Fall Out Boy - Save Rock and Roll (April 16th)

Fall Out Boy are back! After 3 years of hiatus-ing they recorded a record in secret and on February 4th  they officially announced it along with a forth coming tour. Previously Fall Out Boy have released 4 studio albums, including the double platinum 'Take This To Your Grave' selling over 2.8 million copies and 'Infinity on High' which sold 260,000 copies worldwide in its first week of general release.

'My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light 'Em Up)' was released on the day of their comeback announcement and is the first single from 'Save Rock and Roll,' the song features a stunning vocal performance from lead singer Patrick Stump, it really grabs the listeners attention and is incredibly memorable. The first track of the album 'The Phoenix' starts with a stringed crescendo, building the tension and atmosphere, the whole song seems to be packed with references of the hiatus period; 'you know time crawls on when you're waiting for the song to start, so dance alone to the beat of your heart,' the constant message of 'taking the world back' runs throughout the album. 'Where Did the Party Go' is dominated by Pete Wentz's bassline and feels more like a dance-rock song, rather than a usual Fall Out Boy song. The album has a number of guest features, the first being on 'Just One Yesterday' which includes Louis Rose Allen of Foxes, her voice really does compliment Stump's and the song has 'mature emo' elements about it. The second guest performance is from Big Sean on 'The Mighty Fall,' where he does the stereotypical rapper 'shout outs' in the opening few bars and a rap 2.30 minutes in which only takes away from otherwise a sound mid-album track. ''Miss Missing You' is arguably the weakest song on the album, it is very hit and miss, using some seemingly misplaced keyboard sounds. 'Death Valley' brings some life back into Save Rock and Roll, showing off the bands diversity and huge musical capabilities. The album ends with the final guest performance coming from Sir Elton John Save Rock and Roll ends with it's title track and is full of heart, John's piano and voice performance is stunning and works seamlessly with Fall Out Boy.

The album starts well, potentially drifts off towards the middle and is is brought back at the end with a huge song. Featuring some unlikely collaborations (some working, some not so much) the album is full of classic Fall Out Boy sounds surrounded by a range of new ideas. Fall Out Boy have created an album that completely shows off how good they are as musicians and songwriters, they have a great range of diversity and all is used to great effect on Save Rock and Roll.

Listen to 'My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'Em Up) here and 'Save Rock and Roll (featuring Elton John) here.

Personally I have never been much of a Fall Out Boy fan, only really being into the big singles of 'Dance, Dance', 'Sugar, We're Goin Down' and 'This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race', however this album completely changes that, Save Rock and Roll is full of musical finesse and I enjoyed it a lot, the track with Elton John is phenomenal and it is a great overall album.

Tracklist:

01 – The Phoenix

02 – My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark

03 – Alone Together

04 – Where Did The Party Go

05 – Just One Yesterday (feat Foxes)

06 – The Mighty Fall (feat Big Sean)

07 – Miss Missing You

08 – Death Valley

09 – Young Volcanoes

10 – Rat A Tat (feat Courtney Love)

11 – Save Rock and Roll (feat Elton John)