By: Chiara DiAngelo (@chiarabella) –
Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine Toronto)
Celebrating twenty years as a band, the lads of Arizona pop-punk quartet Jimmy Eat World are getting on in years now, but right from the get-go, it was obvious that they’ve still got it.
Light nostalgia, the band’s set focused on their multiple albums released throughout the mid- to late-2000’s (i.e. post-Bleed American). Still singing in the same style as they always have, new songs such as set opener “I Will Steal You Back” from their recently released album Damages, seamlessly transitioned into older tracks and were worthy of ushering in a new generation of fans.
It was a slightly odd experience standing up in the venue’s all ages section surrounded by youth who didn’t share the same level of lived-through-it experience and high school attachment to songs from Clarity and Bleed American. However, frontman Jim Adkins’ light as air falsetto transported us folk of a certain age back in time – the sense of sincerity and conviction in their still emo-laden lyrics made teenage angst à la scribbled poetry in tattered journals sound lively and pretty, and still relevant regardless of your current stage in life.
Singing along to songs like “My Best Theory” and “Futures”, it was “Kill”, from their 2004 album Futures, that placed a third of the way into their set that finally garnered a response worthy of the long-standing band. They filled much of their set with lighter and breezier tunes such as “Hear You Me” and “No, Never” but the hard-hitting execution of songs like “Goodbye Sky Harbour” from Clarity solidified their status as the quintessential rock band. Having recently recorded this song for an iTunes session, plus performed it on Conan O’Brien, Adkins and company also threw in their cover of Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”. Hilarious as it was to witness Adkins singing the lyrics that a 23-year old girl wrote, they made it their own, transforming it into a serious set highlight.
Those in the audience who came specifically hoping for a Bleed American revival may have been left disappointed; forced to wait until the last couple of songs of the band’s 75-minute set to get what they really wanted. Dialling back the years, the dizzying set-closing trio of “A Praise Chorus”, “The Sweetness” and finally, “Bleed American” was well worth the wait however. At this moment, age faded away and they successfully brought out a burst of giddy and joyous youthfulness from the audience.
The band soon returned for a three-song encore, taking the crowd back, first to 2007 with “Chase This Light” and “Big Casino” before ending with the quintessential timeless song that everyone was waiting for, “The Middle”. Despite the crowd’s continued shouting for “23”, this was truly the perfect place to end the night. Sweat-soaked and smiling, band members handed off drumsticks and guitar picks to the lucky people in the front row, before expressing their sincere gratitude to all those in attendance. It was all we could do to resist thanking them for making us feel like we were 15-years-old again.
Knoxville, Tennessee’s Royal Bangs opened the show, complete with flickering orbs and a pulsating light show. In a different place, to a different audience, opening for a less hotly anticipated band, frontman Ryan Schaefer likely could have started something that at least resembled a dance party. Unfortunately, despite the venue being nearly filled at this early hour, the band struggled to make a visible connection.
Playing a mash of energetic key-driven, reverb-throbbing prog-rock that seemed to bend genre boundaries with each song – even crossing over into bouncy pop and Southern folk at times – their set appeared to fall on deaf ears. It didn’t help that while much of the material from their acclaimed 2011 album Flux Outside is hugely stimulating, when performed live, the light show behind them was often more captivating. Disappointingly, even catchy-as-heck new song “Better Run” from their upcoming album Brass (which was recorded with The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney) didn’t translate in the way it should have.
The band picked up the pace towards the end of their set, finally approaching scorching territory. They ended with an extended version of the heavier “Slow Cathedral Melt”, which evolved into something raw and passionate that made its way into my head – and almost into my heart. A bit of a letdown, this might be band better spun on vinyl.
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Jimmy Eat World
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Royal Bangs
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