EXCLUSIVE: Jimmy Eat World Say Watching Taylor Swift Sing 'The Middle' Was 'Bizarre'

Jimmy Eat World

Sitting down with theMusic.com.au yesterday while in town for a quick run of east coast shows, iconic Arizona alt rockers Jimmy Eat World said that seeing Taylor Swift sing along to the band's 2001 hit, The Middle, for an Apple Music ad last year was both "bizarre" and "surreal".

Frontman Jim Adkins says, "It was… bizarre. She's arguably one of the biggest stars in the world, waving our flag pretty high.

"It's a compliment and sort of a surreal experience."

Swift's seal of approval meant the song — 15 years old last year — crept back up into the iTunes charts. Pandora also reported a 325% increase in Jimmy Eat World station adds.

Bassist Rick Burch says, "It was a huge resurgence, with people requesting that song on streaming playlists and things."

Drummer Zach Lind joked, "I think we each got like an extra $15 for that quarter," while Adkins added, "Tom [Linton] bought burritos for everybody that quarter…"

The band have crossed paths with Swift in the past, with Adkins joining Swift for a cover of The Middle in 2011 and later, covering Swift's We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together with Jimmy Eat World.

Jimmy Eat World are playing in Sydney tonight, followed by the Australian Open in Melbourne tomorrow and Brisbane on Sunday.

Check out our full Facebook Live chat with the band below.