Fall Out Boy - Infinity on High
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Free Music Notes for Infinity on High
Free Music Review: Infinity on High
Hit: 5 Stars
I love this CD. I've barely taken it out of my CD player since I got it.Free Music Review: Stumped.....
Hit: 5 Stars
What a voice! Oh, and the rest of the band ain't bad either!Free Music Review: 3 ½ Stars; Another strong album by FOB
Hit: 4 Stars
Let's be honest-- Fall Out Boy had a lot to live up to coming off their double-platinum certified, FROM UNDER A CORK TREE. Everything on the followup, INFINITY ON HIGH had to be perfect, or almost so. With two killer singles to live up to from FROM UNDER A CORK TREE ("Sugar We're Going Down" and the incredibly consistent "Dance, Dance") and even semi-hit "A Little Less Sixteen Candles", how could FOB possibly trump their critical-commercially succesful sophomore album (being mindful they recorder an album prior to FROM UNDER A CORK TREE). "This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race" is the pop-punkers response to "Sugar, We're Going Down" and "Dance, Dance" while INFINITY ON HIGH is FOB's response to FROM UNDER A CORK TREE. INFINITY doesn't quite have the same caliber of hits as FROM UNDER A CORK TREE, but it isn't bad and is definitely above average.
"Thriller", the opening track of INFINITY doesn't prove to be as strong as "Our Lawyer Made Us Change the Name of This Song So We Wouldn't Get sued" from FROM UNDER A CORK TREE. It isn't bad and the Jay-Z "plug" is unnecessary, though it is kind of cool considering Hov's presence does appear to turn silver into gold. Worth the listen is the guitar work being done here with a thumping bass line that has a pronounced 'edgy' timbre to it. In second track, "The Take Over, The Break's Over", Patrick Stump has never sounded better, a trend that proves to work positively on INFINITY. The soulful influences on Stump are very apparent, even if he is singing pop-punk as opposed to an urban ballad. Vocally, he is great and while "The Take Over, The Break's Over" isn't the greatest song ever written, Stump does more than justice to it vocally with his great falsetto and sense of performance. The first single and third track on INFINITY, "This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race", which has a pronounced R&B influence, is the true 'meat'. The fact that FOB was willing to take a risk such as include production work by R&B legend Babyface is quite "ballsy" for lack of a better word. Sure, the single has gotten mixed reviews, which are justified considering it is a bit annoying, but it is different from other tracks that are being listened to on radio. Even as annoying, you can't help but to sing-a-long as Patrick Stump so emotionally belts "this ain't a scene its a ***damn arms race..."
"I'm Like A Lawyer With The Way I'm Always Trying To Get You Off (Me & You)" once again explores FOB's fascination with extremely long witty, though forgettable (due to their length), song titles. The music here is particularly strong, particularly with the odd guitar progression at the onset of this number. Again, Stump proves to be the star with Wentz providing killer bass lines to round out the production. This song isn't a strong as the latter ("Arms Race"), but it isn't bad by any means. "Hum Hallelujah" is an uptempo number that grab's the listener's attention from the get-go. Stump is a bit harder to dicipher here, but it ultimately doesn't matter--the music and the frantic tempo speaks for itself. The chorus isn't incredibly catchy, but it is irresistable, if there is such a thing. The second verse of "Hum" makes more sense and the song endears your heart more and more as you continually listen. The second coming? No, but cool enough.
"Golden" surprises all with its piano introduction, certainly another departure (or innovation) for FOB. Again, Stump stands out with his lovely tenor vocals, and there is something that feels more "genuine" about "Golden" than any of the other tracks. There is an obvious pop-urban influence on this track that doesn't appear on a number of the other tracks. The background vocals are great and "Golden" turns out to be a track the listener becomes mesmerised with-- most likely because it doesn't feel like it fits, but more because it is different from what FOB has don in the past. "Thanks fr th mmrs" (aka "Thanks For The Memories") is another puzzle in itself. Strings, brass? What are FOB doing? It is yet another track that makes you want to hear out what the quartet have to say. Even if Wentz intriguing lyrics don't captivate the listeners, all the different sounds featured here specifically will make you listen, period. The dynamic nature of the track itself is influence enough to make one listen to "Thanks fr th mmrs".
"Dont You Know Who I Think I Am?" is worth the listen if for nothing else to hear more top of the line falsetto by Stump. The "claps" at the onset are also great, once again accentuating the point that the "sounds" featured on INFINITY also play a role in selling it itself. Always experimental, "The (After) Life Of The Party" features electronic drum programming, certainly another first and another ambitious FOB idea. What FOB does need to realize is that as experimental as they are/ want to be, they didn't necessarily have to do as much as they did on INFINITY. Sure, it keeps them fresh, but even had FOB returned with fresh new, enthralling numbers without all the added sound effects, they would've been fine commericially and probably even critically. Having said that, I'm impressed that FOB has shown they are up to merge musical styles and try new things, something that some artists never come to realize.
"The Carpal Tunnel of Love" showcases soul-boy Patrick among his best of the album. The pop sensibilities here are phenomenal (it's all pop, but you know what I mean). The guitar riffs and bass work as always proves to be top-notch, a problem that FOB has never had. The screamo portion of "The Carpal Tunnel Of Love" is definitely worth a listen making it one of INFINITY'S strongest, most genuine tracks. "Bang The Doldrums" follows with a slightly more relaxed, though still energized feel than "The Carpal Tunnel of Love". The guitar riff(s) definitely stick in your head; the are very well written/executed. The chorus is once again irresistable, something that made a relatively unknown FOB go double-platinum, and as of yet, platinum with INFINITY ON HIGH.
"Fame < Infamy" once again shows off FOB's playful side, while "You're Crashing, But You're No Wave" and "I've Got All This Ringing In My Ears And None On My Fingers" end the album. "I've Got All This Ringing In My Ears And None On My Fingers" definitely is a surprise with the most present urban influence of the entire album. The chord progression if phenomenal.
Essentially, INIFINITY ON HIGH has both its shining and less shining moments with "shining" by far trumping "non-shining". Patrick Stump sounds so much better here than he did on FROM UNDER A CORK TREE, FOB is more experimental here, and the music is more dynamic and exciting. Unfortunate is that sometimes the "experiments" are a bit all over the place making INFINITY a little bit disunified. Overall, it is worth the listen and the buy if you wish. Honestly, INFINITY wasn't the #1 album the week it debuted on the Billboard 200 Chart for nothing.
Free Music Review: Bar has been raised too high for Fall Out Boy
Hit: 4 Stars
When you are practically reviving a genre of music from certain death while adding your own fine touches and original melodies, you are expected to do great things time and time again. Rock bands of the past 20 years, such as Nirvana, the Foo Fighters, Green Day and the Chili Peppers have done so, excluding a bump in the road here and there. Fall Out Boy has been the revolution to pop punk that has slowly but surely simmered with the declining popularity in bands like Mest, The Starting Line and Motion City Soundtrack. They re-opened the fan base to allow for the rejuventation and utter brilliance of Green Day's 'American Idiot.'
On 'From Under The Cork Tree', every song on the album is one you could swear you'd hear in your head for years to come. There was a different feel, a creative sound, an innovative finish to each track, and I just don't see that on 'Infinity On High.' First and foremost, I won't deny that there are some extremely catchy songs, such as "Thriller", a real upbeat opener with the inspirational words of Jay-Z setting off the album. There's "This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race" with a beat and twist like nothing I've ever heard on mainstream radio, and "Thnks Fr Th Mmrs" featuring keyboards and a chorus that'll blow you away.
"The Take Over, The Breaks Over" is an awesome song, though in my head strangely reminiscent to "Of All The Gin Joints In All The World." This song I think most resembles the roots of Fall Out Boy and the type of song that catapulted them to stardom on their last album. It's also the third single, so you should be hearing it on your radio.
Two of the songs I was most impressed by were "Fame < Infamy" and "The Carpal Tunnel Of Love", tracks that explode with phenomenal guitar riffs like nothing I've ever heard from Fall Out Boy. These songs are the standalones on an album that is creative, energetic, and spontaneous, but just doesn't scratch your Fall Out Boy itch.
I find too many songs that seem either choppy or just plain not catchy. It's almost like the band compiled 7 or 8 good songs and didn't have the patience to do more writing and recording, so they filled the rest of the disc with B-sides or demos to push up the release date, possibly fill their pockets and go back on tour. Songs like "Golden", "Don't You Know Who I Think I Am?" and "Bang The Doldrums" just don't seem fitting for a band that's been such an influence on an entire genre.
Don't get me wrong: you will find some great songs on 'Infinity On High', but I don't think, collectively, that it lives up to the hype. The first two singles, "This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race" and "Thnks Fr Th Mmrs" aren't as original and aren't nearly as radio friendly as the beloved "Sugar, We're Goin' Down" or even "Dance, Dance"... I am giving the album four stars for originality and creativity, but there are still several aspects of it that fall short. It's not listenable from front to back, but worth a $10 buy if you're a die hard fan. Hopefully we'll see some better work in the future, given that this band is still in their primetime years.
Grade: B
Free Music Review: Denial, anger, acceptance
Hit: 4 Stars
Let's just say that Fall Out Boy wasn't my favorite band a while back. They seemed, for whatever raeson, to just be some kind of trendy "scene" band, a fashion group who happened to also play music. I started dating a girl a while back who listens to them, and over time I found that they did, indeed, have some good songs.
When I heard it'd leaked, I decided to download it for her (RELAX, I bought a copy when it came out :) ) and was a little uneasy with what I was hearing and feeling. Yes, I think I liked a lot of these songs, maybe even LOVED a couple of them.
Since then, every song on the record has definitely grown on me. They're definitely coming into their own and stand head and shoulders above their peers with this record. They're branching out and trying new things lyrically and with their sounds. "I'm Like A Lawyer...", "This Ain't a Scene...", and "I've Got All This Ringing..." contain some excellent R&B elements. "Golden" and "The (After)life of the Party" are based in keyboards or piano more so than guitar, and "Hum Hallelujah" and "The Carpal Tunnel of Love" will surely please any fan looking for some of the Fall Out Boy they've known and loved. Literally, I feel as though I'd be doing a disservice by not mentioning ANY of the songs on the album, these are just a few examples of how they're trying new things.
Different sounds aside, what it boils down to is songwriting, which is excellent through and through. Very few weaker moments and those that are maybe a bit "weaker" probably just sound that way because of the many times the record really grabs you and has you at that moment.
Before the album came out, my girlfriend and I listened to their cover of "What's This?" and I said they should try writing more "epic" songs, which is exactly what they've done. It won me over, and a year ago if you would have told me I'd fall in love with the next Fall Out Boy album I'd either laugh or punch you in the face.
To the naysayers, I say ignore the hype, ignore the trends, ignore the way MTV and the media portrays them, ignore the "OMG PETE IS SO HAWT". Forget what's "punk" and what's not, stop putting things into little boxes, stop worrying about what's popular and what's not, stop being a music snob or elitist, and listen to this album for what it is and you may be pleasantly surprised.