The thought that in the space of, roughly, two months, my all-time favourite band played London four times and I was lucky enough to attend every single one of these shows is one of the best things that happened in 2016. I didn't even think a new album would come out this year. Four shows? It's even better than my birthday and Christmas rolled into one.

After the intimacy and the proximity of the Islington Hall and the Bush Hall, Jimmy Eat World are going back to bigger venues. This time, they're headlining the beautiful Troxy, in East London, and the Kentish Town Forum. We're going from several hundred to several thousand capacity, now.
But before that, they're making a little detour by my favourite record shop in the world.





I have talked about it time and time again, there's no record shop I love as much as I love Banquet Records, in Kingston Upon Thames. They have an insane selection of music, they put little notes in your envelope when you buy a gig ticket off them and they always manage to put on incredible gigs. I think the best present they've ever given to me was having Jimmy Eat World do an acoustic instore.
I had seen Jim on his acoustic tour in 2015, but Jimmy Eat World acoustically as a full band was a new experience. It was freezing outside, and inside, no one even took coats and hats off, we were still all in winter gear - and it didn't matter. There was so much warmth in that moment. Getting to meet Jimmy Eat World afterwards was another wonderful present. I had already been lucky enough to meet them during the Damage Tour, in 2013, but I'd never say no to meeting them again. They say to never meet your heroes, Jimmy Eat World are the exception to that rule. They are kind and warm, lovely and humble. And I made them laugh. Well done me.





Supports wise, the choices on both nights were excellent. The Troxy gig featured Reading alt-rockers The Amazons and the Forum welcomed the Londoners of Arcane Roots with open arms. Both bands were excellent. I was familiar with Arcane Roots, having seen them support bands like Enter Shikari or Don Broco, and their music hit home once again. Live, they're a fascinating unit - the blend of so much energy and the atmospheric result is absolutely stunning. I had no idea who The Amazons were, and I left a fan. They proved to be excellent at warming up the crowd and getting people involved, and their catchy tunes and stage attitude reminded me of a certain little band I don't really talk about called The Xcerts. It's not too hard to imagine why I was on board.


I think it's the first time I see Jimmy Eat World live with some sort of prop on stage. As a nod to the general aesthetic of their newest album, Integrity Blues, four giant lampposts are planted around them, making it look like they're performing in the middle of a dimly lit street after it rained. As always, they don't play rockstars - they just walk on stage, grab their instruments and start playing with a simplicity and a humility that will always blow my mind. Back in 2001, they had made it big, Jimmy Eat World. They were on MTV and ended up playing big venues. They could have let it get to their heads. And yet, every time I see them live, the only thing I see is a band that is as overwhelmed as a young band on their first ever tour.





Tracks from Integrity Blues are scattered around an almost two hour long set and merge with the older tracks very easily. Singles Get Right and Sure and Certain get a good reaction from the crowd and less known songs like It Matters or Pass the Baby showcase the band's knack at writing songs that can resonate with everyone. Along with the classics (Bleed American, Lucky Denver Mint, A Praise Chorus), Jimmy Eat World offers us a wide selection of titles and very welcome deep cuts, here and there (notably No Sensitivity at the Forum). A thing I've admired from day one is the way they will, indeed, play the hits when you see them, but they will not solely rely on them. They will play sizeable setlists and include songs you didn't think you would ever hear live (Coffee and Cigarettes was a lovely surprise for me, for example).


The encore, both nights, is composed of pop-punk powerhouses The Middle and Sweetness, and one of the most recent singles, Sure and Certain. It gives the crowd one more chance to crowdsurf and open a little, shy moshpit up and it closes the night with an explosion of singalongs, instantly turning the celebration into a triumph.





I have always thought Jimmy Eat World were one of the most underrated bands in our scene. They have produced nine high quality albums and have constantly reinvented themselves and yet, they are only remembered for albums released before 2001. Some bands would cash in on that. Not them. They carry on doing their thing, paving their own way and working hard to produce emotionally intense and sincere music. A Jimmy Eat World show isn't just a two hour walk down memory lane. It's a two hour celebration of two decades, nine albums, countless songs and the triumph of humility and simplicity.

Until next time.