By Bree Reyes |Staff Writer|
Fall Out Boy has managed to keep their lyrical talents and instrumental expertise, officially shedding their rock/hardcore vibes for the synthesized and pop/techno scene in their new album, “American Beauty/American Psycho.”
The new album has elements from their previous album, “Save Rock & Roll,” such as the theatrical introduction to “Centuries,” with the powerful thrumming of a piano and a Roman or gladiator battle-themed music video to aid in the dramatizations.
Powerful lyrics such as, “You’re second hand smoke, second hand smoke/ I breathe you in, but honey I don’t know what you’re doing to me,” in the song “Irresistible” metaphorically and cleverly capture the effects of a toxic relationship.
Other songs like “Uma Thurman” (my personal favorite) presents a creative side of Fall Out Boy that is excitingly new, with a sample of the “The Munsters” T.V. show theme driving the chorus, producing a Quentin Tarantino movie vibe.
“To me, Uma Thurman and Winona Ryder, they were these women in pop culture who were quirky, but that made me only crush on them harder,” stated songwriter and bassist Pete Wentz on the Fall Out Boy website.
Wentz continued, “Rather than going with the traditional Uma Thurman role, we thought a lot about Kill Bill and who her character was, and this kind of resilience and this violence, but there’s something that’s authentic about it (like a woman taking revenge or being empowered), so that’s what the chorus of the song’s about, and the versus are what you would do to try and capture this woman’s affection.”
The band is transcending genres in “American Beauty/American Psycho” presenting new sounds the world has never heard from them.
Most of the time, these new sounds work well with singer Patrick Stump’s soulful riffs, such as the powerful chorus in “The Kids Aren’t Alright”.
At some moments in the album ,Stump’s voice sounded strained, and not completely in sync with the songs.
In the song “Immortals” Stump has a powerful, soulful voice that engages the listener.
However, I don’t feel that this song does the talented singer justice.
The chorus is a series of riffs that don’t seem to mesh well with his vocal register.
This song in particular also does not feel cohesive with the rest of the album.
This is mainly because of the awkward tune of the chorus.
Overall, Fall Out Boy put forth a solid effort with a catchy, upbeat, and lyrically powerful album that is sure to be a favorite.
Leave a Reply