Spring Break
Jimmy Eat World looks to the future
Justin De La Cruz, FS VIEW & FLORIDA FLAMBEAU
Issue date: 8/29/05 Section: Culture
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(U-WIRE) - The story behind "Bleed American" (later self-titled after Sept. 11, 2001), Jimmy Eat World's commercial breakthrough record, is a simple, yet inspiring one. The band had been garnering attention among college radio stations and overseas (the members funded and promoted their first tour of Europe in 2000 themselves), and "Lucky Denver Mint," a single from the group's second album, "Clarity," had made it onto the soundtrack for the Drew Barrymore film "Never Been Kissed."
Despite its growing popularity, however, Capitol severed ties with the group, and, after searching for a new record deal but not finding anything of promise, the members (in true indie fashion) decided to fund the project on their own. With Mark Trombino producing, the polished, pop-heavy results were picked up for distribution by Dreamworks and went on to sell more than 1.3 million copies in the United States alone.
Now, with the enormous success of Jimmy Eat World, the band's opinions are being expressed through its actions as well as its music. The group contributed a song to Future Soundtrack for America, a compilation presented by MoveOn.org in association with the literary journal McSweeney's and the indie label Barsuk.
"We've never felt qualified to stand on a stage and espouse our political beliefs," singer/guitarist Jim Adkins said. "But now, I don't think you can escape having a heightened awareness of current events and government policies. Maybe that comes from being older, where you see how decisions actually affect people."
This reflective maturation is evident on Futures, the band's latest release, which heads away from the carefree sentiments of Jimmy Eat World, into darker, more introspective territory.
"[The] lyrics are much darker and more mature, including themes that revolve around politics, drugs, and despair," All Music Guide's Tim Sendra wrote of the latest album. "The piano-and-feedback ballad 'Drugs or Me' and the bittersweet love song 'Night Drive' are the products of age and experience the band lacked until now."
Despite its growing popularity, however, Capitol severed ties with the group, and, after searching for a new record deal but not finding anything of promise, the members (in true indie fashion) decided to fund the project on their own. With Mark Trombino producing, the polished, pop-heavy results were picked up for distribution by Dreamworks and went on to sell more than 1.3 million copies in the United States alone.
Now, with the enormous success of Jimmy Eat World, the band's opinions are being expressed through its actions as well as its music. The group contributed a song to Future Soundtrack for America, a compilation presented by MoveOn.org in association with the literary journal McSweeney's and the indie label Barsuk.
"We've never felt qualified to stand on a stage and espouse our political beliefs," singer/guitarist Jim Adkins said. "But now, I don't think you can escape having a heightened awareness of current events and government policies. Maybe that comes from being older, where you see how decisions actually affect people."
This reflective maturation is evident on Futures, the band's latest release, which heads away from the carefree sentiments of Jimmy Eat World, into darker, more introspective territory.
"[The] lyrics are much darker and more mature, including themes that revolve around politics, drugs, and despair," All Music Guide's Tim Sendra wrote of the latest album. "The piano-and-feedback ballad 'Drugs or Me' and the bittersweet love song 'Night Drive' are the products of age and experience the band lacked until now."
