Released: 12th April 2013
Island
3/10
Quite literally burning their back catalogue, Fall Out Boy seem adamant that fifth album Save Rock And Roll will be a return to form for themselves and their genre. Take opener ‘The Phoenix’. Beginning on the stomp of drummer Andy Hurley and the tense instrumentation of the London Symphony Orchestra, it has all the pomp and ceremony of a grand entrance. The hammering ending ties together the myriad parts and benefits from the pop sheen created by legendary producer Butch Walker.
However, as the record goes on, it becomes clear that Fall Out Boy’s conception of rock n’ roll is strange. There’s little on display here which gives any indication to the group’s rawer past or to their side-projects (Hurley’s hardcore punk bands Focused Minds and Enabler plus his rock group The Damned Things, with guitarist Joe Trohman). The softer approach undoubtedly works at points. The pensive title track, featuring the one and only Elton John, cleverly pairs stripped down piano with processed drums. ‘Young Volcanoes’ is an enjoyable but inoffensive pairing of clapping, acoustic guitars and the infectious vocal performance of Stump. However, more often than not, you just want the group to rock out. ‘Rat A Tat’ comes pretty close to this with its catchy chorus and thumping bass, but the synthesisers are pervasive. As does ‘My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)’ with its stabs of guitar. However, this song shows how far they’ve fallen lyrically, with Stump reduced to ‘Light em up/I’m on fire,’ in place of the self-deprecating wit and intelligence of Fall Out Boy’s past work. It seems to be a larger symptom; intentionally selling themselves short and posing as more in order to become the stadium band they’ve always dreamt of being.
There are other signs of it as well. Walker’s production pays focus to the power of Stump’s vocals and songs like the nu-wave driven ‘Miss Missing You’ would fall apart without his talent. In addition to this, Trohman and bassist-plus-public-face Pete Wentz are continually reduced to phoning in performances to suit the electronics. Indeed, it seems that the previously reclusive Stump is becoming the dominant focus of the band, aided by his recent weight loss and burgeoning solo career. If this is the future of rock n’roll, of every song sounding like a ‘club mix’ of itself, of washed out lyrics and tired stadium theatrics, then the future is bleak.
