filled up,” said Reid with surprise. “I don’t think the crowd got it. They just thought we dressed differently. We were supposed to be this crap band from the U.K.”

Nonetheless, the crowd was treated to songs off the EP “We Are Drugs,” the band’s latest, released in October.

He and Jenkins even had Twitter handle names for their alter egos in the Dazzleships, though the accounts were ultimately yanked for coarse content, said Reid.

REID HAS many stories to share, including the tale of Third Eye Blind’s show last November at The Republik. Only 299 people were allowed inside because the venue’s compliance with fire codes hadn’t been updated.

“All the rest were left outside,” said Reid in disbelief.

The next day, after announcing an impromptu concert at Kaimana Beach Park through Twitter, the band played a free, acoustic show.

“We played under a tree,” said Reid, with a small laugh before wryly adding, “I hope it goes better this time.”