Static Prevails is a really fascinating period of time for Jimmy Eat World growth wise, especially listening in hindsight. Style wise, there are moments when you can see the band’s personality and signature sound really starting to come through, and other times when they sound more like a byproduct of that era, which isn’t a bad thing at all. But knowing what was to come- Clarity, Bleed American and Futures (their next three albums after Static Prevails)-there’s definitely a feeling of the best being yet to come for Jimmy Eat World. As musicians and as a band, there was noticeable momentum and growth. It was a huge step forward from their 1994 self-titled, more pop-punk sounding debut album. It’s a really good album that isn’t given the credit it deserves historically speaking, but listening to this record again after not hearing it for years, my biggest takeaway was that it was a stepping stone record for the band.
Listening to this record recently, it felt like a time capsule of my late teens and early 20s.īy no means is this a flawless album though. Static Prevails isn’t just angsty, it’s hopelessly romantic at times, the way many of us were in our youth (“ Episode IV“), nostalgic for things that were just a few years ago but feel like a lifetime away (“ Claire“) and reflective, yet dramatic in all the best ways (“ Anderson Mesa“). Phases that so many of us can relate to, because we experience versions of it ourselves.
Because they started so young themselves, we as fans got to watch them grow up from record to record, each album representing a different phase of growth in the lives. Loud, vulnerable & relatable.Įven though all of the guys in Jimmy Eat World are a few years older than me, I felt like I grew up with them. This is what rock music could sound like. To an impressionable 16-year-old who was getting more in touch with his artistic side, it was instantly captivating and eye-opening at the same time. It sounded more like other Emo giants of the time, such as Sunny Day Real Estate, Texas is the Reason, and even American Football at times. It wasn’t the pretty, opus like album that Clarity would be. It was less polished, louder and had this genuineness about it. There was more of an angst on Static Prevails than there was on Clarity. There are some moments in life we don’t forget and that day, that moment when my friend skipped directly to the third track and played “Claire” for me for the first time, was one of those moments. I played that record nonstop for months to the point of driving my friends crazy, when one day my friend Ben asked me if I had heard any of the band’s other albums and proceeded to put in Static Prevails, their 1996 sophomore effort. It was everything that I loved about Emo and more. It spoke to me, not just lyrically, but also the unique sound that seemed to live between these margins, resulting in something unlike anything else out there.
JIMMY EAT WORLD ALBUMS RATING FULL
I remember being 16 when I heard Jimmy Eat World’s third full length album, Clarity for the first time and thinking that it was the record I had been searching for my whole life.
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