Rockin' Our Turntable: Fall Out Boy

Yep, we said it - Fall Out Boy's Folie à Deux, the band's fifth full length and third for a major, will change the way you think about the foursome from the northern 'burbs. If you let it, that is.

Even the crustiest of critics who grudgingly press play on this record will have to admit that this is no longer the mall punk band defined for so many by bassist Pete Wentz's overwrought and emo-tive lyrics or unabashedly glory seeking public persona. There's one big, bold reason behind this shift: Folie à Deux is singer/guitarist Patrick Stump's coming out party.

He's always been the quiet, spotlight-shunning heart of Fall Out Boy's deceptively intricate arrangements, but the 24-year-old can no longer hide behind Wentz's lyrics on Folie. Maybe it's fatherhood, maybe it's the realization that he's fast approaching 30, but this is Wentz's least personal, least Myspace headline-worthy set of lyrics yet. Don't get us wrong - there's still enough to keep the disenfranchised youth in diary fodder for the foreseeable future, but for the first time in Fall Out Boy's seven-year career the band's success rests significantly on Stump's impressive pipes.

He delivers on Folie with an ease and grace that further exacerbates the band's departure from its teenage pop-punk roots. Despite the fact that Stump originally auditioned for Fall Out Boy as a drummer, his voice and deep musical appreciation for arrangement and melody are the reasons why this record will turn the heads of heartiest of naysayers. Balladry like "What A Catch, Donnie," which can be trite on big-sounding arena rock albums like Folie, is instead a perfectly orchestrated pop song with a building, billowing refrain that will make even Beatles fans do a brief double-take.

There are also plenty of moments that showcase Stump's deep love for (and knowledge of) classic soul music. His vocal acrobatics on second single "America's Suitehearts," "Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown On A Bad Bet," and "Tiffany Blews" (featuring Lil' Wayne) take radio rock fare from standard to standard-setting, drawing influence from such diverse predecessors as Prince and Journey's Steve Perry.

Still not convinced? Check out a couple of tracks from Folie à Deux in the band's live set for Fuse TV tonight at 8:00 p.m. We were at the taping a couple of weeks ago, and we'll just say one thing - the dancing bears are not to be missed.

Photo from the band's website.