Jimmy Eat World - "Chase This Light"

Jimmy Eat World has never adhered to a specific genre. From a mid-90s start in the indie scene, they moved into emo-core, became famous, and were eagerly splashed on the covers of music magazines as (ill-fitting) poster-children for punk rock. But their 2004 album Futures abandoned the punk heritage, firmly placing itself in some murky, undefined category of miscellaneous alternative rock. Their recent release, Chase This Light, follows that uninspiring trend toward this too-slick punk-derived alternative.


Chase This Light will not return Jimmy Eat World to the pinnacle of the pop charts, which is probably a good thing. Lead singer Jim Adkins rationalizes that “there’s still some living left when your prime comes and goes.” This living is not hinted at in the album, which, apart from the first track, is basically dead on arrival. Simply put, Chase This Light is boring.

The Jimmy Eat World mainstays are present and accounted for: pervasive vocal harmonies and catchy riffs build on a foundation of fiery drums and beats. The lyrics still manifest the dependable intelligence which attracted me to Jimmy Eat World in the first place. Lines like “It’s easy feeling righteous when removed” (“Carry You”) and “This is where our diligence has led, / The waves roll in to claim our patient steps” (“Firefight”) have always set Jimmy Eat World apart from generic emocore/pop punk/indie rock bands; their well-written songs keep their sound distinctive.

It is then ironic that dependability is the major pitfall of the album. Yes, Chase This Light still has moments of classic Jimmy Eat World sound seen in earlier pieces like “Table for Glasses” or “23” – the nearly transcendent combination of beautiful harmonies, innovative drums, refrain piled upon refrain. But in this effort, those sections are too little developed, too fleeting, to significantly inform and elevate the pop-punk tone of the album. The songs no longer build to their climactic harmonies and explosive codas, but rather hold fast to the overdone verse-refrain-verse-refrain-bridge-refrain/x2 formula that dominates the pop charts.

Even the harmonies sound thin. The minimalist instrumentation (as in “Cautioners”) which normally serves to showcase their beautifully-wrought choruses is not present in a single song on Chase This Light. Jimmy Eat World has forgotten how to maximize spare production; they have forgotten how to make a straightforward approach to songwriting. As a result, all their songs essentially sound the same.

All in all, the album is too smooth and sleek, sticking conservatively to a tried-and-true formula. With the sole exception of the title track, the melodies are uninspiring, completely missing the soaring atmospheric feel of Futures (Kill, Night Drive) or the revolutionary post-punk genius of Bleed American (A Praise Chorus, Hear You Me). What makes Jimmy Eat World the only punk band I can stand is their constant deviation from formulaic conception, predictable lyrics, and run-of-the-mill instrument work. It is not often that a band becomes less experimental with time. That Jimmy Eat World achieves this feat may very well be the sole success of this tepid effort. This is no prize to be proud of.

What results is a rather unmotivated album that defies categorization. To quote “Dizzy”, the best song on the album, “Does it end like this?” ―Jonathan Giuffrida