Fall Out Boy - Save Rock and Roll

As far as hiatuses go, the Fall Out Boy one wasn't exactly the most mourned of all time. Whether that's down to its rather short length, or the rapidly deteriorating quality of their music (encapsulated by 2008's tedious Folie à Deux), we'll never know. But they've returned, now, and they've brought Elton John and Courtney Love.

We've now already approached the period of time where we can look back upon Fall Out Boy as we can the Backstreet Boys. They started way over a decade ago, and that whole mid-noughties period of eyeliner, long song titles and wristbands is, when remembered, cringed at in the same sort of fondly-embarrassing nostalgia. They're of course not the same as the I Want it That Way pop juggernauts; there was always some element of talent and showmanship about FOB. But now they approach 30 and beyond, can they retain the same youthfulness that appealed to so many of the past generation's tweens?

We kick off with an incredibly theatrical opening: 'The Phoenix' is a stomping return to form, and continues modern pop's fixation with Shostakovich's 7th (see: Peter Fox's Alles Neu and Plan B's Ill Manors). With the recent demise of My Chemical Romance they've rather conveniently tapped into that whole youth-in-revolt shtick ("put on your war paint... make a career out of robbing banks"), and it's fittingly fiery. There's then first single 'My Songs...': similar in spirit, an extreme and bold seize of the microphone. Falsettos and screams make it something of an homage to classic rock, which is nice as well. 'Alone Together', although fairly nice in its melody, totally tears off the wheels of this exciting vehicle and returns the band to forgettable-but-pleasant territory. It sounds like something Owl City would do (that's not the excellent Fireflies). Even on 'Where did the Party Go?' - one of the album's strongest pop songs - you're sort-of left wondering if you've heard the exact same melody on Ke$ha's album just last year.

Similarities between songs are usually written off as coincidental nonsense, but anyone who denies 'Just One Yesterday' was written after listening to Adele's Rolling in the Deep a few too many times is lying out of their arse. I'd also like to take this opportunity to say how soulless and dull Foxes is, and that I object to her current rise to fame. There's then the misguided Big Sean collaboration on 'The Mighty Fall'; not so much a failure because of the clash of genres - 2007's Jay Z spot on Thriller proved it can work - but because of Big Sean's persistent lack of anything interesting to put out there. And the less said about "it's Courtney, bitch", the better. 'Rat a Tat' could otherwise be a decent song, but oh sweet lord is she a slave to her reputation as a cunt.

They return to much less tedious fare with 'Death Valley', a strong (albeit expectable) chorus surrounded by some general life/death/love nonsense. The sentiment and saccharine is so prevalent by 'Young Volcanoes' that you could almost see the band soundtracking cider adverts. Praise be Allah, then, that they save the title track for last: an insanely ambitious manifesto that sees Stump & co. as defiant and resolute in their status as a band. "So fuck you, you can go cry me an ocean!" he shouts out of nowhere, before Elton himself comes in and lends his undeniably gifted songwriting hand. It's a terribly self-aware closing ("we don't know when to quit, oh"), but it's fun and tuneful.

Although the intent was very much there to come back and seize the music world by the horns, they could've done so with a more interesting, or varied, or even plentiful set of songs. Too many duds and misguided collaborations have rather spoiled SR&R from being anything engaging or unique to the band, but there are the usual highlights to be enjoyed.

Also, what happened to the silly song titles? :(

Rating: 5/10
Highlights: My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark; Death Valley; Save Rock and Roll; Where did the Party Go; The Phoenix
Avoid: Rat a Tat; Just One Yesterday; The Mighty Fall; Young Volcanoes

Artwork Watch: A punk and a monk. How provocative. 
Up next: Empire of the Sun