“2000s nostalgia in a nutshell” — X’s For Eyes Album Review - The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

Alternative rockers The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus are alive and kicking just as hard as ever with the release of their latest album X’s For Eyes - their first since signing with Better Noise Music last fall and their first full-length since 2018’s The Awakening. 

As the band approaches the 20th anniversary of their hit debut record Don’t You Fake It next year, they are not afraid to make callbacks to the sounds of their early days. This is evidenced  through the band working with multiple crew members from that era (or dream crew members in the case of producer Matt Squire, famously known for his work on such 2000s emo staples as Panic! At The Disco’s A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out and The Maine’s Can’t Stop Won’t Stop), re-introducing some screaming vocals courtesy of newest member K Enagonio (which can be most prominently heard on the standout “Purple Halo”), and even reimagining demos from the DYFI era to give them a new life, as with tracks like “Home Improvement”. While the album feels like 2000s nostalgia in a nutshell, it manages to do so while simultaneously keeping things fresh and new, making X’s For Eyes a worthwhile listen.

The album is already firing on all cylinders as it kicks off with “Always The King”, which includes a feature from none other than fellow Warped Tour royalty Kellin Quinn of Sleeping With Sirens, and Quinn’s vocals harmonize stunningly with Ronnie Winter’s for a standout track.

The next two tracks, “Purple Halo” and “Perfection”, both sound like they could’ve been taken straight from the 2000s in the best ways- “Purple Halo” with its metalcore-esque screams and “Perfection” being an infectious, dance-y, pop punk anthem that sounds like it was meant to be danced to in a packed Warped Tour crowd on hot pavement in the middle of July.

The album’s singles “Slipping Through (No Kings)” and “X’s For Eyes” also deserve some attention for their political relevance, with “Slipping Through” serving as commentary of the current state of living in America - the subtitle “No Kings” even referencing some anti-Trump protests that were held this summer. 

As quoted in a press release about the track, Winter says:

"It’s about what’s going on in our country. The destruction of it. Everything we ever stood for is ‘slipping through.’ It all began with Matt Squire and I working together in Los Angeles. He played me the track, and it immediately hit me. I knew this was the moment to say something about what's really going on and happening in our city. To put it simply, my neighbors are disappearing. Families are being torn apart. And our community has reached a breaking point. These aren’t strangers, they're our friends, our loved ones. They're not immigrants to us, they’re neighbors. And like Jesus said, 'Love thy neighbor.' That’s what this song is about.” 

“X’s For Eyes” touches on similar themes of being disillusioned with life, while also featuring some of the sentimentality that we’ve all come to know and love from TRJA, a la “Your Guardian Angel”. The track tears at the heartstrings with the chorus line “Do you want to be right, or do you want to be happy? ‘Cause I'm scared you’re gonna die. Take control of your life, wake up from this bad dream. You could end it all tonight.”, hitting us all in the feels.

While every song is fantastic in its own way, the album certainly has its standouts. Most of these have already been mentioned like the singles, “Purple Halo”, and “Perfection”, but I would be remiss to not call attention to both tracks with guest vocalists as well, as each brings their own energy to their respective pieces. As mentioned, opener “Always The King” shines extra bright with the help of Kellin Quinn, but closer “Worth It” deserves a shout as well, with Escape the Fate frontman Craig Mabbitt bringing his signature growls to the album’s “track most likely to result in a spontaneous mosh pit.”

Alongside the new album, RJA is not slowing down anytime soon, with tour dates throughout the United States booked up from now until mid-December, including appearances at When We Were Young in Las Vegas and Warped Tour in Orlando, with several cities in between.