Jimmy Eat World – Bleed America: Deluxe Edition (2001/Universal CD Set)

 

Sound: B-     Album: C+     Extras: C+

 

 

Jimmy Eat World is not the best Rock band around and after many years in the business, may have a big following, but it is limited.  Still, they are survivors, are at least making music of some substance and have one of the more interesting journeys any band has taken as the record business has taken several turns for the worse.  Bleed America was issued in 2001 and was one of many casualties during its release, issued around the time 9/11 happened.  It temporarily became their second self-titled album (after their debut) but the original title has been restored for this new 2-CD Deluxe Edition.

 

After a problematic stint at Capitol Records, they made this album independently and a bidding war between labels surfaced for it, with then-rising DreamWorks Records landing the album.  At the time, acts like eels were considered the kind of hot new acts that could put the label on the map, but that was sadly short-lived and when the label folded into the Universal family, many potential breakout talents were hurt.

 

The tracks on CD 1, ending in 3 bonus tracks, include:

 

1)     Bleed American

2)     A Praise Chorus

3)     The Middle

4)     Your House

5)     Sweetness

6)     Hear You Me

7)     If You Don’t, Don’t

8)     Get It Faster

9)     Cautioners

10)  The Authority Song

11)  My Sundown

12)  The Most Beautiful Things

13)  No Sensitivity

14)  (Splash) Turn Twist

 

 

Not much stuck with me as I listened, which extended to the bonus CD 2 with 18 tracks that are alternate versions of the above for the most part.  For fans and archivists, this will be fun, but others will find it wearing thin quickly.  As for the sound quality, I expected this to sound good, but the PCM 2.0 16/44.1 Stereo is somewhat compressed all around, though I wondered if that had to do with the budget of the recording or choices in the studio.  If this were an SA-CD, that would be easier to tell, but that lack of fidelity did not help the material at all.  At least they can sing and play, which encourages me to want top hear their other work.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo