Review Summary: Fall Out Boy want you to remember them for centuries, but you'll want to forget about this album as soon as possible.
In 2013, after a three year hiatus, Fall Out Boy returned with the promise of ‘saving rock and roll’, and while their comeback album didn’t achieve anything close, it was an eclectic melting-pot of genres and ideas that at the very least showed the band was still trying. Now, in 2015, with the release of their sixth album,
American Beauty/American Psycho, it’s become increasingly difficult to even give them credit for that. If you’re a fan of Imagine Dragons’ and OneRepublic’s stale brand of radio rock then by all means, check out this album, but if you’re a fan of Fall Out Boy at their peak then prepare for disappointment.
“Centuries” features what might be the most annoying vocal performance of Patrick Stump’s career, one of several points during the album where he stretches his voice to unnecessary and grating heights. This follows the title track, which is quite frankly a mess, with its repetitive chorus, banal musicianship and inane lyrics such as “I think I fell in love again / Maybe I just took too much cough medicine”. That these (probably the worst pair of songs on the album) were the first two singles shows that the members of Fall Out Boy indeed desire to be played on the radio, and that this has become a higher priority for them than critical acclaim or fan-service.
I wish
AB/AP would have a saving grace, a single fantastic song that could elevate the quality of the album, but sadly all 11 tracks are cut from the same cloth. Sure, some songs are less forgettable than others **– “Fourth Of July” has perhaps the strongest chorus but is ruined by nonsensical lyrics, while “Irresistible” suffers from the opposite, as solid lyricism is spoiled by a tacky hook. Patrick Stump was correct when he said the album has an “all songs of the same moment” quality. It’s just a shame that in this particular moment, Fall Out Boy are the most dull, trite and uninspired they’ve ever been.
