But Jawbox endured as a major label misfit adhering to their punk rock upbringing, never leaving the van and continuing to tour through the mid ‘90s. Following a major label shift to Tag Recordings in 1996, Jawbox released their final eponymous album, and were subsequently dropped from the label soon after. The band summarily called it quits in early 1997. At the time, Robbins had also entered into the realm of recording and producing, working with bands such as Texas Is The Reason, The Promise Ring, Braid, The Dismemberment Plan, Bluetip, At The Drive-In and Jimmy Eat World, splitting his time between songwriting and production. But Robbins returned barely a year later with Jawbox guitarist Bill Barbot and former Government Issue drummer Pete Moffett in a new trio dubbed Burning Airlines. Burning Airlines almost immediately released a few EPs and a full-length on Desoto Records, returning to a more traditional “underground” approach of independent distribution, touring and promotion amid the dawn of the digital age. The formula, a more stripped-down and direct approach to Robbins’ songwriting, resulted in a follow-up record, followed by an unceremonious end to the band in 2002. Robbins had a sort of a-ha moment not long after 9/11, deciding he was ready for a change. He chose to focus on being at home in Baltimore, Maryland, concentrating on his recording and production outlets in a new studio dubbed The Magpie Cage.
A year later, the U.S. invaded Iraq. Robbins’ former lyrics in Jawbox and Burning Airlines, had perviously taken on a more personal, interpretative approach. But with shifting political landscapes, and Robbins’ literary bases in science fiction, his songwriting also shifted as he introduced a new band titled Channels, featuring wife Janet Morgan on bass and former Kerosene 454 drummer Darren Zentek on drums. The new trio released an EP in 2004, influenced by end of the world scenarios amid the Patriot Act, shifting border policies and then-alternative facts regarding weapons of mass destruction. The signature J. Robbins sound remained, but the times were changing and the EP reflected Robbins’ reactions to the Bush administration. Two years later, Robbins’ returned with Channels to release “Waiting For The Next End of The World” on Dischord Records. It was sparse, low end, live and as politically direct as Robbins had ever come in his songwriting.
Shortly after, Robbins and Morgan gave birth to a song, Callum, who was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 1, a disease that affects the motor nerve cells in the spinal cord. “I mean basically the last show that we played was the day before we got Cal’s diagnosis,” Robbins told Brooklyn Vegan in 2009. “And once we got the diagnosis, it’s just completely reordered our priorities, as you might expect.” Channels went on indefinite hiatus as the Robbins family focused on care for their song, while juggling full-time studio work with the Magpie Cage. “I don’t have family, my parents are both deceased and my wife’s family lives in England,” says Robbins. “So really, it’s on us as far as taking care of him, so it’s just logistically been a nightmare to try and do anything. It’s not like we’re saying the band is broken up but there’s just no practical way for us to engage in it and get any kind of creative momentum going.”