Following the release of Jimmy Eat World's self-titled second EP (1998), "Lucky Denver Mint" began airing on radio in January 1999.
[3] A&R representatives Craig Aaronson and Loren Israel were met with indifference at the label's offices, with president Gary Gersh not willing to support an act that was relatively unknown.
[4] Capitol included two songs on promotional samplers that were sent to programming directors at radio stations; the label said it was part of a development process it had for the band.
[9] Around this time, Jimmy Eat World was being tagged as emocore, shortened to emo, an introspective style of punk rock, within the music scene, as were their peers.
[13] Jimmy Eat World approached the recording assuming they would not get the opportunity to make another album, and decided to include a variety of extra instrumentation.
[2] Journalist Dan Ozzi, in his book Sellout: The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore 1994–2007 (2021), wrote that Clarity was a "sweeping epic of an album", which melded dense orchestral writing with quirky rock structures.
With the exception of the song "Blister", from this point onwards, Linton only provided backing vocals on some tracks until "Action Needs an Audience" on their seventh studio album, Invented (2010).
[13] The slow-tempo song opens with a droning organ, followed by a shuffle beat, picked guitar notes, and concluding with a crescendo; the slowcore crawl and harmonies were influenced by the music of Low.
[13] The title of "12.23.95" is a reference to Little Christmas Eve; it was made in the living room of Adkins' parents' house, consisting of a drum machine, and a tiny recording set up.
[18] The power ballad "For Me This Is Heaven" uses a number of rhythmic parts, which was the result of Lind and Trombino playing with a variety of hand percussion instruments at their disposal.
[13] The closing track, "Goodbye Sky Harbor", lasts for 16 minutes and 11 seconds, starting as an up-tempo piece, and eventually shifting to a long section of dream pop that incorporates layers of electric guitars, vocal loops, a drum machine, and bells.
[40] The band's A&R representative suggested releasing an EP; he contacted Vinnie Fiorello of Less Than Jake, who ran the indie label Fueled by Ramen, and supported the idea.
[22] Preceded by an appearance at the Snow Summit festival, Jimmy Eat World embarked on a US tour in February through to April 1999, with support on varying dates from the Sheila Divine,[47] At the Drive-In,[48] and Sense Field.
[52] Jimmy Eat World recorded a version of a new song, "Sweetness", in March 1999; Linton said they were unsure what to do with it, though mentioned including it on future pressings of the album.
[56] Despite critical praise and promotion of "Lucky Denver Mint" in Never Been Kissed, Clarity was commercially unsuccessful in a musical climate dominated by teen pop, and the band was dropped by Capitol in August 1999.
[39] The origin of this tour arose from their roadie Paul Drake having lugged CDs of Static Prevails to Europe when he went there with Braid and the Get Up Kids for their gigs.
As overseas interest in Jimmy Eat World was growing, they purchased copies of their releases back from Capitol at cost and sent them to a distributor with international reach, who in turn sent them to stores.
[39] After this, Jimmy Eat World took a break, during which Adkins started the side project Go Big Casino and played some shows, while Lind got married.
"[69] In February and March 2009, Jimmy Eat World went on tour, with support from Reuben's Accomplice and No Knife, to mark the 10-year anniversary since Clarity's release.
AllMusic reviewer Mark Vanderhoff stated Clarity "mixes introspective balladry with power-chord punk rock, elements of chamber pop, and subtle doses of electronica to create a remarkably unique album".
[83] RTÉ's Harry Guerin described the album as a "dense, beautiful collection which sees them bring in orchestras, drum loops and programming and find space for killer choruses, ballads and left field forays.
"[82] Amy Sciarretto of CMJ New Music Report noted the album's "prevailing mood is downcast", though Jimmy Eat World's performance is "striking enough to make you throw down that proverbial razor blade".
[37] Despite being largely overlooked upon its release,[93] Clarity's critical stature has grown since 1999; to the point where Harry Guerin of RTÉ dubbed it "the Led Zeppelin IV of emo rock.
"[28] Leor Galil of the Bostonist, noted; "The album has been hailed as a cult and indie classic, and is one of a few go-to records that cemented an aural aesthetic known as emo, and is a genuinely deft and moving piece of music from start to finish".
Dozens of weepy bottom-feeders have tried to write mid-20s angst anthems better than the soaring "Lucky Denver Mint" or the delicately heartbroken "Just Watch The Fireworks"—but few have succeeded.
"[87] Tim Nelson of BBC Music was praising in his 2007 review of the album; "The band and Trombino deserve credit for blending heartfelt, yearning vocals and rock dynamics with adventurous production and unique instrumentation".
[95] Nate Chinen writing for The New York Times said "Clarity was a pivotal album for Jimmy Eat World, the first to feature Jim Adkins on lead vocals instead of Mr. Linton and the last to reflect the heart-on-sleeve values of emocore more than the hard gleam of pop-punk".
[96] Record Collector's Eleanor Goodman commented; "though the multicoloured cover of 1999’s Clarity became familiar in music shops, its combination of melancholy, introspective pop with faster punk rock broke the band in the US".
It is name-checked by every single contemporary emo band as their favorite album, as a mind-bending milemarker that proved that punk rock could be tuneful, emotional, wide-ranging, and ambitious.
[110] Clarity has influenced the works of multiple artists and bands, such as Something Corporate, the Wonder Years, Josh Farro of Paramore, Chris Carrabba of Dashboard Confessional, Julien Baker, Pronoun, Jonathan Corley of Manchester Orchestra, and Heath Saraceno of Midtown.