Folie à Deux Review

Bear with me, since I've never written a music review before. And it seems inherently more difficult... with a movie you can talk about the plot and the acting. With a game, you can talk about mechanics and gameplay. Music seems to come down to "I like it" or "I don't like it" for nebulous reasons like "it's too whiny" or "it sucks."

Fall Out Boy's new album, Folie à Deux, does not suck, though. I'd actually say that it's quite good.

I've been told that it doesn't sound like Fall Out Boy. I don't think that's entirely accurate, though. When you compared their previous works, like Infinity On High to From Under the Cork Tree, Infinity On High sounded quite different. And it is true that Folie à Deux sounds a little bit different from either album. The difference, though, is less jarring than Panic at the Disco's transition from music people their age would listen to to music their parents would listen to. I don't think Fall Out Boy is switching genres on us or anything like that. I would suggest that they're growing as musicians and becoming a little more versatile, and in doing so setting them apart from every other high-school pop-punk/emo band flooding the market these days.

And for the most part, they're successful in their attempt. Most of the songs on the CD have a sound and style that's unique from any of the other songs on the CD, and they run the gamut from 70's style rock to synth rock to aping Panic at the Disco's 60's sound. Yet, even as they experiment with these different styles, they never stop sounding like Fall Out Boy. The end result is a CD that might not be as good as Infinity on High was, but is definitely close. In fact, if I had to find any faults, it's that the Deluxe Edition bonus track "Pavlove" is really good and I wish it were on the actual CD, and that if Pete Wentz can get married, have a baby, and write more mature songs, then he should really drop that stupid emo look.

Songs I'd really recommend from Folie à Deux:
"I Don't Care"
"Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown on a Bad Bet"
"Tiffany Blews"
"w.a.m.s."

Final Score: A+