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Fall Out Boy - American Beauty / American Psycho
It could well be seen as awful, it feels like it’s more probably something great, but it’s definitely shocking.
“We turned left when everyone expected us to turn right.”
That’s what Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz told Radio One’s Zane Lowe when giving ‘American Beauty/American Psycho’, the title track from the band’s sixth studio album, its first spin. He didn’t mean a slight tilt off the expected course, either. This is no casual stroll in a new direction - with their latest track, the bandwagon is firmly heading off road.
Where previously Fall Out Boy had become more and more poptastic, now they’re challenging everything with a sound that’s anything but conforming to the expected. The easy option of returning to their roots is passed over. Instead there’s bombast, chanting, a wide-eyed ADHD pseudo rave and four part harmonies.
In its own twisted way, it’s the most punk statement possible. In taking the least likely decision, they’ll leave some confused. This isn’t a radio friendly unit shifter, but an ice cold bucket of water - a shift in gear, a wake up call. Any attempt to critique seems somewhat futile. It could well be seen as awful, it feels like it’s more probably something great, but it’s definitely shocking. It’s the last part that will stick.
There’s a reason ‘American Beauty/American Psycho’ is described a ‘UK single’. This side of the pond, we take to the mad genius. If the rest of the album is this unhinged, Fall Out Boy won’t just have saved rock’n’roll, they’ll have pushed it round the bend.
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