Interview: Jimmy Eat World talks “Integrity Blues”, Pre-Show Playlists, and Learning Guitar

By: Curtis Sindrey –

Jimmy Eat World. (Photo: Jimi Giannatti)

Once a trailblazing name in the mid-’90s emo scene, Jimmy Eat World has found a mainstream audience by embracing their signature blend of alt-rock and power pop that targeted the heart as well as the head. And on October 21st, the Phoenix-based quartet will return with their ninth album, Integrity Blues. The LP, produced by Justin Meldal-Johnsen (Paramore, M83, and Air), will feature the single “Sure and Certain”, with frontman Jim Adkins explaining, “The song is about how limiting your own ideas for perfection can be. That, in constantly gunning with blinders on for achieving your ideal expectation, you are limiting your ability to appreciate all the things surrounding you in the present.”

In our new interview, the pop-punk veterans discuss the making of Integrity Blues, their go-to pre-show songs, advice for how to learn to play guitar, and more!

Many of the songs on Damage began as rough acoustic songs in the studio. Was there a similar process this time around for Integrity Blues? 

Yeah. You know the material for Integrity Blues came about in a lot of different ways…we never really clock out of this job, you’re always thinking of stuff and you’re always amassing stuff like sometimes a whole song might come to you or sometimes you might just get as far as a riff or a section of a song. You know the most basic concepts and that can be a lot of different things and the material for Integrity Blues was pulling from that huge pile of things I wouldn’t say any…the short answer to this very long rambling one is that I wouldn’t say there was a consistent sound that the early stages were drawing from a lot of it was developed as we were recording they took on their own shape in the recording process.

It was more of an the moment kind of thing? 

Yeah, the outline was there, were we wanted the song to go was there but how we got there was really up for discovery along the way. A lot of the stuff we were sifting through was guitar riffs, chorus idea or verse idea. Some are old and if you’ve heard the record it’s all over the place, there is not a consistent place that the record started from.

Congrats on the new single “Sure And Certain”. What was the inspiration behind that song?  

Generally your ideal expectation is limiting sometimes. When you are so dead set on the thing that you want, you ignore a lot of the real things around you, when you’re in pursuit of some imaginary far off goal. Not that goals are bad or ambitions are bad, just that you are not paying attention to what’s happening around, but focusing on solely that goal can be a limiting way to live.

It has been 15 years since 9/11, and the release of Bleed American. What was going through your head as a band when you decided to issue the record as a self-titled album? 

“Oh shit”. Haha, ah no we just worked so hard on everything we had accomplished up till there to not let the album have the most objective fair chance out in the world. And, yeah, that was our response.

With working with Justin Meldal-Johnsen, what did he bring to the table as a producer, and how would you compare it working with Alain Johannes on Damage? 

Well this is our ninth album which is kind of crazy and you know going in to make the record we knew that we wanted to be aware and to check ourselves at every stage of the writing or recording process so that we felt like we were accomplishing our best work. We didn’t want to be in a place that we were, just executing towards our strengths and make sure that what we were doing was the best not necessarily what we were use to. Justin was on board with being more or less a great check and balance for that process. The decision to work with Justin was really about his ideas and passion for it because you look at the records Justin has worked on and he’s not one of those types of people who has or can’t pinpoint a sound to him. He helps the bands and artists make their record where you don’t really go to him for his sound  and we liked that because we wanted it to be able to stand on it’s own.

It pushes you to become a better musician, he’s really focused and not going to let shit slide by.

Back in April, Apple debuted an ad to promote Apple Music, which featured Taylor Swift lip syncing and dancing to “The Middle”. How do you survive as a band in the era of fans that predominantly stream music?  

Well, I mean that was pretty gnarly when that happened… this stuff, what can you do except it being a huge flattering compliment. I don’t know, there is not a whole lot to say about it. You know what is really interesting is that for so long with a song like ‘The Middle’ it’s still finding a way to connect with people and one of the reasons is that has the capability… because everyone is excited about turning their friends onto something they like. As a music fan and listener it has never been easier to do that with Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and Twitter it’s like you are Rolling Stone or Spin, you can rate your band with your friends and that is pretty amazing that songs still spread around.

Why do you think “The Middle” so easily resonates with people and what will its legacy be?  

It’s wild, you know I can’t explain it.

In that same realm, fans tend to consume music more on a per-track basis, than as on a per-album basis. But with that in mind, what are some albums that are worth listening to from front-to-back?   

I think the David Bazan record, Blanco, is solid top to bottom. I think Telekinesis is really good too. Pretty much any kind Kings of Convenience record is thoroughly chill the whole way.

Last year you had a brief stint as a solo where you released a six-week digital single series that included covers of Cyndi Lauper, the Everly Brothers and Beck. What inspired you to do that, and can we expected more solo material in the future?   

Yeah eventually… it was fun, terrifying and fun. It was pretty wild I mean I’d do it again for sure but not for a while.

I loved the brass section on the track “I Will Go”, what was it like branching out and using sounds that you haven’t touched before?   

You know, it was really cool and we actually used that same guy Roger Joseph Manning Jr. He arranged stuff for us on a few songs on Integrity Blues album. It was just interesting using brass but more how you would use strings really more about tension and dynamics, than about hooks and stuff. It was interesting and fun working with him.

What would be some advice for someone starting out or trying to learn guitar?  

Just the only way to get better is to play.  Practice, yeah. Like with running, how do you become a faster run, you run faster. It’s not easy getting over the physical awkwardness of fretting notes in the beginning is tough. Develop callouses.

But you just do it a little bit more every day and then sooner than later you’re not thinking about the physical aspect of it, you’re just playing.

It takes a while you just have to take a deep breath and realize it’s not going to happen instantly.

Based on your playlists, what are your go to pre-show songs? 

Motley Crue’s “Dr. Feelgood”, or Rocket From The Crypt. Our drummer is really into Motley Crue right now for some reason.

Besides the music you listen to on tour does it change when you are at home? 

Basically stays the same. You’re just into what you’re into no matter where you are. Like you might see a band at a festival you’ve never heard of and you pick up there record, which is cool about playing shows like today. See some bands you’ve never seen before.

You guys have been on the festival circuit this year, what bands have played at festivals you’ve come to love? 

Many. I mean like at Riot Fest I’ve never seen Ween play before, that was my first time, I’ve been a fan but I’ve never seen them play live before.

Like a band we’ve seen on the road Death From Above 1979, always heard of them but never listened to them. They are amazing live.

The new album Integrity Blues from Jimmy Eat World will be released October 21 on Dine Alone Records (Canada) and is available to pre-order via the Dine Alone Webstore HERE and iTunes HERE.