Album Review: Fall Out Boy - Save Rock And Roll

Fall Out Boy are back, and they want people to know they're still fighting; for what they believe in, for love, for youth and idealism. The album's opening and closing lines sum it up: “Put on your war paint” (The Phoenix) and “We won't go/'Cause we don't know when to quit” (Save Rock And Roll).

While there's not a lot of rock'n'roll going on, this is undoubtedly an album for the arenas: huge singalong pop hooks and beats and riffs to get blood pumping. Patrick Stump has never sounded more assured, singing with such convincing force that it saves some of Pete Wentz's lazier lyrics from crossing into mere cliché. Songs like the triple-hooked Alone Together prove the band's proficiency at relating to a modern young audience's swinging 'everything's either the best or worst' mentality. See also the lyrics of Rat A Tat: “We're all fighting growing old…/'Cause it's never getting any better than this”. Just ignore Courtney Love's questionable contributions. Skip Death Valley too; the acoustic guitar clashes with rock riffs and a dance banger vibe, complete with a confusing dubstep breakdown.

Just One Yesterday featuring Foxes' soulful vocals and an intro that recalls Adele's Rolling In The Deep, offers some respite from the bam-boom-pow fire of most of the album, as does Young Volcanoes, which sounds like a slicker, boppier version of a …Cork Tree-era song. Apt, uplifting closer Save Rock And Roll, featuring Elton John – who works well as the low to balance Stumps' highs – also throws back to …Cork Tree's Sugar We're Goin Down: “I will defend the faith, going down swingin''”. Fall Out Boy are looking to the future while not forgetting their past.