Jimmy Eat World became a smash hit with their album Bleed American (which was later self-titled) thanks to feelgood, pop-rock anthems such as The Middle, Sweetness, and A Praise Chorus. They became the poster children for "emo," a genre I can barely stand. Yet I liked JEW because they weren't whiny and self-absorbed and they knew how to write a solid hit song that could be fun and poppy while still rocking.

For their follow-up Futures, they decided to take things in a fairly different direction with a more mature sound. Luckily, their growing up didn't sound nearly as forced as Blink-182's. Instead Jimmy Eat World continued making good, poppy rock songs but with the anthemic quality toned way down. While they've got a lot of good material on Futures, I can't help but wish they would have gone for a couple huge numbers like on the last album. By not playing to their strength, the album packs less punch than it should.

It starts off well enough with the title track, one of the album's best. Futures has a cool guitar riff, excellent drumming, and an overall upbeat quality that immediately gets you into the album with its forceful opening line: "I've always believed in futures." First single Pain cranks up the volume with a fast and furious (by JEW standards) sound, thanks mainly to its nearly screamed chorus: "Takes my pain/ Takes my pain/ Takes my pain away!" But Nothingwrong works much better as the album's hard rocking highlight. Not only is it the album's most energetic, but I dig the culpability theme: "It's second nature to say/ Hey, hey, hey/ We've done nothing wrong." Other songs such as Kill and Just Tonight... use fast tempos and solid instrumentation (especially Kill's baseline) and keep the energy high enough to make this album as good for driving as it is for just chilling with some friends.

They also manage to sprinkle in some slow tunes that add sensitivity without sounding too sappy. Work is a pretty good teenage love anthem that's sure to please the emo kids with lines like "All the best DJs are saving/ The slowest song for last/ When the dance is through/ It's me and you/ Come on, would it really be so bad?" More effective, however, is Drugs Or Me, a soft ballad about seeing a loved one changed by addiction: "If only you could see the stranger next to me." I find this song, along with 23, quite impressive, as JEW manage to stretch the conventional length of a song, giving the album less of a pop feel without sounding overblown.

But while Futures is a wholly listenable album, there is just not enough material that grabs you and sticks in your mind. I give Jimmy Eat World a lot of credit for steering clear of formulas and opting to try some new things, but without playing to their strengths, the album suffers. Hopefully next time around they can find a happy medium - big, fun anthems combined with the growth we now know they're capable of. Until then, I doubt I'll give this album more than the occasional listen.


Recommended: Yes