ARION SALAZAR
ARION GABRIEL SALAZAR
(PRONOUNCED UH-RYAN)
D.O.B. ~ AUGUST 9,1970
ARION SALAZAR IS THE GIFTED BASSIST FOR THIRD EYE BLIND. HE SING'S VOCALS, PLAYS VARIOUS INSTRUMENT'S, AND ARRANGES ON BOTH ALBUMS. ON THEIR SECOND RELEASE, BLUE, ARION CO-PRODUCES THE ALBUM WITH FRONTMAN STEPHAN JENKINS. ARION IS KNOWN TO PLAY BASS GUITAR, ELECTRIC GUITAR, ACOUSTIC GUITAR, PIANO, HARMONICA, THEREMIN, PROPHET T8, OPTIGAN, ELECTRIC SITAR, MELLETRON, AND UNIVOX JUST TO NAME A FEW.
ARION'S FIRST PROFESSIONAL GIG WAS WITH A BAND CALLED RISK. FROM THERE WENT ON TO PLAY IN A BAND CALLED FUNGO MUNGO (1988-1992), THEY RELEASED AN ALBUM ON ISLAND RECORDS IN 1992 CALLED HUMUNGOUS. WHILE ARION WAS IN FUNGO MUNGO HE ALSO PLAYED WITH A BAND CALLED CURVEBALL AND ACME PIMP'S INC. HE JOINED THIRD EYE BLIND IN 1993
ARION ALSO PLAYED IN A SESSION'S BAND CALLED BULLMARK. WHILE IN BULLMARK ARION COMPOSED THE SOUNDTRACK FOR ACTIVISION'S 'INTERSTATE 76' IN WHICH VINTAGE RECORDING EQUIPTMENT AND INSTRUMENTS WERE USED TO CAPTURE THE ORIGINAL 70'S FUNK SOUND. MEMBER'S OF BULLMARK INCLUDE BRIAN (OF PRIMUS), TOM COASTER (FROM SANTANA), JON BENDICH, LOUIS FASMAN, LES HARRIS, AND DAVE SHUL (LES AND DAVE BOTH PLAY IN CURVEBALL). ARION HAS ALSO PLAYED ON SONGS BY BLACK LAB, THE BRAIDS, BETTER THAN EZRA, AND KENNY WAYNE SHEPHARD.
ARION WENT SKYLINE HIGH SCHOOL IN OAKLAND (WHERE HE WAS BORN AND RAISED). AFTER ATTENDING SKYLINE HE WENT TO BLUE BEAR SCHOOL OF MUSIC IN SAN FRANCISCO AT FT.MASON (1988). HE ATTENDED BLUE BEAR FOR A YEAR ON A MUSIC SCHOLARSHIP.
ARION USES ZON BASS GUITARS. THE SILVER GLITTER ONE IS A SONUS 4-STRING WITH E STRING DETUNER CUSTOM FINISH AND HEADSTOCK DECAL. AND THE NEW ONE USED DURING THE TOUR IS CALLED THE "ELTORO", A CUSTOM-DESIGNED 4-STRING BASS WITH FINGERBOARD LED'S, BLUEBURST FINISH, AND HEADSTOCK DECAL.
ARION LIST PAUL McCARTNEY AS HIS BIGGEST MUSICAL INFLUENCE. HE HAS BEEN LISTENING TO THE BEATLES SINCE HE WAS A KID. HE ALSO SITES RUSH'S "EXIT STAGE LEFT" AS A MAJOR INSPIRATION WHEN BECOMING A BASSIST
ONE OF THE FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ARION IS "WHAT IS HE?" (ETHNICITY WISE) LET'S DO SOME MATH, HIS MOTHER IS WHITE AND HIS FATHER IS HALF MEXICAN AND HALF PORTUGUESE. ADD IT UP AND YOU GET 100% ARION.
READ ON FOR HIS OFFICIAL BIO FROM 3EB.COM:
ARION SALAZAR PICKED UP HIS FIRST INSTRUMENT AROUND THE AGE OF THREE. "AS SOON AS I WAS OLD ENOUGH TO LIFT IT," HE EXPLAINS. SALAZAR CAME FROM A MUSICAL FAMILY, AND HIS DAD PLAYED IN BANDS THROUGHOUT ARION'S CHILDHOOD. HE GOT INTO PLAYING BASS AFTER HE'D BEEN PLAYING GUITAR FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS. "IT SEEMED LIKE EVERYONE WAS PLAYING GUITAR, BASS IS LIKE DRUMS AND GUITAR IN ONE." HE STATES, "I NEVER REALLY TOOK BASS LESSONS, I JUST LEARNED THE RUSH ALBUM, EXIT STAGE LEFT." HIS FRIENDS WERE SHOCKED AT THE SPEED WITH WHICH HE LEARNED THE ENTIRE ALBUM, BUT, "I'VE BEEN LISTENING TO MUSIC MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE-WATCHING T.V. PLAYING OUTSIDE, OR ANYTHING SINCE I WAS BORN," SALAZAR EXPLAINS. "SO IT JUST KIND OF COMES EASY TO ME."
SALAZAR JOINED THIRD EYE BLIND IN 1993 AFTER PLAYING IN VARIOUS LOCAL BANDS SINCE HE WAS EIGHTEEN. GRATEFUL FOR THE EXPERIENCE HE GAINED THROUGHOUT THOSE YEARS, SALAZAR HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO "WORK WITH REALLY TALENTED MUSICIANS THAT PUSHED AND INSPIRED ME TO BE BETTER MYSELF. I LEARNED A WHOLE LOT." HE CONTINUES TO STAY CREATIVE BY DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM SIMPLY PLAYING MUSIC. "I'M ALWAYS DOWN TO PLAY FOR THE SONG AND THAT'S MY NUMBER ONE PRIORITY, BUT RIGHT THERE ALONG WITH THAT I WANT TO DO SOMETHING INTERESTING; SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL, AND SOMETHING THAT MAKES A STATEMENT." SALAZAR LOOKS TO SEE THE VALUE AND ART IN ALL KINDS OF MUSIC. "YOU GET TO THE POINT WHERE YOU JUST HAVE TO GROW UP AND REALIZE THAT THERE IS GREAT MUSIC ALL AROUND YOU AND IT COULD BE IN ANY FORMAT." HE ALSO GETS INSPIRATION FROM WATCHING FILMS. "WATCHING GREAT ACTORS AND FILMMAKERS CAN BE AS INSPIRATIONAL AS MUSIC," SALAZAR ASSERTS. SALAZAR IS LOOKING FORWARD TO KICKING THE TASTY SIDES FROM THE NEW ALBUM ONSTAGE WITH THIRD EYE BLIND FANS. "I JUST DIG WHEN OTHER FOLKS DIG OUR SCENE, YOU DIG," HE EXPLAINS. FOR SALAZAR, THE BAND'S NEW ALBUM IS A STEP FORWARD. HE'S PROUD AND EXCITED AND "FEELING NUMMY" ABOUT THE BOLD NEW SOUNDS AND VIBES, AND THE NEWER, DEEPER, WETTER FEEL TO THE MUSIC. "IT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE MORE OF THE SAME. THAT KEEPS IT FRESH FOR ME, THE FACT THAT THIS RECORD IS DIFFERENT FROM THE LAST ONE." AS FOR THE NEAR FUTURE, SALAZAR CONFIDES, " I DON'T SEE ANY OBSTACLES FOR THE NEW ALBUM. I JUST WANNA GO ROCK IT LIVE FOR OUR PEOPLES."
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