"Wow, there sure are a lot of you out there", exclaims a somewhat awestruck Jim Adkins as he waltzes onto the hallowed Brixton Academy stage on this bitter Tuesday evening, "Goddamn!" The sentiment may have become something of a cliche - these days, it seems like every Tom, Dick and Travis that plays at this converted theatre trolls out the crowd-pleasing sentence - but in Jimmy Eat World's case, it just feels genuine. It is decidedly heartwarming to witness such humble declarations, particularly from a band whose popularity has barely waned over the years. They're still the pioneering stalwarts of their genre of choice, the masters of introspective punk-pop with an ear for the very catchiest of melodies. It's little surprise to your average emo kid (and by emo, we mean Weezer and Saves the Day, not All Time Low and Paramore) that JEW continue to be a huge draw, but it's endearing to think they don't realise it themselves.
There are Cheshire cat grins chiseled onto all five (yes, five - they've drafted in Courtney, the female vocalist from the 'Invented' sessions, for backing and keyboards) faces this evening, from the opening chord to the closing squeal of feedback. As the last date of a fairly extensive European tour, this is effectively one massive, cockle-warming celebration of everything that makes the band so Goddamn loveable. So we get the hits: wave after wave after wave, in fact, as an aggressive 'Bleed American' opens proceedings and morphs effortlessly into a similarly raucous 'A Praise Chorus', transporting us all back to the hallowed days of 01 and the promise and vibrancy of that oh-so-tremendous third record. Sensibly, JEW draw heavily from its veritable treasure trove of treats, slipping an epic 'Get It Faster' and a gorgeous 'Hear You Me' into the set, prompting a surprisingly in tune (who'da thunk it?) singalong at the halfway mark.
There are plenty other obvious choices too: an energetic 'Pain', a sombre 'Work', the wonderfully ridiculous 'Big Casino', and a closing duo that elicits mass hysteria in 'The Middle' and 'Sweetness', but it's the less well known moments that provide the biggest highlights. The raw rock stylings of 'Your New Aesthetic' sound colossal when amplified through the Academy's impressive sound system, while the addition of a ten minute, effects-and-sample-heavy 'Goodbye Sky Harbor', far from seeming self-indulgent, provides the perfect dreamy kiss-off to the first part of the set, Jim flailing around the stage, looping his vocal parts over and over, ad infinitum. Impressively, the new material also shines: uber-poppy single 'My Best Theory' sounds beefed up and sassy, 'Evidence' rocks like a bastard and the Tom-led 'Action Needs An Audience' has all the thrills, spills, fire and brimstone of a 'Static Prevails' outtake.
Shamefully, Brixton doesn't really know how to react to these tracks: for all there are a smattering of singalongs and a few energetic enthusiasts, the vast majority seem content to quietly observe rather than participate, reserving their strength, perhaps, for the big hits. It's a little disappointing, particularly when it results in irreverent chatter during the beautiful '23', but hey, it it don't phase the band, it don't phase us. This is still one consummately professional and bloody awesome rock show; a near perfect demonstration of just how to do that punk-pop-emo thing. Paramore and All Time Low wish they could write songs as good as these. They never will.
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