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''Static Prevails'' is the second studio album by American rock band
Jimmy Eat World Jimmy Eat World is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Mesa, Arizona, in 1993. The band is composed of lead vocalist and lead guitarist Jim Adkins, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch, and drummer Zach ...
, released on July 23, 1996, through
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
. Following the release of the band's self-titled debut album (1994), they signed to Capitol in mid-1995 for further releases. Carrier member Rick Burch replaced bassist Mitchel Porter, who left to become a
Mormon missionary Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—often referred to as Mormon missionaries—are volunteer representatives of the church who engage variously in proselytizing, church service, humanitarian aid, and ...
. Recorded at Sound City in Los Angeles and Big Fish in Encinitas, California, Wes Kidd,
Mark Trombino Mark Trombino (born May 23, 1966) is an American multi-platinum record producer, musician, and audio engineer. He has produced, engineered, and mixed tracks for many artists including Jimmy Eat World, Blink-182, The Starting Line, Finch, Motion ...
, and Jimmy Eat World acted as producers for the album. ''Static Prevails'' saw the band move away from
skate punk Skate punk (also known as skatecore and skate rock) is a skateboarding, skater subculture and punk rock Music genre, subgenre that developed in the 1980s. Originally a form of hardcore punk that had been closely associated with skate culture, sk ...
and
pop-punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...
, and into a more aggressive sound consisting of
post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. Like the term " post-punk", the term "post-hardcore" has been applied to a broad conste ...
,
emo Emo () is a genre of rock music characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of hardcore punk and from the Washington, D.C., hardcore scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore. The bands ...
and
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
. Preceded by a three-month United States tour, it was promoted with a mini tour of the country, a stint with the
Smoking Popes Smoking Popes is an American pop punk band from the northwest suburbs of Chicago. They are composed of brothers Matt Caterer (bass), Josh Caterer (lead vocals/guitar) and Eli Caterer (guitar/backing vocals) and Mike Felumlee (drums). Histo ...
and
the Figgs The Figgs are a rock ‘n’ roll band formed in Saratoga Springs, New York in 1987. Originally known as The Sonic Undertones, their output includes thirteen studio albums and multiple EPs and singles. They’ve served as the backing band for r ...
, and a US tour with
Sense Field Sense Field was an American post-hardcore band from Southern California, formed in 1990. Originally consisting of vocalist Jon Bunch, guitarist Chris Evenson, guitarist Rodney Sellars, bassist John Stockberger, and drummer Scott McPherson, the ...
in early 1997. A music video was filmed for "Rockstar", and "Call It in the Air" was released as the lead single in August 1996. The album received mixed reviews from music critics, who mostly commented on the vocals and guitarwork. It has since been viewed as a benchmark for the second wave of emo.


Background and split single

Jimmy Eat World released their self-titled debut studio album, through local label Wooden Blue Records in December 1994. As the members left high school, frontman
Jim Adkins James Christopher Adkins (born November 10, 1975) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter who is best known as the lead guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter of the rock band Jimmy Eat World. Career Jimmy Eat World (1993–present) ...
worked for a production company with Joel Leibow, co-founder of Wooden Blue. The company listed itself in '' Maximum Rocknroll'' guide ''Book Your Own Fuckin' Life'', which assisted bands, promoters, and venues to book shows across the United States. Christie Front Drive were planned to support Sense Field in Los Angeles, California and sought to cobble a touring schedule with ''Book Your Own Fuckin' Life'', contacting Adkins and Leibow's company for a gig in
Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...
.Ozzi 2022, p. 77 Following that gig, Leibow asked if they wished to do a split seven-inch record with Jimmy Eat World for Wooden Blue. Frontman Eric Richter was not aware of that band, and was not fond of their pop-punk style after hearing their debut album, but agreed to it.Ozzi 2022, p. 78 Loren Israel, who had been elevated to a
talent scout In professional sports, scouts are experienced talent evaluators who travel extensively for the purposes of watching athletes play their chosen sports, and they determine whether their set of skills and talents represent what is needed by the s ...
role at
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
after being an unpaid intern of three years, was annoyed at losing
Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...
to
Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...
, and sought to sign other new artists. Israel went to the Sense Field show to check out that band; however, Christie Front Drive, caught his attention. Liking their performance, Israel approached them and was promptly given Richter's phone number. Upon arriving in their home state of Colorado, Richter found a
cassette tape The Compact Cassette, also commonly called a cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog audio, analog magnetic tape recording format for Sound recording and reproduction, audio recording and playback. Invented by L ...
Adkins had sent him with a newly composed song on it, "Digits". The track was a departure from pop-punk into a new sound Jimmy Eat World were experimenting with; drummer Zach Lind said the music of Christie Front Drive was a direct influence on the sonic shift. Richter, who was living with his parents, was told that he had gotten a call from Capitol Records and had a message from Israel. After various calls with Israel and fellow Capitol staff member Craig Aaronson, where Richter said he was not interested, he eventually told Israel about the upcoming split with Jimmy Eat World.Ozzi 2022, p. 79 The Jimmy Eat World and Christie Front Drive split was issued on Wooden Blue Records in 1995. Adkins and Wooden Blue co-founder Jeremy Yocum got an apartment together as the former was attending his first year at
Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1899, it was the third and final university established in the Arizona Territory. It is one of the three universities gove ...
in
Flagstaff, Arizona Flagstaff ( ), known locally as Flag, is the county seat of Coconino County, Arizona, in the southwestern United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 76,831. Flagstaff is the principal city of the Coconino Cou ...
. During one day that Adkins was not in, Yocum answered a call from Aaronson, who was looking for Adkins. Yocum told Aaronson that Jimmy Eat World was playing at The Nile Theater in
Mesa, Arizona Mesa ( ) is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. The population was 504,258 at the 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Arizona, third-most populous city in Arizona, after Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona, T ...
the following week, and while he wrote information down from Aaronson, he had forgotten to tell Adkins about it when the latter returned hours later. Aaronson went to the Nile show and after its conclusion, approached the members of Jimmy Eat World, telling them that he had been frequently listening to the split.Ozzi 2022, p. 80 Up to now, two other major labels had contacted the band and asked for a tape of their music prior to the interest from Capitol. The following day, Aaronson and the band met up; guitarist Tom Linton understood his love of music, though him and Adkins were apprehensive about the situation. The members had been conscious of a feature in ''Maximum Rocknroll'' titled "Some of Your Friends Are Already Fucked", where Adkins said they learned about "the horror stories of getting screwed ver by labels" After swapping details, they got frequent phone calls from Aaronson and Israel over the following weeks, the latter of which was not aware of any other label interest in the band. At this stage, Jimmy Eat World lacked a lawyer and a manager; they could not afford a touring manager as they did not have enough funds. Despite this, they were accompanied by roadie Paul Drake, who they were introduced to through Christie Front Drive. Drake said that while Aaronson appeared to be a good person, he was still a standard A&R yes-man.Ozzi 2022, p. 81


Capitol Records signing

Up to 1995, Capitol Records had a prosperous 1990s, having celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1992, the addition of Gary Gersh as the label's new president in 1993 and the mining of its back catalog thanks to past artists such as
Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, alternatively billed as Nat "King" Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and Traditional pop, pop ...
and
Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...
. By 1995, Israel felt that the label had to find another potentially big, new artist. He explained that after Capitol's previous success with
MC Hammer Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), better known by his stage name MC Hammer (or simply Hammer), is an American rapper known for hit songs such as "U Can't Touch This", "2 Legit 2 Quit", and "Pumps and a Bump", flashy dance movements, e ...
at the start of the decade, money was slowly depleting. Israel said the number of
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
bands that shifted units were a small amount compared to the butt rock and pop genres: "Sure, Green Day sold a lot, but how many Green Days were there?" Though Israel was not aware of the type of artists the other scouts were eyeing up, he himself sought a group that could composed radio-appropriate hit songs and were magazine cover-friendly. The other staff at Capitol were not in-tune with current music, and on the occasion that they were, he saw that "it was more collegiate."Ozzi 2022, p. 84 Israel thought Jimmy Eat World, despite the rough edge of their earlier releases, had writing potential and physical attractiveness that Capitol might be able to grow and sell. Despite his enthusiasm, Israel's co-workers did not care for the band. Journalist Dan Ozzi, in his book ''Sellout: The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore 1994–2007'' (2021), wrote Jimmy Eat World resembled Boy Scouts that did not have the aggressive characteristic of
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
, nor the power-chord knack of
Green Day Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...
. Aaronson was the only one of Israel's colleagues that wanted to help him. Around this time, Gersh became Aaronson's mentor, the two having met previously at
Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...
when the latter was operating out of the mailroom. Aaronson wanted to work in the Capitol A&R offices, with Gersh relenting after constant asking. With trust in Israel's judgement, Aaronson went to Gersh about signing Jimmy Eat World. According to Lind, Gersh had told Aaronson not to pursue them.Ozzi 2022, p. 85 On visits to Los Angeles, Aaronson and Israel looked after the members of Jimmy Eat World, providing them with lodging. The band were shown around the Capitol Records' offices and over the next few months, they struck up a strong rapport with Aaronson and Israel, viewing them as actual individuals instead of ''Maximum Rockandroll''-envisaged corporate businessmen. The pair told the band what Capitol Records as able to provide them: a proper producer, time in the studio and a solid budget for recording. Adkins said the choices were either Capitol or keep issuing releases on his roommate's label, realising that Wooden Blue Records could not be an acceptable operation any further. Gersh yielded his position and agreed to have Aaronson offer a development deal to start with, which allowed Capitol Records to have a claim to Jimmy Eat World. They were given a small stack of papers to sign; though they had no manager to look at the papers, the members promptly brought it up to their parents. As the band did not know any
entertainment law Entertainment law, also known as media law, encompasses legal services provided to the entertainment industry. These services often overlap with intellectual property law, which includes key components such as trademarks, copyright, and the right ...
yers, they hired Lind's family attorney to gloss over the contract. According to Adkins, the attorney "kept saying, 'I'm not an entertainment lawyer, but here's what I ''think'' it says. A few of their parents were worried that having an uncertain music career meant giving up on education, eventually conceding that the members could always enrol the following year. As a result, Adkins shifted his full attention to Jimmy Eat World, dropping out of college. An issue arose around bassist Mitch Porter and his family: as he was raised to be a
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
, and when he turned 19, he was expected to embark on a mission call. Porter, who had been keeping the knowledge of the deal from his parents, quit the band.Ozzi 2022, p. 86 Bassist Rich Burch, who had previously turned down Jimmy Eat World as he was busy with his band Carrier, joined. He avoided college in order to play with them, acknowledging that they were about to sign with a major record label. In mid-1995, Jimmy Eat World formally signed a development deal that included one album, with the possibility for six more. They received a smaller sum for the deal than similar bands Green Day and Jawbreaker had. As such, the members of Jimmy Eat World retained their jobs, such as at an art supply store and temp agency, in order to cover rent. The label did purchase a $20,000 pre-owned
Ford econoline The Ford E-Series (also known as the Ford Econoline, Ford Econovan or Ford Club Wagon) is a range of full-size vans manufactured and marketed by the Ford Motor Company. Introduced for 1961 as the replacement of the Ford F-Series panel van, four ...
van for the band, which allowed them to tour without the threat of breaking down, giving them an advantage over their contemporaries.Ozzi 2022, p. 87 Capitol set up the band to record demos for their next album with Jon Auer of
the Posies The Posies were an American rock band. The band was formed in 1986 in Bellingham, Washington, United States, by primary songwriters Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow. Their music has its origins in Merseybeat and the Hollies. They are influ ...
in Seattle, Washington. They then visited Aaronson at his house in Los Angeles, where they showed him the demos they had done. Aaronson was discussing the band's songwriting process, which he felt made no sense; Adkins explained they used to write songs as a series of interesting parts one after another.


Recording and production

As Aaronson and Israel wanted to schedule recording time for Jimmy Eat World, excited to see what they would create, they asked the members if there was anyone in mind they wished to work with. Adkins immediately thought of
Mark Trombino Mark Trombino (born May 23, 1966) is an American multi-platinum record producer, musician, and audio engineer. He has produced, engineered, and mixed tracks for many artists including Jimmy Eat World, Blink-182, The Starting Line, Finch, Motion ...
, former drummer for Drive Like Jehu, one of his favorite artists. Drive Like Jehu had issued their own major label album the year before with '' Yank Crime'' (1994). Lind said Adkins played them Drive Like Jehu before; the members of Jimmy Eat World also enjoyed other acts Trominbo had worked with, such as
Boys Life ''Scout Life'' (formerly ''Boys' Life'') is the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Its target readers are children between the ages of 6 and 18. The magazine‘s headquarters are in Irving, Texas. ''Scout Life'' is published ...
and Boilermaker. Aaronson then set them up with Trombino at Big Fish Studios, located in
Encinitas, California Encinitas ( Spanish for "Small Oaks") is a beach city in the North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. Located in Southern California, it is approximately north of San Diego, between Solana Beach and Carlsbad, and a ...
. The band and Trombino spent two days here, where they quickly struck up a good rapport with one another. They recorded two songs together, "Opener" and "77 Satellites", both of which were released through independent label An Industry for Outer Space on seven-inch vinyl. Knowing the session was fruitful, Capitol Records green lit an album, expected to be recorded later in the year. Jimmy Eat World wanted Trombino for their new album; however, Trombino had limited experience as a producer, and had not handled an album that was commercially viable. Aaronson felt his superiors would not gel with Trombino's lack of credentials, and decided to bring in Wes Kidd to fill the producer's role. Kidd fronted recent labelmates Triple Fast Action, who Capitol saw as a more important investment than Jimmy Eat World. To satiate members of the latter, Trombino was added to collaborate with Kidd. Lind said Kidd's involvement was solely to keep their label happy and to bring in a more competent songwriter.Ozzi 2022, p. 88 At the label's insistence, Jimmy Eat World went to a rehearsal room in Los Angeles, having been told to write some new songs and rewrite others, being guided by Kidd. Capitol initially wanted the production duo of Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf, who had previously produced for the likes of the
Foo Fighters The Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Initially founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the band comprises vocalist/guitarist Grohl, bassist Nate Mendel, gu ...
and Beck, to helm the album. The label eventually relented, with the band, Trombino and Kidd all receiving a producer credit. The band did pre-production at Mind's Eye Digital in Mesa, with engineer Larry Elyea. ''Static Prevails'' was recorded at Sound City in Los Angeles, and at Big Fish. with sessions being split across two periods, in August and December 1995, to accommodate the members who stayed in college to finish their semesters. In contrast to how Jimmy Eat World recorded their debut album – made in two days together in one room – the members were shown how to do
multitrack recording Multitrack recording (MTR), also known as multitracking, is a method of sound recording developed in 1955 that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources or of sound sources recorded at different times to create a cohesive who ...
, and given weeks to toy with the technology. Drums were recorded over a week at Sound City. Billy Bowers and Jeff Sheehan served as assistant engineers at Sound City. When Jimmy Eat World recorded Seventeen", it initially featured the
chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...
line "You're only seventeen"; however, when they realized it sounded too similar to a song by Winger, Linton changed the lyrics, and the band re-recorded it. A segment of their recording budget was used to have Richter flown out to Los Angeles to record a vocal part for a re-recorded version of "Digits". Trombino, who also acted as engineer, mixed all of the tracks, apart from "Rockstar" and "Seventeen", in Studio C at Capitol Studios. Peter Doell, Billy Smith, and Steve Genewick worked as assistant engineers at Capitol. Rothrock and Schnapf mixed "Rockstar" and "Seventeen" at
Sunset Sound Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it is a phenomenon th ...
, with Cappy Japngie serving as an assistant engineer. Captiol Records insisted on Rothrock and Schnapf mixing the tracks because the label planned to send them to
alternative radio Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college and commercial rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. ...
stations; subsequently, the vocals on both tracks ended up high in the mix.
Stephen Marcussen Stephen Marcussen is the founder and chief mastering engineer at Marcussen Mastering in Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and distri ...
mastered all of the recordings at Precision Mastering, while Aaronson served as the executive producer.


Composition and lyrics


Overview

''Static Prevails'' marked a shift from Jimmy Eat World's previous
skate punk Skate punk (also known as skatecore and skate rock) is a skateboarding, skater subculture and punk rock Music genre, subgenre that developed in the 1980s. Originally a form of hardcore punk that had been closely associated with skate culture, sk ...
material in the vein of
NOFX NOFX () was an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983. Bassist/lead vocalist Fat Mike, rhythm guitarist Eric Melvin and drummer Erik Sandin were original founding and longest-serving members of the band, who have appeared on every ...
,
Rocket from the Crypt Rocket from the Crypt is an American punk rock band from San Diego, California, originally active from 1990 to 2005, then active during 2011 and again from 2013 to the present. The band gained critical praise and the attention of major record ...
, and J Church, into aggressive but melodic
post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. Like the term " post-punk", the term "post-hardcore" has been applied to a broad conste ...
,
emo Emo () is a genre of rock music characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of hardcore punk and from the Washington, D.C., hardcore scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore. The bands ...
, and
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
, taking inspiration from mid-tempo
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
artists such as Low, Seam,
Sunny Day Real Estate Sunny Day Real Estate is an American emo band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1992. The band currently consists of founding members Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar), Dan Hoerner (guitar) and William Goldsmith (drums), alongside Greg Suran ...
, and
Tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...
. Ozzi said Jimmy Eat World musically sat between the type of band they wanted to be and the kind of band their label expected of them. Lind attributed this change in style to listening to Christie Front Drive, who they found to be highly melodic while remaining impactful. He said he played in a more aggressive and noisier style of rock-oriented drumming, with elements of his punk roots. ''Static Prevails'' splits lead vocals evenly between Linton and Adkins, which contrasted from the Linton-dominated ''Jimmy Eat World'', where Adkins only sung lead on one track. Trombino was baffled at first by the vocal change, as he considered Linton their main vocalist and Adkins an occasional singer, to the point where he asked why Linton was not providing more vocal parts.Ozzi 2022, p. 89 Ted Simons of ''
Phoenix New Times ''Phoenix New Times'' is a free digital and print media company based in Phoenix, Arizona. ''Phoenix'' ''New Times'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music, arts, cannabis, as well as longform narrative journalism. A ...
'' compared Adkins' vocals to those of the Replacements' frontman Paul Westerberg. Ozzi remarked that where Adkins had previously crammed a lot of lyrics into fast-paced punk rock verses, for the new songs, he spread out the words and let them "occupy the space the band created for themselves." In addition to playing the drums, Lind played the
accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...
and the
concertina A concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It consists of expanding and contracting bellows, with buttons (or keys) usually on both ends, unlike accordion buttons, which are on the front. The ...
. Tracks such as "Seventeen", "Digits" and "Robot Factory" are reminiscent of releases on indie labels like Homestead and
Twin/Tone Records Twin/Tone Records was an independent record label based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, which operated from 1977 until 1994. It was the original home of influential Minnesota bands the Replacements and Soul Asylum and was instrumental in helping the ...
. Richter provided additional vocals on "Digits", while Kidd played an
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
on "Claire", Lind's ex-girlfriend Sarah Pont played violin, and Trombino contributed on the
Moog synthesizer The Moog synthesizer ( ) is a modular synthesizer invented by the American engineer Robert Moog in 1964. Moog's company, R. A. Moog Co., produced numerous models from 1965 to 1981, and again from 2014. It was the first commercial synthesizer ...
.


Songs

The opening track, "Thinking, That's All", and "Call It in the Air" are
screamo Screamo (also referred to as skramz) is a subgenre of emo that emerged in the early 1990s and emphasizes "willfully experimental dissonance and dynamics".Jason Heller, "Feast of Reason". ''Denver Westword'', June 20, 2002 Access date: June 15, 2 ...
-esque songs, the former channeling the sound of Unwound. Linton said Adkins came up with the basic form of "Thinking, That's All", which the other members added to. The band had been playing "Rockstar" live for sometime, prior to signing with Capitol, with Linton often mumbling his speech as he had no lyrics for it. It was only during the demo session with Auer that he wrote the words, as the label thought it was a hit-sounding song. "Claire" evokes Texas Is the Reason with its quiet and loud sections, aided by a violin. Lind considered the song to be important for the band, as it showed them that a simplistic arrangement could make a song interesting. Linton said they took influence for it from Sunny Day Real Estate, specifically their song " In Circles" (1994), while Adkins said the lyrics were akin to a journal entry. "Call It in the Air", with its punk-esque sound, earned a comparison to Sense Field. Lind said it exemplified the band's punk roots. Lind said the opening drum part to "Seventeen" intentionally ripped off Drive Like Jehu, to the annoyance of Trombino. "Episode IV" is the first track the band wrote without any "loud, saturated guitar sounds", according to Adkins. He came up with the basic structure, which he showed to Linton, who thought it had a sound akin to " Hurt" (1994) by
Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN (stylized as NIИ), is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988. Its members are the singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Trent Reznor and his frequent col ...
. Linton opted to whisper his vocals instead of singing to "keep it a really delicate song". "Digits" was influenced by the work of Christie Front Drive; an earlier version of it was released on Jimmy Eat World's split with Christie Front Drive. For the album's version, new sections were added to the song, increasing its length by a further three minutes. "Caveman" features the sound of crickets throughout its length, which was achieved by taking a
Neumann Neumann () is a German language, German surname, with its origins in the pre-7th-century (Old English) word ''wikt:neowe, neowe'' meaning "new", with ''wikt:mann, mann'', meaning man. The English form of the name is Newman. Von Neumann is a varian ...
U67 microphone outside Big Fish Studios. For sometime, Linton struggled with the song's lyrics; he only came up with them while in the bathroom at the studio "looking at aerosol cans and trying to find some rhythming words to match the verse". The band used to open their shows with "World Is Static" as it would shift direction partway through. Alongside this, Adkins said they were employing choruses more often as they found enjoyment in repetition. The drums in it were inspired by John Anderson, the drummer of Boys Life. Staff members at Capitol asked Linton to tell Adkins to stop screaming as he was doing it for the majority of "World Is Static": "I was like, 'Yeah, I can't tell him that, because he'll just scream louder. Burch compared the hushed atmosphere of "In the Same Room" to falling snow. When mixing the song, Adkins said him and Trombino recorded radio static for its beginning, which Trombino compressed to make it sit around the vocals. The title of "Robot Factory" comes from a
power plant A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...
in the McClintock area of Tempe, Arizona. The closing track, "Anderson Mesa", features a
string arrangement The string section of an orchestra is composed of bowed instruments belonging to the violin family. It normally consists of first and second violins, violas, cellos, and double basses. It is the most numerous group in the standard orchestra. In ...
; its title references the observatory of the same name. Adkins said it was about him living in Flagstaff, in particular, his previous college apartment during its closing lyrics.


Release and conflict with Capitol Records

After Jimmy Eat World handed in ''Static Prevails'', the staff at Capitol were disappointed. "Just guys being like, 'Uh ... this is a lot different than what we expected, according to Linton. Jimmy Eat World toured the West Coast of the US in anticipation of the album between May and July 1996, supporting Crumb for half of this period. Capitol Records released ''Static Prevails'' on July 23, 1996. The cover artwork features a sideways photo of chimneys, shot on a rooftop in
Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
, which was taken by Drake. The original vinyl LP version featured different artwork, and included the bonus seven-inch vinyl of "In the Same Room" and "77 Satellites". The discourse with the concept of
selling out To "sell out" is to compromise one's integrity, morality, Authenticity (philosophy), authenticity, or Principle#As moral law, principles in exchange for personal gain, such as money or power. In terms of music or art, selling out is associated w ...
hade reached the mainstream by the time of ''Static Prevails'' release; the band had relatively few fans during this period that Burch said they were "so young that there wasn't anything to sell."Ozzi 2022, p. 90 Ozzi said the music scene in Arizona was receptive to Jimmy Eat World's desire to get bigger, unlike the scene in
Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...
, which was hostile towards its bands that had joined major labels. Backlash towards the band instead came from when "Seventeen" was used on a promotional CD for the Surge brand of drinks, created by
The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. It manufactures, sells and markets soft drinks including Coca-Cola, other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. Its stock is lis ...
.Ozzi 2022, p. 91 While their local community was supportive of Jimmy Eat World, they soon learned that Capitol Records was unsure of how to handle the band. Adkins said that major labels knew what to do with artists that shifted thousands of albums per week, such as Green Day and Jawbreaker, yet were stumped on what to do with Jimmy Eat World, whose collective sales racked up 2,000 copies across all their releases. As ''Static Prevails'' lacked an obvious single-sounding song, radio support for the album was dropped. It struggled to receive feature stories and reviews from press outlets and magazines. The band appeared too insignificant for press outlets to care about them, while important punk zines disregarded anything that was issued on a major label. Despite this, Israel drafted up reviews that were then sent to zines, such as ''Maximum Rocknroll''. He said writers for these types of publications were talking about bands like
Jawbox Jawbox is an American post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C., formed in 1989. The band currently consists of J. Robbins (vocals/guitar), Kim Coletta (bass), Zach Barocas (drums), and Brooks Harlan (guitars/vocals). The original lineup consis ...
, Knapsack, and Texas Is the Reason, all of whom he felt lacked the better vocals that Adkins and Linton offer and were unable to write hooks like Jimmy Eat World. Aaronson and Israel were met with indifference at the label's offices, with Gersh not willing to support an act that was relatively unknown.Ozzi 2022, p. 92 The band made a
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for "Rockstar", which was included on some copies of the CD version of the album as enhanced content. It was filmed at Koo's Cafe, a DIY venue in Santa Ana, California, with directing brother and sister duo Richard and Stefanie Reines, both founders of Drive-Thru Records and friends of Jimmy Eat World. A friend of the siblings was interested in funding said music video; it was estimated to cost $5–10,000, with him initially wanting to pay half. When Israel brought this up to Gersh during a meeting, an argument ensured with Gersh declining the proposal. It was eventually made without support from Capitol. Marketing ideas from the label were met with resistance from Jimmy Eat World. During one meeting, Capitol's marketing department suggested having them perform outside
7-Eleven 7-Eleven, Inc. is an American convenience store chain, headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seven-Eleven Japan, which in turn is owned by the retail holdings company Seven & I Holdings. The chain was founde ...
s all over the country, which was promptly turned down. Leibow began an
internship An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used to practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and g ...
at Capitol during this time and directly saw how the label was fine with allowing ''Static Prevails'' get buried under other releases from the year, such as
one 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
from the
Butthole Surfers Butthole Surfers are an American rock band formed in San Antonio, Texas, by singer Gibby Haynes and guitarist Paul Leary in 1981. The band has had numerous personnel changes, but its core lineup of Haynes, Leary, and drummer King Coffey has ...
, which he was told to promote instead.Ozzi 2022, p. 93 Capitol Records released "Call It in the Air" as the
lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...
from ''Static Prevails'' on August 26, 1996,Reece 1996, p. 21 on a seven-inch vinyl record, with "Rockstar" as the
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
. Despite the issues with Capitol Records, Jimmy Eat World proceeded as they previously had, with Lind booking their future touring treks.Ozzi 2022, p. 94 The band promoted the album with a mini-US tour along the West Coast; later, they embarked on the God Bless America tour with labelmates the
Smoking Popes Smoking Popes is an American pop punk band from the northwest suburbs of Chicago. They are composed of brothers Matt Caterer (bass), Josh Caterer (lead vocals/guitar) and Eli Caterer (guitar/backing vocals) and Mike Felumlee (drums). Histo ...
and
the Figgs The Figgs are a rock ‘n’ roll band formed in Saratoga Springs, New York in 1987. Originally known as The Sonic Undertones, their output includes thirteen studio albums and multiple EPs and singles. They’ve served as the backing band for r ...
from September 1996. Following a supporting show for the Voodoo Glow Skulls in October 1996, Jimmy Eat World they played a few West Coast shows the following month. In February 1997, Jimmy Eat World embarked on a cross-country US tour with Sense Field. The members of Jimmy Eat World frequented record stores, where they were unable to locate copies of ''Static Prevails''. When in the New York City offices of the label, Adkins tried to find any sign of their album, only to be asked by an employee if he had gotten lost, presuming Adkins to be a student that disappeared while on a tour of the facility. Adkins had discussions with Richter, where he was disappointed with being on Capitol and debated doing something else with his life. Jimmy Eat World were making headway while grinding out on tour, alongside their contemporaries in
Braid A braid (also referred to as a plait; ) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing three or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair. The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strand ...
, Jejune and
Mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid substance with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2011): Mi ...
. Capitol felt the original version of "Seventeen" would work in the film '' Never Been Kissed'' (1999), and in return for letting them use it in the movie, the band members met
Drew Barrymore Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, talk show host, and businesswoman. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she has received multiple List of awards and nominations received by Drew Barrymore, awards a ...
. Adkins felt the lyrics of the original tied in well with the lead character of the movie.


Reception and aftermath

''Static Prevails'' was met with mixed reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...
on its songwriting. ''
Gavin Report The ''Gavin Report'' was a San Francisco-based radio industry trade publication. The publication was founded by radio performer Bill Gavin in 1958. Its Top 40 listings were used for many years by programmers to decide content of programs. The ...
'' David Beran highlighted the guitarwork on the album, and remarked that Jimmy Eat World "still have a lot of world to eat; they're on the right track."
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
reviewer Mike DaRonco stated that the maturity of later Jimmy Eat World material was fundamentally absent from ''Static Prevails''; "but it's almost as if the studio heads at Capitol wouldn't let them atureso that there would be more room for radio-friendly pop songs. In the end, nobody won." Harry Guerin of
RTÉ (; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Irish public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, ...
found the release to be a mainly typical emo album that rarely kept his attention throughout its duration. According to him, it had a high number of similar-sounding guitar riffs and "overwrought vocals ..to be convincing". Journalist Chris Ryan, writing in ''
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...
'' (2004), called it a product of the time period it was made in, complete with "anxiety-ridden vocals, lyrics of suburban melodrama, and screaming punk guitars". He conceded that Jimmy Eat World "knew a hook heard it head one", highlighting "Call It in the Air".
BBC Music BBC Music is the arm of the BBC responsible for the music played across its services. The current director of music is Lorna Clarke. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio operational division; however, its remit also includes music used i ...
writer Tim Nelson opened his review asking if the album title was intended to be read as ironic, as "staying still is one thing this propulsive pop album ..doesn't do." In his eyes, the music passed the line dividing "indie indulgence and soul-sucking corporate pap with aplomb". Barbara Restaino of ''Lollipop Magazine'' thought she would enjoy the enjoy the album to begin with, however, Adkins and Linton's voices became an annoyance to her after a while. In the first of ''Static Prevails'' release, the album had sold less than 10,000 copies, making it a commercial failure.Ozzi 2022, p. 95 The Nettwerk America label re-released ''Static Prevails'' and Jimmy Eat World's third studio album ''
Clarity Clarity may refer to: Music Albums * ''Clarity'' (Jimmy Eat World album) or the title song, 1999 * ''Clarity'' (Sifow album) or the title song, 2006 * ''Clarity'' (Zedd album) or the title song (see below), 2012 * ''Clarity'' (mixtape), by K ...
'' (1999) in June 2001. Both albums were then reissued in 2007; "77 Satellites" and "What Would I Say to You Now" were included as bonus tracks on this iteration of ''Static Prevails''. ''Static Prevails'', along with ''Clarity'' and their fifth studio ''
Futures Futures may mean: Finance *Futures contract, a tradable financial derivatives contract *Futures exchange, a financial market where futures contracts are traded *''Modern Trader'', formerly Futures, an American finance magazine Music * ''Futures' ...
'' (2004), was re-pressed on vinyl in 2014. In 2007, Michael Carriere of ''
The Shepherd Express ''The Shepherd Express'' is an alternative monthly magazine published in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. History The paper originated in May 1982 as the ''Crazy Shepherd'', its name derived from a line in Allen Ginsberg’s poem “Footnotes to Howl ...
'' viewed ''Static Prevails'' and ''Clarity'' as landmarks in the second wave of emo. In 2012, Jason Heller of ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
'' noted that like with similar punk artists that joined major labels, Jimmy Eat World lost of a lot older fans and earned a minuscule amount of new ones with ''Static Prevails''. Coinciding with the album's 25th anniversary, Bandbox and Captiol Records released a version of the album with an accompanying booklet written by Alex Rice. He highlighted five songs from the band's catalogue – "Believe in What You Want" from ''Clarity'', " Bleed American" from their fourth studio album '' Bleed American'' (2001), "Futures" from ''Futures'' (2004), "Action Needs an Audience" from their seventh studio album '' Invented'' (2010), and "Pol Roger" from their ninth studio album '' Integrity Blues'' (2016) – that drew influence from ''Static Prevails''. '' Louder'' writer Alistair Lawrence said songs like "Claire" and "Digits" made "something uneven but distinct, which would unintentionally form part of the roadmap for emo's rite of passage through the late '90s". Andrew Sacher of ''
BrooklynVegan ''BrooklynVegan'' is an American online music magazine founded in 2004 by David Levine. The company is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, and originally focused on vegan food and the music community in and around New York City, before broadeni ...
'' felt that "Claire" was the oldest instance of the band reaching with artistic intentions, which was further on ''Clarity''.


Track listing

All songs written by
Jimmy Eat World Jimmy Eat World is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Mesa, Arizona, in 1993. The band is composed of lead vocalist and lead guitarist Jim Adkins, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch, and drummer Zach ...
. All recordings produced by Wes Kidd,
Mark Trombino Mark Trombino (born May 23, 1966) is an American multi-platinum record producer, musician, and audio engineer. He has produced, engineered, and mixed tracks for many artists including Jimmy Eat World, Blink-182, The Starting Line, Finch, Motion ...
, and Jimmy Eat World.


Personnel

Personnel per booklet. Jimmy Eat World * Tom Linton – guitar, vocals *
Jim Adkins James Christopher Adkins (born November 10, 1975) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter who is best known as the lead guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter of the rock band Jimmy Eat World. Career Jimmy Eat World (1993–present) ...
 – guitar, vocals * Zach Lind – drums,
accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...
,
concertina A concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It consists of expanding and contracting bellows, with buttons (or keys) usually on both ends, unlike accordion buttons, which are on the front. The ...
* Rick Burch – bass guitar Additional musicians * Eric Richter – additional vocals (track 7) * Sarah Pont – violin *
Mark Trombino Mark Trombino (born May 23, 1966) is an American multi-platinum record producer, musician, and audio engineer. He has produced, engineered, and mixed tracks for many artists including Jimmy Eat World, Blink-182, The Starting Line, Finch, Motion ...
 – Moog * Wes Kidd – acoustic guitar (track 3) Design * Paul Drake – cover photography, ambient band photo * Andy Mueller – smiley band photo * Jim Adkins – other photos * Ohiogirlco – design, art direction Production * Wes Kidd – producer * Mark Trombino – producer, engineer, mixing (all except tracks 2 and 5) * Jimmy Eat World – producer * Tom Rothrock – mixing (tracks 2 and 5) * Rob Schnapf – mixing (tracks 2 and 5) * Billy Bowers – assistant engineer * Jeff Sheehan – assistant engineer * Peter Doell – assistant engineer * Billy Smith – assistant engineer * Steve Genewick – assistant engineer * Cappy Japngie – assistant engineer * Larry Elyea – engineer *
Stephen Marcussen Stephen Marcussen is the founder and chief mastering engineer at Marcussen Mastering in Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and distri ...
 – mastering * Craig Aaronson –
executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...


References

Citations Sources * * * * * * * * * *


External links


''Static Prevails''
(bonus track version) at
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
(streamed copy where licensed)
Music video for "Rockstar"
at YouTube
"Jimmy Eat World’s Static Prevails Holds Up 25 Years Later"
at TV Obsessive {{Authority control 1996 albums Jimmy Eat World albums Capitol Records albums Albums produced by Mark Trombino Post-hardcore albums by American artists Punk rock albums by American artists