Watch the music video for Fall Out Boy’s title track off its new album American Beauty/American Psycho below. For an idea of how the album differs from Fall Out Boy’s past work, check out these two Spotify playlists that break down the difference between the band’s current sound and their past work.

Chris’ take:
When I tell people that I’m a Fall Out Boy fan, the reaction is universally some form of laughter. Not at me, but “with” me. There’s an assumption that it’s either a guilty pleasure, or some hipster joke about modern rock music. The dirty secret is that it’s an earnest love. Their early work shaped my entire taste in music, and I’ve been with the band through highs, hiatuses and offshoot solo projects.
There has never been a hint of irony to it for me. I’ve never enjoyed a Fall Out Boy album while simultaneously recognizing apparent flaws. However, with their latest release American Beauty/American Psycho, this stance may have to change.
The album opens with a trio of songs that immediately underline the biggest issue for 2015-era FOB success. In 2013, “My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light ‘Em Up)” became a centerpiece of professional sports. As a result, you can feel the band immediately moving towards that single as inspiration.
“Irresistible” opens with a triumphant horn sample and a booming chorus that hits with flamboyance. Title track “American Beauty/American Psycho” mashes the band’s instrumental power with a house beat, two great tastes that are slightly uncomfortable when placed together.
“Centuries” is the best of the three and smartly uses a sample to accentuate otherwise on-point song structure. Unlike its two predecessors, it doesn’t feel reliant on a gimmick. Each one seems to be written in search of that perfect snippet, the 45-second clip that can be pasted over any movie trailer, highlight reel or soda ad.
The album also (inexplicably) contains “Immortals,” a song tailor-written for Disney’s Big Hero 6. It’s the weakest song on the album, feeling more like a B-side that was forcefully accentuated by reverb effects.
Fortunately, as the album moves away from single fodder– it starts to show real character. “The Kids Aren’t Alright“ is genius, a lighter-lifting stadium anthem that showcases Patrick Stump’s arching vocals. It feels like the perfect evolution of the form, a throwback to the band’s earlier emo sound, topped with the polish and confidence of a superstar act.
But FOB is far from resting on their laurels with most of AB/AP. “Uma Thurman” is bizarre – a grab bag of surf-rock guitar, shouting vocals, hip-hop beats and a sample of The Munsters theme. I legitimately despised it on my first listen, but it has grown on me.
That experience defines this album. At first exposure, it’s grating. But the more it plays, the more pleasure is found in its disparate blend of sounds. “Jet Pack Blues” attempts to slow things down, but still can’t resist taking an energetic turn.
“Novocaine” clashes an emo vibe, complete with crowd-ready “Na na na nas” with a bright chorus that almost has a disco air about it. “Fourth of July” takes a shamelessly pop premise (yes, the chorus is reliant on a “firework” metaphor, how’d ya guess?), tying it all back to a drum machine and hip-hop lyrical pace. These three are the litmus test of AB/AP – identifiable as Fall Out Boy songs, but heavy with eccentric tweaks.
“Favorite Record” elevates the experience at the tail end, a cute, perky and upbeat love song that is as lyrically blunt as a hammer. It confidently coasts to a “Woo-ooh-ohh” chorus and a clap-happy close. It’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser and just really damn likable.
“Twin Skeleton’s (Hotel in NYC)” is more on the somber side-– a complex crooning beast with shouted Hot Topic lyrics and a chorus that makes shameless homage to The Raven. I can’t help but feel as Stump finishes the album with such gothic flare that he’s tipping his hat. A call out to the emo band that rarely got that emotional.
Follow Chris Berg on Twitter: @Mushroomer25
Eder’s take:
Most every track on Fall Out Boy’s latest effort sounds like commercial-friendly music that tries to appeal to the pop-punk quartet’s fan base. Unfortunately, the boys from Chicago largely fail. That’s because the raw emotion of Fall Out Boy’s back catalogue is ominously missing.
The intro tracks for From Under the Cork Tree, Infinity on High and Save Rock and Roll ooze with purpose. “Our Lawyer Made Us Change the Name of This Song So We Wouldn’t Get Sued” assured fans of Take This To Your Grave that there was more to come. “Thriller,” with the help of Jay-Z, told the haters that the band was here to stay. And “The Phoenix” announced the return of the princes of punk-pop with big hooks and a catchy chorus — everything we’ve come to expect from them.
“Irresistible” does the same for Beauty/Psycho. The problem here is that the message is fractured. It’s disjointed. It’s muddled to the point of coming off as incomprehensible. Is this the band’s bold new sound? Are Patrick Stump, Pete Wentz and crew shedding their signature sound for horns and synthesizers?
“American Beauty/American Psycho” is emblematic of the problem that “Irresistible” introduces. It’s impossible to sing along with — Stump’s voice attacks you at every juncture, hardly giving you a moment to recover from the alternating shouts and heavy synthesizers.
“Centuries” brings things back. Sort of. The small sample lifted from Susanne Vega’s “Tom’s Diner” works okay. But the art of borrowing is pulled much better in “Uma Thurman,” which is probably the only song I would put into a Fall Out Boy playlist if I had to include a track from this album. “The Kids Aren’t Alright” and “Jet Pack Blues” also contain tinges of what made Fall Out Boy great before, but they don’t quite get it done.
The rest of the album is largely forgettable. And no track exemplifies that more than “Immortals,” a song that sounds as if it was tailor-made for Super Bowl promos.
There’s nothing wrong with reinvention. Something Corporate frontman Andrew McMahon has done it countless times since the piano rock band went on hiatus in 2006.
Steel Train’s Jack Antonoff made a successful departure from that band and its folksy sound to become a founding member of Fun, before striking out on his own with Bleachers. Midtown’s Gabe Saporta ran off with a synthesizer and grew his fan base tenfold when he started Cobra Starship. Just like Fall Out Boy, these three artists defined mid-2000s pop-punk. The difference is that Antonoff, McMahon and Saporta have retained the core emotion that made their older material resonate with an audience that craved more than Tostitos and mild salsa.
American Beauty/American Psycho does its best, but falls short. I wasn’t looking for a retread — I wanted an evolution. Instead, Fall Out Boy’s latest is a reinvention that leaves me hoping they get it right next time.
Follow Eder Campuzano on Twitter: @edercampuzano