Jimmy Eat World’s tour a ‘time machine’

August 27, 2014 11:26 pm 0 comments Views: 5
Going on tour ... Guitarist Jim Adkins of Australia-bound US rock band Jimmy Eat World.

Going on tour … Guitarist Jim Adkins of Australia-bound US rock band Jimmy Eat World.
Source: AP

TEXAN rockers Jimmy Eat World have been on a steady rise since its breakthrough album Bleed American was released 13 years ago.

But ten years after its follow up, Futures, was released, now is the perfect time to get nostalgic.

It has been a fan favourite for a decade alongside the band’s earlier release Clarity so an Australian tour celebrating Futures this November has fans salivating and frontman Jim Adkins worried.

In the nicest possible way he explains there’s a lot of “crap” on Futures.

“I think that when we recorded that there was definitely a ‘more is more’ attitude that we had going into it,” he laughs.

“We really made Rich Costey, who was mixing it, earn his money.

“There is just so much crap on there … I use that word lovingly and endearingly. There’s so much crap on there — going back and learning the songs it’s kind of challenging because they’re so many hooks buried in it and I only have two hands,” he laughs.

The year was 2004 and Jimmy Eat World was capitalising on the commercial success of Bleed American, which featured on many end of year lists, and lead single The Middle hit No. 1 on the alternative charts in America and cracked charts around the world.

Reconvening for a Futures, this time Adkins knew he had an audience wanting to hear what the band was up to.

“I thought about it for sure,” he says.

Heading back to the Futures

Worried … guitarist Jim Adkins of US rock band Jimmy Eat World performs on stage. Picture: AP
Source: AP

“That definitely heightened the pressure we put on ourselves. People were going to give us a shot, this record is going to come out and people are going to be curious and it is going to get

a shot and we better make sure we like it.

“I could definitely feel the record label was interested in what we were doing and that was a first for us really,” he continues.

“When we were on Capitol — for Static Prevails and Clarity we had our group of people that were cool and championed us but there wasn’t like a big company-wide understanding of us. For Bleed American we didn’t have a label so Futures was the first time there was a label into it and behind us and interested.”

The album deals with lost love, heartbreak and drug use throughout and a decade on Adkins is a much different person than he was when penning the album.

Adkins likens the experience of playing them live now to being in a time machine.

“I can sense that,” he says of the change he’s noticed from revisiting Futures.

“Futures there was definitely a bit more assertion of a world view. It’s definitely gated in that — that’s what the music on Futures captures for me. It’s reacted to and inspired to whatever

was going on in my life back then so when I sing them now it’s like a time capsule for me.

“There’s a handful of Futures songs that we’ve continued to play live this whole time. The ones we haven’t are like a mini time machine and takes me back.”

Adkins is actually enjoying doing interviews for the upcoming tour, hearing fanboys like this writer gush over an album they have loved for ten years.

Coming to Australia ... American alt rock band Jimmy Eat World.

Coming to Australia … American alt rock band Jimmy Eat World.
Source: Supplied

“What’s awesome is that everyone says they like a different song,” he says when I tell him my favourite from that era.

“That’s really cool that you say you like The World you Love — it’s just great playing — I know that’s a lame answer — it’s a huge deal getting to play these songs that are so old but people still find something in that they can relate to and made it theirs.”

“It’s a humbling thing.”

And for fans looking wondering if Futures will get the same deluxe treatment that Bleed American did there’s good news.

“There will be something,” Adkins says.

“I’m not exactly sure what form it will be in Australia — but it’s important to have all these records available on vinyl and we may as well put together a whole bunch of stuff from that era with it.”

Jimmy Eat World, Metro City, Perth, November 11.

Jimmy Eat World, Thebarton Theatre, November 12.

Jimmy Eat World, Unibar, Hobart, November 15.

Jimmy Eat World, Forum, Melbourne, November 17

Jimmy Eat World, The Tivoli, Brisbane, November 20

Jimmy Eat World, Enmore Theatre, Sydney, November 22

www.news.com.au/entertainment/music

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