Jimmy Eat World, The Format, and The Linda Lindas

Childhood friends Jim Adkins and Zach Lind partnered with guitarist Tom Linton and bassist Mitch Porter to form the band in 1993. Under local label Wooden Blue Records Jimmy Eat World released a few singles, an EP and a self-titled album during 1993-94. The band got lucky in 1995 with a contract under Capitol Records that allowed them to release the album “Static Prevails.” For this venture, friend Rick Burch replaced Mitch Porter and drummer Mark Trombino joined the group.

In 1999, Jimmy Eat World released “Clarity” which was recorded in studios in California. The single “Lucky Denver Mint” was featured on the soundtrack of rom-com “Never Been Kissed” which elevated the band to mainstream audiences. However, the album that prompted Jimmy Eat World to worldwide fame is “Bleed American” which was put out in 2001 by DreamWorks. The single “The Middle” exploded on the airwaves and took the #5 spot on the Billboard Hot 100.

Following tremendous success with “Bleed American” Jimmy Eat World recruited producer Gil Norton (whose previous experience includes working with bands like the Pixies and Foo Fighters) to work on “Futures.” Their fourth album came out October 2004 and the single “Pain” became a hit. By this time Jimmy Eat World had toured independently to promote “Bleed American” and also in collaboration with Taking Back Sunday. In 2005 they joined forces with Green Day on a worldwide tour.

In total Jimmy Eat World has released eight studio albums both independently and under major label Interscope Records (formerly DreamWorks). The band’s name comes from a cartoon drawn by Linton’s younger brother Ed, who was making fun of their brother Jim. The drawing depicts a slab of the Earth resting on Jim’s jaw, and the rest is history. Jimmy Eat World considers punk bands Mr. T Experience, Radon and Tempe’s Horace Pinker as influences in their music.