The music world went berserk when Fall Out Boy took it by storm and announced their comeback. Many fans rejoiced, some were weary, but all waited in anticipation for the new album, Save Rock and Roll, to be released. The first single, "My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)", was a huge hit with some and a disappointment to others. I personally loved it and the direction it indicated. The same can said for the second single, "The Phoenix", which further reflected a direction change that was much different than what Fall Out Boy had attempted before. Each release made my excitement build, and it was finally satisfied last week when FOB streamed the album on SoundCloud. I listened once through, and then waited to download my own copy this week. I was impressed.
First off, I feel like I need to establish this before I get into the album; despite it's name, it is not rock and roll in sound. However, this album is absolutely rock and roll in spirit, because rock and roll started as taking risks and not just aiming to please the fan. FOB made this album because they wanted to, and not to satisfy the fans. They made it in secret, without outside influence, and that makes it completely their own. The result is a wild musical ride.
It opens with "The Phoenix", a ferocious and explosive track that sets the bar. It's fast, it's an anthem, and its got Fall Out Boy written all over it. It has soaring strings, it has driving beats, and Patrick Stump sings his heart out. This vibe is continued in "My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)", which is an intense and driven song for Fall Out Boy; so much so that it took me off-guard when I first heard it. It almost has a Kanye West/hip-hop style to it, which continues throughout the album. "The Mighty Fall", for example, is heavy with hip-hop sounds and even features Big Sean, who adds a rap at the bridge. The song itself is a nice mix of rock and rap, with a gritty guitar line over claps and big beats. There's also this odd, Nightmare-Before-Christmas-theme going on in the intro and after the chorus. It's sleigh bells and a children's choir singing "la la la". It's a little creepy, but works within the song. Rap is not the only other genre that FOB dabbles in, however; songs like "Miss Missing You", "Alone Together", and "Where Did The Party Go" display more of a pop influence with sound and the addition of more synthesizers. There's also some more acoustic influence at well, with "Young Volcanoes" being mostly acoustic guitar and drums. FOB even goes as far as to throw in a few electronic wobbles in "Death Valley", which fits the song quite well. They were not afraid to explore genres that they never had touched before with this album.
Some other elements I enjoyed were little things I noticed throughout the album. One thing in particular was the bass line in "Where Did The Party Go", which started off the song and kept the groove up until the very end. As cliche as it sounds, the song is a great party song, with a lot of energy and fist-pumping beat to keep you moving. Another interesting part of the album was the introduction of "Just One Yesterday", where the vocals sounded almost exactly like "Rolling In The Deep" by Adele. It caught me off guard at first, but I came to like the song.
Now, their guest choice was interesting when it was revealed to the world. As I already stated, Big Sean made an appearance, which completely fit the song. Foxes was featured on another song, "Just One Yesterday", which is a solid fit as well even though I've never heard of them. The other two guests surprised me the most though; Courtney Love, and Elton John. I was not impressed with Courtney Love's guest spot, which brought down the quality of the song, "Rat a Tat", in my opinion. All she did was rant about politics and war, which is not a problem in itself, but I don't think it fit the song. On the other hand, Elton John's guest spot was absolutely fantastic on the title track. Thanks to his part and the instrumental of the song, it has an epic sort of sound to it. The vocals make it, with the back and forth between Elton and Patrick, and how both soar to great heights and have such passion when they sing. Another aspect of the song I enjoyed was the lyrical reference to one of their first big hits, "Sugar, We're Going Down" when they sing "I will defend the faith, going down swinging". The song builds and falls perfectly, and is easily one of my favorites off of the album.
Overall, I was definitely impressed by the album. It was bold, it was risky, but it paid off well. I loved the secrecy and huge response to their comeback; it built the hype for the album high, but the record easily matched it. It may not have been perfect, but it was still very well done.
Rating: 4/5
Track-list:
The Phoenix - 4:05 (5/5)
My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light It Up) - 3:09 (5/5)
Alone Together - 3:23 (4/5)
Where Did The Party Go - 4:03 (4/5)
Just One Yesterday (feat Foxes) - 4:05 (4/5)
The Mighty Fall (feat Big Sean) - 3:33 (5/5)
Miss Missing You - 3:31 (4/5)
Death Valley - 3:47 (5/5)
Young Volcanoes - 3:25 (5/5)
Rat a Tat (feat. Courtney Love) - 4:03 (3/5)
Save Rock and Roll (feat Elton John) - 4:41 (5/5)
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