Bleed American

Tea pairing: Chamomile tea with milk and sugar

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It was a rather hard choice for this article. I knew I wanted to discuss a Jimmy Eat World album, but there was a serious decision to be made. Do I choose Clarity, a staple in the emo genre that defined the Arizona rockers as formidable emo frontrunners or do I choose the more radio friendly, albeit far more aggressive Bleed American?

My decision is this; Fuck it, I’ll do one this week and the other next week. With that, I will start with their fourth release, Bleed American. In my opinion it is a better record, but that is not to say that Clarity isn’t. If Jimmy Eat World can do one thing extremely well it’s their ability to consistently put out good records.

Kicking their fourth record off is the sonic track “Bleed American” where the lyrics “And rest, clean your conscience, clear your thoughts with Speyside with your grain” paint a somber picture of today’s stressed, depressed, and often drug-fueled youth. To this day, “Bleed American” still stands as the group's most volatile track, both lyrically and musically.

Upon listening to Bleed American from start to finish it is clear that there is a good level of aggression within the album even though it has been described as an “enjoyable, catchy, mainstream rock album”. That “mainstream” sound can most definitely be chalked up to the earworm that is “The Middle”.

If you are like me, then you grew up hearing “The Middle” on the radio as a kid. You had no idea who was singing the song but it sounded really cool. You heard it a lot and, just at the mere mention of the song, you’re probably singing the chorus to yourself right now. It is a solid pop punk jam that leans way more pop than punk, or even emo.

Jimmy Eat World started out as a semi-punk band that quickly transitioned into a more emo/ emo pop outfit with their third release, Clarity. In many ways, Clarity was the band’s first foray into being a real emo band, and Bleed American is a natural progression into that sound.

Two albums in, Jimmy Eat World found comfort in the pop inflected emo songs that they are now known for. The second half of the album hits harder on the poppier side of emo with tracks “Sweetness” and “Authority Song”, but also manages to slow things down with “Hear You Me'' and album closer “My Sundown”.

“Hear You Me” is as emo as Jimmy Eat World could get in 2001, as the song details the loss of a friend and the immense feeling of regret. Frontman Jim Adkins does an excellent job at conveying a feeling we all have felt, just in song form. It is a bittersweet song filled with floaty guitars and haunting vocals.

Throughout the record one could slightly forget that Jimmy Eat World is an emo band and their music does take shape in very emotional, and personal ways, but it is in “Hear You Me” that their emo side is on full display. It can be easily stated that the second half of the record is where the band are comfortably in their own skins.

The last real emo rager is “Get It Faster” and sees Adkins lash out in full spite at a supposed bitter lover. Crashing guitars, pounding drums, and a driving bass carry the song to a climatic close. The last of the anger on the album is spent, and the end draws near in a much softer side.

And that brings us to my favorite track, the closer “My Sundown”. Truly a masterwork of emo and melody, “My Sundown” is a song telling the story of an American Dream gone wrong; no one cares for your success, you are on your own. “You’ll take your time, but no one cares”. A mournful close to an album that has themes of the damaged youth of America.

Bleed American turns 20 this year, and it is fair to say the radio would have been different if “The Middle” never saw the light of day. I may have never discovered the rest of their music if I didn’t love that damn song so much, and that can be said for the record itself. Devoid of any fillers, Bleed American is a thrill ride of pure pop and somber emo from start to finish over and over and over again.