It seems impossible to say the name Jimmy Eat World without adding ‘Kings of Emo’ or something similar as an afterthought. You’d have to ask the band whether they’re happy with the tag, but ‘Integrity Blues’, their ninth studio album, suggests they are pretty comfortable with it.
They have been churning out this brand of radio-friendly angst for over 20 years but, except for their early 2000s smashes ‘Bleed American’ and ‘Futures’, much of it has been forgettable. When the former was released 15 years ago, the band were in their mid-20s and full of spunk. The singles that were lifted from it were incredibly strong, sing-a-long-a-Jimmy, lighters in the air songs that fans still lap up during their live shows to this day. Even the slower numbers gripped the heartstrings.
But now the band are entering their 40s, the decibel level has been turned down and Jim Adkins and company now seem settled on attempting to write stadium-sized anthems rather than stumbling across them like they used to.
Only Get Right and Through approach the noise levels of the ‘good old days’ but the main issue with ‘Integrity Blues’ is that there’s nothing immediately catchy here.
Their last full-length, 2013’s ‘Damage’, had a couple of instant wins in Lean and No, Never, but here we only really have the lead single, Sure and Certain, to pricks up the ears. A passing mention, too, for The End Is Beautiful, a sweet set-closer of a song that may or may not be memorable due to its sweeping resemblance to the Goo Goo Dolls’ Iris.
Jimmy Eat World’s relevance in 2016 may now extend only to entertaining those emo kids of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s who want a little light relief once their own kids have gone to bed. It seems unlikely that they’ll win any new fans over with ‘Integrity Blues’ and even the die-hards will have a bit of trouble coming to terms with some pretty mediocre tunes.
Jimmy Eat World Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Wed November 09 2016 - GLASGOW Barrowland
Thu November 10 2016 - MANCHESTER Academy
Sat November 19 2016 - BRISTOL O2 Academy Bristol
Sun November 20 2016 - BIRMINGHAM O2 Academy Birmingham
Mon November 21 2016 - LONDON O2 Forum
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