Jimmy Eat World - Songs for the World
by Kevin Mathews
There's little doubt that American rock band Jimmy Eat World has exerted a strong musical influence on alternative rock bands around the world for almost two decades. Certainly, in Singapore, indie rock bands count Jimmy Eat World as a significant inspiration (just attend any local indie rock gig and that fact will become easily apparent). Which makes Jimmy Eat World's upcoming performance at the Hard Rock Hotel at Sentosa this Friday an eagerly anticipated one.
And not just by fans, too. When asked about this intense popularity, Jimmy Eat World band leader Jim Adkins recalled seeing the occasional "Come to Singapore!" request on the band's social media sites.
"It's very flattering," Adkins gushed. "There are lots of bands out there whom we are fans of, and the fact that anyone else could think that way about us is flattering. We're excited. It's a warm, fuzzy feeling."
With six well-received albums (including the platinum-certified Bleed American and gold-certified Futures) under its belt, Adkins attributes the band's success and longevity to one thing: Friendship.
"We were friends as kids before we even started the band, and that might have played a role - that we've known each other for so long," Adkins said.
"We've done a good job at setting realistic goals for ourselves and keeping things fun and not getting too hung up on the adverse situations."
But Adkins said he wasn't able to pinpoint how Jimmy Eat World kept the songwriting and recording process fresh (new album Invented is full of the band's trademark infectious tunes and hooks).
"We're just lucky!" he offered. "We know that we're on to our best work when we're challenging our own perception of what we are. If we're just doing the same thing, record a song and it sounds like something we just did ... well, we try to avoid that.
"When we really get excited about a new idea, more than one of us is questioning whether we should actually do it, but that's what we look for now - what are we changing, what are we pushing here? It could be a subtle thing.
"There's always some new challenge, something different in every tune."
Adkins did own up to the fact that with each subsequent album, the songwriting process has become more difficult. "It's tough. In the past, it's been without thought with not a lot of self-analysis. Lately it's been more conscious refinement. That's something new - that is just different.
"It's a hard thing to describe. What we all feel is that the advantage of being a band for so long is that we all look at each other and know when something is done or when we're on the right path or if something feels good. We don't spend a whole lot of time digging deep into why or how we got there. We kinda know we should keep working until we're there."
Obviously, songwriting is not an exact science.
"The most important thing is just to be proud of your work," said Adkins. "And keeping that diligence has been ingrained into us to get the songs to a place where we feel is our best work and when we do that we're satisfied with it - a rewarding experience.
"We're all just excited about music - keeping excited about music in general is the best thing to do - we're always listening to new bands and watching people perform."
Watch Jimmy Eat World perform at The Coliseum, Hard Rock Hotel Singapore, Resorts World Sentosa. 8pm on April 1. Tickets from Sistic (www.sistic.com.sg).
There's little doubt that American rock band Jimmy Eat World has exerted a strong musical influence on alternative rock bands around the world for almost two decades. Certainly, in Singapore, indie rock bands count Jimmy Eat World as a significant inspiration (just attend any local indie rock gig and that fact will become easily apparent). Which makes Jimmy Eat World's upcoming performance at the Hard Rock Hotel at Sentosa this Friday an eagerly anticipated one.
And not just by fans, too. When asked about this intense popularity, Jimmy Eat World band leader Jim Adkins recalled seeing the occasional "Come to Singapore!" request on the band's social media sites.
"It's very flattering," Adkins gushed. "There are lots of bands out there whom we are fans of, and the fact that anyone else could think that way about us is flattering. We're excited. It's a warm, fuzzy feeling."
With six well-received albums (including the platinum-certified Bleed American and gold-certified Futures) under its belt, Adkins attributes the band's success and longevity to one thing: Friendship.
"We were friends as kids before we even started the band, and that might have played a role - that we've known each other for so long," Adkins said.
"We've done a good job at setting realistic goals for ourselves and keeping things fun and not getting too hung up on the adverse situations."
But Adkins said he wasn't able to pinpoint how Jimmy Eat World kept the songwriting and recording process fresh (new album Invented is full of the band's trademark infectious tunes and hooks).
"We're just lucky!" he offered. "We know that we're on to our best work when we're challenging our own perception of what we are. If we're just doing the same thing, record a song and it sounds like something we just did ... well, we try to avoid that.
"When we really get excited about a new idea, more than one of us is questioning whether we should actually do it, but that's what we look for now - what are we changing, what are we pushing here? It could be a subtle thing.
"There's always some new challenge, something different in every tune."
Adkins did own up to the fact that with each subsequent album, the songwriting process has become more difficult. "It's tough. In the past, it's been without thought with not a lot of self-analysis. Lately it's been more conscious refinement. That's something new - that is just different.
"It's a hard thing to describe. What we all feel is that the advantage of being a band for so long is that we all look at each other and know when something is done or when we're on the right path or if something feels good. We don't spend a whole lot of time digging deep into why or how we got there. We kinda know we should keep working until we're there."
Obviously, songwriting is not an exact science.
"The most important thing is just to be proud of your work," said Adkins. "And keeping that diligence has been ingrained into us to get the songs to a place where we feel is our best work and when we do that we're satisfied with it - a rewarding experience.
"We're all just excited about music - keeping excited about music in general is the best thing to do - we're always listening to new bands and watching people perform."
Watch Jimmy Eat World perform at The Coliseum, Hard Rock Hotel Singapore, Resorts World Sentosa. 8pm on April 1. Tickets from Sistic (www.sistic.com.sg).
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