Fall Out Boy continues to evolve with new album

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By Chase Myers | @chasemyers_DE | Daily Egyptian

This year marks the 10-year anniversary of the release of “From Under the Cork Tree” and the rise of a dominant force in modern rock, Fall Out Boy.

With singles like “Sugar, We’re Goin’ Down” and “Dance, Dance,” the band brought the pop-punk genre some well-deserved radio play.

The four-piece, Chicago-based band, formed in 2001, consists of Patrick Stump on guitar and vocals, Pete Wentz on bass, Joe Trohman on lead guitar and Andy Hurley on drums.

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From the release of their first album “Take This to Your Grave,” a success in the underground pop-punk scene in 2003, to the release of their newest record “American Beauty/American Psycho,” we have seen the band adapt and change with the times. Some embrace this change with open arms, others don’t.

The band’s sound has definitely changed.

Songs like “Grand Theft Autumn” from their earliest album displayed a heavy pop-punk influence, whereas songs like “Young Volcanoes” and “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark” from the album “Save Rock and Roll,” blend into the pop-rock music scene.

The band took a four-year hiatus after the release of their album “Folie á Deux” in 2008, and came back with their new sound in the album “Save Rock and Roll,” in 2013, which earned mixed reviews.

When Fall Out Boy rumored the release of a new album in the fall of 2014, many fans and listeners were interested to see if the band would keep evolving, or if they might revert back to their early years.

The single “Centuries,” was released Sept. 9, 2014, and gave us a taste of what was brewing on the new album. Despite heavy radio play, it did not stand out as anything different from their previous album.

It can be hard to pick out the raw instrumentals behind the electronic beat of the song and the heroic vocal lines from Stump. The vocals really shine in “Centuries,” while the instrumentals are lackluster.

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When the full album dropped on Jan. 16, it became evident this was more of a cohesive work of musicianship rather than something just thrown together.

The album starts off strong with the song “Irresistible,” which centers around a triumphant horn riff you might find in a Nike commercial showcasing an athlete’s strength. The catchiness of the song continues as Stump gracefully and powerfully attacks the chorus.

The second song and title track “American Beauty/American Psycho” sounds completely different and fails to impress. The song is not what you would expect with such a powerful title. The track is all over the place aesthetically which would explain the psycho idea, but it’s almost too much volume thrown at the listener at once.

After “Centuries,” the listener starts to capture the range of the album. Fall Out Boy does a great job experimenting with new styles on this record.

This is evident in “The Kids Aren’t Alright,” as the instrumentals resemble something you might hear from the band Pheonix. Lyrically, this song is an ode to those who feel unappreciated and overlooked.

The fifth song on the album, “Uma Thurman,” stuck out to me, not only because of the oddly humorous title, but also because of the nostalgic, surfer feel of the song. The song’s title refers to the actress Uma Thurman’s dancing skills in the Tarantino classic, “Pulp Fiction,” and keeps your attention with a guitar riff resembling the classic tone of artists like Junior Brown and his “surfing music.”

I can see the song “Uma Thurman” doing very well on the Billboard charts if released as a single. It has all the elements of a good pop-rock song with enough uniqueness to please multiple audiences.

The album continues with “Jet Pack Blues,” a solid song but nothing special. It captures the new Fall Out Boy sound perfectly with a gritty beat and catchy vocal line, complimented with a peaceful bridge in the middle.

The next song “Novocaine” explodes at you with a very heavy, pounding beat and sounds like something Kanye West might produce.

Stump’s vocal lines also adds some soulful flavor to this song as he flips into his falsetto voice often.

The song “Fourth of July,” again, is one of the blend-in songs you might just skip over because it sounds so similar to other Fall Out Boy songs from “Save Rock and Roll.”

The end of the album isn’t as strong as I had hoped.

The song “Favorite Record,” has a very easy-going tone and draws you in with a guitar riff straight from the 1990s, but the final two songs “Immortals” and “Twin Skeletons (Hotel in NYC)” capture you with a unique intro, but portray the new, pop-heavy Fall Out Boy.

In its entirety, the album could easily be nicknamed “American Success/American Disappointment,” because it has both high and low points. I found myself enjoying the album sporadically in a couple songs but not the whole album, and this is where it differs from older Fall Out Boy albums.

Being a product of pop-punk in the early 2000s, it doesn’t get much better than albums like “From Under The Cork Tree” for me. And based on various VEVO comments, others feel the same.

However, “American Beauty/American Psycho” can be compared to “From Under the Cork Tree” because both are lyrically sound.  There is something about Stump’s ability to convey emotion through his vocal range that puts the cherry on top of the whole project.

Some would say Fall Out Boy has lost their rock band essence with the progression of the new electronic age of music, but they are just putting their spin on what the music industry is becoming.

Bands have every right to progress and change, and Fall Out Boy has definitely done so. Nevertheless, the band will indeed be remembered for centuries and should be respected for what they are contributing to modern music.

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