CREDIT: FALL OUT BOY
It may take one listen, or it may take three. Either way, you might be surprised by Fall Out Boy's latest musical offering, American Beauty/American Psycho.

Fall Out Boy has landed on its feet with a new album called American Beauty/American Psycho after stumbling out of a hiatus in 2013 with its directionless album, Save Rock and Roll, which featured questionable material and bizarre collaborations with artists such as Courtney Love and Elton John. The new album was released on January 20.

The modern-day Fall Out Boy is in many ways a different band. The boys have shifted focus from their moody rocking and dreary personas to adopt a more pop-inspired sound that incorporates elements of electronic music. In American Beauty/ American Psycho, Fall Out Boy appears to have worked out the kinks from Save Rock and Roll, creating an album that combines the new commercial pop direction with the alternative music that originally drew crowds.

At first listen, this album was hard to swallow. It begins with discernibly poppy songs, yet holds onto some of the grimy rock from the earlier years. At times it’s hard to discern the guitar melodies from the ragtag team of new instruments that lay overtop.

The new additions range from horrible synthetic-sounding horns to more tasteful synthesizers that provide rich textures to fill out some of the gaps left by burying the guitar tones. All of these issues are highlighted in the opening track, “Irresistible,” while on the other hand, “Favorite Record” displays a tasteful juxtaposition of the old and new influences that demonstrates how the band has matured since its hiatus.

In the middle of the album comes a selection of songs that lend more of a focus to the original sound of Fall Out Boy, releasing a small pocket of nostalgic angst that effectively wins back fans that jumped ship after Save Rock and Roll. “Novocaine” is by far the moodiest song on the latest album. It has dark rumbling guitars in the verses that are interspaced with bright choruses reminiscent of the Infinity on High album to create an old school sounding song that isn’t left behind amidst the rest of the album.

After the first full play through of American Beauty/American Psycho, it seems to fall short in some areas.

Firstly, the lyrical complexity has taken a nosedive since the incredibly witty one-liners of Infinity on High and From Under The Cork Tree. Secondly, there is an alarming amount of sampling done on this album, the most notable being a sample of ‘Tom’s Diner” by Suzanne Vega in the first single, “Centuries.” This may not be seen as a negative to everyone, but sampling tends to take you out of the immersive experience a band creates when listening through an entire record. Lastly, the album is incredibly noisy. With so many instruments fighting to be heard, listeners may find themselves turning the album down time and time again.

At points there’s just too much going on in the songs to fully appreciate the entire composition. Inevitably something gets missed.

This being said, albums can grow on you, and certain albums do so at an alarming rate. I put this album down for a day, initially disinterested, and when I came back to it, my opinion had changed. By my third listen, I was already singing along and bobbing my head to most of the songs. Even the overly cliché chorus’ of “Centuries” and “Fourth of July” began to lose their cheesiness.

If you don’t care for American Beauty/American Psycho at first, try giving it a second chance. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Rating: 3 1/2 our of 5