Jimmy Eat World over the decades

Jimmy Eat World is hip-deep in history these days. The Arizona rock band is spending the summer and fall celebrating the 25th anniversary of “Bleed American,” its 2001 breakthrough album that sent the band into the mainstream after “The Middle” broke big.

As is the norm for album anniversary tours, Jimmy Eat World is playing “Bleed American” front to back during each stop. That includes the band’s hometown show this weekend in downtown Phoenix opening for My Chemical Romance at Chase Field on Sunday, Sept. 6.

It’s a stadium-sized gig for a band that started out playing all-ages shows around the Valley more than three decades ago.

Before becoming staples of MTV and alt radio, Jimmy Eat World were four Mesa teens playing punk at local spots like The Nile Theater.

Frontman Jim Adkins, guitarist Tom Linton, drummer Zach Lind and original bassist Mitch Porter formed the band in 1993. Rick Burch replaced Porter a few years later, resulting in a lineup that remained unchanged ever since.

Major labels eventually came calling. Capitol Records signed Jimmy Eat World in the mid-’90s and released “Static Prevails” in 1996 and “Clarity” three years later. Neither made much noise commercially, despite the latter eventually becoming a cult and critical favorite.

By then, Jimmy Eat World’s relationship with Capitol had gone sideways. Sales lagged and Jimmy Eat World was eventually dropped from the label.

As it turns out, getting dumped worked out pretty well for the band.

Jimmy Eat World chose to finance its next record itself, while longtime producer Mark Trombino deferring payment. After showcasing its musicianship, earnestness, sincerity on “Clarity,” the band deliberately went with more straightforward pop-rock songs.

“Bleed American” dropped in July 2001. A few months later, the music world went gaga over “The Middle.”

The song hit No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the modern-rock chart. Other hits followed, including “Sweetness” and “A Praise Chorus.” Soon after, Jimmy Eat World were appearing on late-night talk shows and even “Saturday Night Live” and late-night talk shows while touring nonstop.

Meanwhile, they were building an enormous fanbase, both in their home state and across the world. Tucson resident Jimi Giannatti is one such convert, who discovered the band after its breakthrough success and was drawn in by the honesty of its tunes.

“Their songs are so easy to relate to, mixing empathy, vulnerability and perspective in a very extremely accessible way,” Giannatti says. “Instead of hiding behind obscure or navel-gazing, post-grunge poetry, their songs lean directly into honest human feelings.”

Jimmy Eat World has released six more albums since “Bleed American,” including its most recent release, 2019’s “Surviving.” While the band has never topped its dizzying success, it’s spent the past 25 years continuing to tour and perform.

Here’s a photographic retrospective at Jimmy Eat World over the last three decades and counting.