The obligatory, over-used apology of the not-so-seasoned blogger "it's been a while" tarnishes the screen once more as I begin yet another entry that follows the previous one by at least 2 months. After the last, overly political essay, I thought I'd take this one back to basics with a simple CD review to try and tempt readers back in at a nice accessible level.
The CD in question is the latest release by one of my favourite bands, and one who I’ve gone on record as saying cannot write a bad album. Don’t worry, you won’t get the massive shock of Steve Anderson eating his words here (a very rare event), but I am afraid to say that seeming emo-pop untouchables Jimmy Eat World’s new album Invented (Interscope, released 28.09.10), for me, doesn’t quite cut the mustard in the way some of its predecessors did.
For me, JEW’s musical timeline has seen the Arizona boys go from strength to strength, with an exponential melodic growth between each release, driving the albums forward to poppier and more singalong-laden territory in more recent years. Granted, there was usually the odd track on each record that you couldn’t help feeling was a bit of a filler, but on the whole you could guarantee a quality feel-good, play-loud, experience when blasting out a new JEW album for the first time.
However, the band seemed to have played a bit of a curve ball with Invented, and the whole thing seems to have dropped a few gears, slowing everything down and generally letting the major-key, four-chord wonders take a back-seat to fuzzy, bass-led riffs, and more than a fair share of clean, twangy guitar tones of the band circa-1999.
The CD in question is the latest release by one of my favourite bands, and one who I’ve gone on record as saying cannot write a bad album. Don’t worry, you won’t get the massive shock of Steve Anderson eating his words here (a very rare event), but I am afraid to say that seeming emo-pop untouchables Jimmy Eat World’s new album Invented (Interscope, released 28.09.10), for me, doesn’t quite cut the mustard in the way some of its predecessors did.For me, JEW’s musical timeline has seen the Arizona boys go from strength to strength, with an exponential melodic growth between each release, driving the albums forward to poppier and more singalong-laden territory in more recent years. Granted, there was usually the odd track on each record that you couldn’t help feeling was a bit of a filler, but on the whole you could guarantee a quality feel-good, play-loud, experience when blasting out a new JEW album for the first time.
However, the band seemed to have played a bit of a curve ball with Invented, and the whole thing seems to have dropped a few gears, slowing everything down and generally letting the major-key, four-chord wonders take a back-seat to fuzzy, bass-led riffs, and more than a fair share of clean, twangy guitar tones of the band circa-1999.
Don’t get me wrong, there are still a few blasting rock anthems, like first single ‘My Best Theory’, which would’ve sat perfectly alongside ‘Salt, Sweat, Sugar’ and ‘Get It Faster’, as well as ‘Action Needs An Audience’, the first track to feature guitarist Tom Linton on lead vocals since Clarity’s ‘Blister’ in 1999.
To give them their due, these guys have been in the game for a long time now, and it should only be expected that they’ll want to grow old gracefully, and while Invented doesn’t show a complete departure from their older work, it definitely shows a step towards a slower, more thought-out sound. Album-opener ‘Heart is Hard to Find’ doesn’t drop in with the kind of ballsy, riff-heavy intro we’ve become accustomed to (see ‘Futures’ and ‘Big Casino’), and that can be read as a reflection of the album as a whole. There’s no doubt JEW have written another great album, and on third or fourth listen the songs do start to stick and the more subtle aspects begin to shine ('Coffee and Cigarettes' is great and there’s a brilliant thirty seconds of title-track ‘Invented’ when everything’s taken back to full-volume) , but there’s no instant sugary, caffeine hit with this one.
If you’re expecting a massively upbeat, sunshine record to drag you out of this horrible British October, then avoid this. However, if you want a band in the autumn of their lives to provide the perfect soundtrack to the respective season, then you could do a lot worse than to give Invented a go. All faith is not lost.
8/10
Lol- JEW album.
ReplyDeleteNo, I need to give it a listen, I heard the first couple of tracks, didn't do that much for me, but then again, I wasn't hearing it. I was only listening.