Fall Out Boy

I'm a latecomer to FOB, I didn't really pay any attention to them until 20007, after Infinity on High came out. They are a difficult band to like. Patrick is the lead singer and frontman, but it's really Pete Wentz's band - he is the most visible member of the quartet and the only one who regualry gives interviews.
The early stuff suffers from overly convoluted and pseudo-satirical song titles (see Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued)with lyrics that don't seem to connect to reality at all.
But they are very clever, just look at the viral marketing campaign that led to FaD's release - it was a veritable masterstroke. I was a little worried when the release date was out forward by a month, but it was well worth the wait. Folie A Deux may simply be the best album of recent years, and as FOB goes, the best they have ever been. I'm not sure they will be able to surpass that, it will be a very tough act to follow.
So, what's so special about Folie a Deux?
Well, first single released 'I don't care' showed a more 'rock' FOB, it was unbearably catchy and the lyrics were ironic without being patronizing. Rest of the album is actually nothing like it.
The song titles are just as non-sensical as before, but at least they are shorter and catchier (Well, ok we still have 'Headfirst into Cooperstown on a bad bet', but that can be excused).
There's been a lot of criticism about the number of collaborators and guest artists on the album, as if that would be a bad thing somehow. Well, I personally think that FBR (and by extension, Decaydance)is the hottest label around at the moment, and if their biggest selling artist thinks the other artists are worth showcasing, more kudos to them! Genius collaborations are Pharrell (in w.a.m.s) and Brendon Urie of PATD (in 20 dollar nosebleed) - especially Urie's voice and style complement Stump's very well.

Living outside the US means that you don't get to see these bands very often. So, understandably, I jumped at the chance to see them in London a few months back, just before the record came out. The screaming teenage fans apart, it was a cracking show. The band interacted with the audience and the set struck just the right chord. But the second show I saw, only a couple of weeks ago could have been performed by a completely different band. The FOB I saw this time around seemed ill at ease with itself, I was left with the feeling that they were going through the motions more than anything else. I mean of course, technically they were brilliant, not a wrong chord anywhere, the new songs sound great live and there was a good balance between brand new songs and the old favourites. But still, something was missing, I was just...left cold I guess. They played an amazingly short set - 16 songs + 2 encores. Maybe it was a case of tour fatigue?