Fall Out for a Fall Out Boy

I hit the ground running with Fall Out Boy. When I got my hands on their first full-length record Take This to Your Grave, I was sure I found a new favorite band. As a huge fan of the pop-punk genre in my youth, I was more than ready to accept them into my musical playlist with Blink 182, New Found Glory, NOFX and the many Emo/Screamo heavyweights on the scene at the time.

They steadily became a band I enjoyed listening to faithfully as the years would pile on. I "Dance Danced" and looked for an old acquaintance in the music video (who swore she was there) and I agreed that it wasn't a scene but indeed an arms race when they said so.

Naturally, as the albums would release I would lean in to listen, and I can say with a full education and an honest broken heart that the band has lost the fan in me.

It's not that I don't respect the effort put into their most current record Mania, in fact, I find upwards of 4 songs very catchy on this cut. The issue lays more in strengths and the lack of use with them. The biggest being their power-jawed vocalist Patrick Stump, a man with a vocal range melodic enough to make a phone book sound good.

During the Fall Out Boy hiatus, Stump actually released a very studious Funk/Soul record that was rather effective showcasing his vocal stamina and ability to run a one-man show. While it was received with poor backlash due to fans not agreeing with its dramatic new direction and stumps physical transformation, I personally found it to be a natural progression for him and still enjoy "Soul Punk" when the mood is right.

Unfortunately, because of this negative feedback, his solo career was cut short and Stump returned to Fall Out Boy. Pete Wentz is later quoted as saying stumps career didn't pan out because on the record he was "missing his band" a quote I find underhanded but that's one man's opinion.

The band go on to release the record Save Rock and Roll and just like the 4 releases before by the band, I found enjoyment in the album. In fact, I would say Save Rock and Roll was the last Fall Out Boy album I would go on to fully enjoy.

Big swings and catchy hooks the album was a great reminder of what the band had to offer, ending the album with the duel vocals of Stump and Sir Elton John, this felt like a touch of music history, a passing of the torch.

However, the band went on to put out the drab American Beauty/American Psycho LP and I was sorely disappointed. I couldn't imagine how from all the band had gone through this record could be the result to reflect it. From ear to ear the album was flashy in such an unfamiliar way, as if they spent a long weekend doing coke in a nightclub and went into the studio pretending to perform on a roof.

I hope this does not come off as if I don't respect the evolution of music over time because truly I do. This particular transition, however, left a poor taste in my mouth. The stand out song being "Fireworks", a song I skip straight to whenever I pop on this LP only to hang around for the track "Favorite Record," and then I end the entire CD.

That said, no band is above a poor release and Fall Out Boy are no exception. So I fairly chalked it up to a mis footing in an otherwise fine catalog of music.

It seems though with the release of Mania, the spark may just be gone. The issue with Mania is not so much the heavy use of synths and overproduction quality as it is so much that the large majority of this record is just boring. The music is up tempo but I am not engaged.

The lyrics don't give off that burning sensation that felt smart and quick as they once did. These are fathers and established musicians writing songs about obsession and confusion, I listen and can't help but wish they would grow up with me.

Fall Out Boy are going through a mid-band crisis and I do hope on the next effort they can put aside what they think we want to hear just make what they are truly good at.