Jimmy Eat World / Attack in Black

Every year that Jimmy Eat World return to Montreal, the venues seem to get dramatically smaller and smaller. To add insult to injury, this year the band had to compete with both the Montreal Jazz festival and the huge Canada Day activities that were underway just down the street. Attack in Black opened the show and included stellar performances of "Now that I’m Dying” and "Young Leaves.” Lead vocalist Dallas Richard Martin had to constantly battle with a negligent sound man who refused to adjust the vocal mic, causing caused irritating feedback throughout their set. By the end of the performance the band had made best of the situation, jokingly referring to themselves as a noise band and making My Bloody Valentine comparisons. Jimmy Eat World still play with the excitement and enthusiasm that they did when they were younger. Jim Adkins voice is more stellar than ever, able to command the audience’s attention from beginning to end. Despite the less than stellar attendance, JEW seemed to be genuinely moved by their fans display of devotion. With a very modest stage set-up, the band relied on their insanely catchy discography of hits to keep the crowd energised. New material off of Chase This Light is chockfull of radio-ready sing-alongs, although they still were not as exciting to watch as when the band performed material off of their two classics, Clarity and Bleed American. It was a nice surprise to see the more inaccessible "shoegazer” songs off of the Stay on My Side EP were not forgotten on the set list.