Every Jimmy Eat World album ranked: From worst to best

Jimmy Eat World are one of the most consistently brilliant bands in alternative music. Since solidifying their lineup in 1995, the band have released a new album every three years and haven’t been afraid to play with style or direction.

1999’s Clarity is an iconic cult emo album that helped open the door of the mammoth scene that would follow, while 2001’s Bleed American remains an absolute beast of a record, showing that guitar music could embrace big, euphoric choruses without losing its heart.

Read more: 10 most criminally underrated the All-American Rejects songs

More recently, Jimmy Eat World have explored stripped-back storytelling with 2013’s Damage and big, chunky riffs with 2019’s Surviving. Through it all, their emotive songwriting and ability to tug on the ol’ heartstrings have shone brightly. As vocalist Jim Adkins said a few years ago, “Sexy is an opinion. Reliable is a fact. Opinions change, facts don’t.”

Every Jimmy Eat World album ranked

Wooden Blue

10. Jimmy Eat World (1994)

It seems almost unfair to include Jimmy Eat World’s self-titled debut album in this list. It’s never been available on streaming services, guitarist Tom Linton sang a majority of the songs, and bassist Rick Burch wasn’t even in the band back then. You really wouldn’t know it was Jimmy Eat World unless you were told, as the band were still clearly figuring out who they wanted to be.

The record is full of urgent, scuzzy skate-punk songs and sounds as scrappy as you’d expect from an album given a limited-edition release via local indie label Wooden Blue Records. There are glimpses of the band Jimmy Eat World would become, though. Lead guitarist Adkins delivers lead vocals on “Usery,” with the song also using violin to dial up the drama. But if you’ve never heard the album, you’re not missing much — Jimmy Eat World is very much a loose idea of a rough blueprint for what the band would become.

RCA

9. Damage (2013)

After a string of angsty, guitar-driven albums,  Jimmy Eat World embraced power pop on Damage. Described by the band as an “adult breakup album,” there’s no denying that lead single “I Will Steal You Back” is an absolute banger, but there are a few too many midtempo tracks on the album for it to rank any higher.

In isolation, songs like “Appreciation,” “Damage,” “Book Of Love,” and “Please Say No” are some of Jimmy Eat World’s most affecting songs, with the band’s eighth album really giving space for raw, vulnerable storytelling. There’s just not a whole lot of space left for anything else, though. Damage is a great album for when you want to sit and wallow in your emotions, but there’s not much of Jimmy Eat World’s empowering get-up-and-go. 

Capitol

8. Static Prevails (1996)

Static Prevails is where Jimmy Eat World first shifted from being another angsty punk band to a more sophisticated outfit. Inspired by bands like Sunny Day Real Estate, the four-piece started toying with song structure and intention. With more ambition than just wanting to play rowdy shows, Static Prevails is where Jimmy Eat World learned to be dynamic.

Opening track “Thinking, That’s All” is full of snarling rage that goes beyond the screaming chorus, while the euphoric “Rockstar” acts as a blueprint for some of Jimmy Eat World’s biggest hits. If you want to find out where the band’s story truly begins, this is the album for you.

RCA

7. Integrity Blues (2016)

Following a 10th-anniversary tour for Futures and each member of Jimmy Eat World taking a break from the band to focus on other things (a solo album for Adkins, boxing for Linton), 2016’s Integrity Blues feels like a band refreshed.

Simply put, their ninth album is full of new ideas as well as twists on the classics. Lead single “Sure And Certain” is a confident, robust emo-rock anthem, which was defiantly released at a time when the genre was far from cool, while “Get Right” is a snotty, swaggering number that feels gigantic. Then there’s “Pass The Baby.” The spiritual successor to their classic “Goodbye Sky Harbor,” the post-rock-enthused track features an almighty guitar breakdown after a beautiful, twinkling few moments. Integrity Blues is where Jimmy Eat World proved they still had plenty to offer.

DGC/Interscope

6. Invented (2010)

Released after a hot streak of albums, Invented had a lot to live up to. However, the band certainly didn’t sound like they were feeling the pressure on folksy opener “Heart Is Hard To Find,” and that confidence carries itself through a record that sees Jimmy Eat World firing on all cylinders. It’s impressive,considering it was recorded shortly after an anniversary tour for Clarity, meaning it could have been all too easy for the band to rehash former glories

“My Best Theory” remains one of their most recognizable and exciting tracks with that undeniable guitar line, whereas “Coffee and Cigarettes” is the coming-of-age anthem the band were born to write. Dare we say it, but the brooding “Higher Devotion” and the dreamy “Evidence” are probably some of Jimmy Eat World’s most underrated songs. Invented forever lives in the shadows of what came immediately before it, but it’s the sort of record that proves Jimmy Eat World are entirely unbothered by expectations. 

Capitol

5. Clarity (1999)

After several clashes with Capitol Records during the recording process for Static Prevails, Jimmy Eat World were given complete creative freedom for Clarity. Not because the label trusted the band, though — they’d just given up on the group. Jimmy Eat World could sense things weren’t going well, commercially speaking, as well. Worried it might be the last album they’d ever make, they threw everything they had at Clarity. 

And the results speak for themselves. Sure, the group were soon dropped by Capitol, and the album wasn’t exactly a megahit, but over 20 years later, Clarity is still considered a modern classic. Blending punk, emo, hardcore, and dream pop with a flair for fantastical storytelling and soulful relatability, Jimmy Eat World’s breakthrough album pulls from a variety of influences but sounds uniquely them. Listen to “Lucky Denver Mint,” “Blister,” or the 16-minute epic “Goodbye Sky Harbor” and you’ll see why Clarity remains such an emo staple.

RCA

4. Surviving (2019)

Surviving is the closest we’ve ever got to a Jimmy Eat World Greatest Hits album. “Criminal Energy” leans into the political angst of Bleed American, the twinkling “555” pulls from the pretty storytelling of Chase This Light, and “Love Never” is as big and euphoric as they come.

There’s plenty of new energy on the record as well, though. The stuttering “Congratulations” is a fierce, brooding number that flickers through carefully constructed storytelling and explosive catharsis, while “Recommit” feels like a fresh twist on their emo joy. Every track is undeniably a Jimmy Eat World banger, but Surviving never feels tired or like the band are running out of ideas. If you want to know why people are still excited about new music from the group, it’s because of albums like Surviving.

Interscope

3. Chase This Light (2007)

Chase This Light is perhaps the prettiest Jimmy Eat World album. After a string of records that saw the band take aim at both the personal and the political, Chase This Light felt like a much-needed dose of reassurance. From the loud, jubilant riffs of “Big Casino” to the theatrical sway of “Dizzy,” Jimmy Eat World’s sixth album is driven by communal joy.

There’s plenty of relatable depth for all the emo kids, though. The tambourine-shaking “Feeling Lucky” is an unlikely loser anthem. “Firefight” gives their post-hardcore roots a polish, while “Electable (Give It Up)” is a snarling political track about how elected officials don’t have the same values as the people they’re meant to represent. Nice to see that that’s changed over the past 16 years, eh? 

DreamWorks

2. Bleed American (2001)

It was obvious from the iconic opening of the title track that Jimmy Eat World’s fourth album was going to be something special. Focused, energetic, and full of absolute bangers, Bleed American sees the band channel their sophisticated storytelling and heartfelt messages through big, shiny choruses. A punk album disguised as something more euphoric, songs like “A Praise Chorus,” “The Authority Song,” and “If You Don’t, Don’t” give angst a positive twist. Then there’s “Hear You Me,” a devastating, powerful track about loss that still feels like a punch in the gut.

Of course, Bleed American also features Jimmy Eat World’s biggest swings with generational-defining anthems “The Middle” and “Sweetness.” What made the success of Bleed American even better was the fact they were dropped by their major label prior to releasing it. It went on to sell over a million copies and remains a timeless classic.

Interscope

1. Futures (2004)

How do you follow up an album as successful, as beloved, and as brilliant as Bleed American? Well, Jimmy Eat World poured everything they had into Futures. A reaction to the political climate at the time, and acting as the spiritual successor to the eclectic Clarity, Futures does away with grinning optimism and replaces it with a communal fire. The aggressive album may pack a serious punch, but it never feels miserable.

Kicking off with the hammering title track and rattling through the brooding “Work” and the ferocious “Pain,” Jimmy Eat World tackle everything from despair and self-loathing to drug misuse on Futures. Tracks like “Night Drive” has the band tapping into their twinkling emo side, while the theatrical, slow-burning “23” captures a genuine fear of the future. Refusing to deliver more of the same, Futures is Jimmy Eat World’s most accomplished, ambitious album.