‘Integrity Blues’ soars with inventive music
“Integrity Blues,” the band’s ninth album, continues its recent string of releasing a new record every three years, seemingly without heed of whether or not its music ever resonates again on such a mass scale.
Fame found Mesa, Arizona’s Jimmy Eat World in 2001, when its hyperinfectious tune, “The Middle,” became a huge hit.
“Integrity Blues,” the band’s ninth album, continues its recent string of releasing a new record every three years, seemingly without heed of whether or not its music ever resonates again on such a mass scale.
Not that several of these songs aren’t earcatching enough to climb the charts.
“Sure and Certain” has a sense of airiness and wonder that sets its incandescent chorus aglow, while “Pretty Grids” turns a gritty start on its ear, opening up into a wider panorama of sparkling guitars and swelling keyboards in support of another soaring chorus.
Lead singer and songwriter Jim Adkins has a strong tenor voice fully capable of carrying both anthemic statements such as “You Are Free” (“…as much as you can stand to be”) and timeless-sounding ballads such as “The End Is Beautiful,” which manages to make a romantic breakup sound tremendously appealing.
The band stretches out on a couple of tracks. One, “Pol Roger,” is a lovely ballad with a dreamlike aura, and the other, ‘Pass the Baby,” a real head-scratcher that starts with offbeat lyrics intoned over sparse guitar and a repeated drum beat, and ends with an uninspired heavy guitar solo.
It’s the only subpar track on “Integrity Blues,” a carefully crafted and highly listenable album which ranks with the band’s best works.
Jimmy Eat World has three L.A.-area dates scheduled on its current tour: today at the Roxy in West Hollywood, Thursday at the Glass House in Pomona and Saturday back in West Hollywood at The Troubadour.
Artist: Jimmy Eat World Album: “Integrity Blues” Genre: Rock Label: RCA Ranking: ★★★ Online: Watch the band perform “Sure and Certain” live on “Late Night With Stephen Colbert” at http:// bit.ly/2e8XI2F.