BLIND LOYALTY DESPITE MEDIOCRE PERFORMANCE.

Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer

There is no truer place for a 30-something to feel among the ranks of the geriatric than at a Third Eye Blind concert.

Oh, we were there at the Greek Theatre where the San Francisco-born band brought its Red Summer Sun tour for an energetic but largely forgettable set Thursday night, but we were greatly outnumbered. To the right: the barely and not-quite legal, celebrating the dog days of summer with beer after $5 beer. To the left: the preteen ``Buffy''-watching set who could probably tell you exactly which episode of ``Dawson's Creek'' first featured the band's anthem ``How's It Going to Be.'' To their right: permissive parents who, no doubt, had some explaining to do when guitarist/lead singer Stephan Jenkins introduced a song with ``Oh my God, she's 10 days late'' or made musical reference to having ``some blow to share.''

Still, all groups seemed to get in a party mood as the band and its two opening acts - Vertical Horizon and Nine Days, virtual sound-alike bands, each with a top-40 hit - got things fired up. Third Eye Blind, the evening's headliner, finally took the stage at a curfew-challenging 9:35 p.m. Its stage was a psychedelic assemblage of ramps overlooked by a giant Amazonian mask with glowing eyes.

Jenkins, a natural showman often sporting an Edwardian coat and top hat to match, was all over that stage. And off it. ``These seats are getting in the way of our fun,'' he declared a few songs into the set. ``So I'm coming in.'' Which he did, taking a perimeter tour of the theater and ending up halfway to the nose-bleed level, where he led the crowd in a sing-along version of the suicide-themed ``Jumper.'' It's still the band's best song and an evening highlight.

The band, which included drummer Brad Hargreaves and guitarists Arion Salazar and Tony Fredianelli, divided its set evenly between songs from its 1997 self-titled debut album and the November-released ``Blue.'' The songs are still largely about drugs, sex and relationships present and failed. Lyrically, Third Eye Blind has yet to top the tongue-twisting surrealism of its first hit, ``Semi-Charmed Life'' (no easy number for a sing-along).

But good luck making sense of any creative lyrics underneath the rumbling bass line and pounding drum beats. Not that it matters. The expectation was for a rousing light and sound show of familiar pop tunes delivered by eye-friendly singers. And that's exactly what the audience - ages 9 to 35 - received.