Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Comeback of the Year?, July 17, 2005
Fall Out Boy have a pretty big load on their shoulders now. Someone, somewhere discovered they were about the catchiest thing to hit pop punk since ever and before any of us could really realize it, they were #1 on TRL with their overwhelmingly successful single "Sugar, we're going down". This, of course, has sent "cool" kids everywhere on rampages to destroy their Fall Out Boy cds and discourage others to "make the mistake they did". Some will suggest other awful bands to listen to instead, like the Transplants. This is because they are trying to be "cool". I could carry on, but since I hope someone will make it all the way through this, I'll just say that this kind of hustle and bustle goes with the job description once you get discovered by someone that's not a random teenager who likes emo.
Some people seem to be very confused. Fall Out Boy wasn't a particularly original band, ever. No kids, Take this to your Grave (no matter how freakin rediculously good it is) wasn't the shining example of something different. I'm pretty sure any punk kids could whip those chords out and croon along all cutely and come up with something that sells more than FOB does. So, while some of you are pretending Take this to your Grave was a genius work of the most astoundingly original band ever, it's not. It's cute and I love it but hey it's nothing special technically wise. However, Fall Out Boy does a few things that nobody else is doing right in this "whatever Fall Out Boy is scene". One, the lyrics are a step above anyone else. Even if you honestly think "our lawyers.." Is the next "lifestyles of the rich and famous" (which I'm pretty sure it's not), you have to give credit where credit is due. For a pop punk band Fall Out Boy writes some of the most original content lyrically throughout both their major releases.
The first track is good, but it's no "Tell mick" (best FOB song ever by the way). I pretty much like jumping in to the following track, the best on the album. It's an easy, dancing along piece that will catch you instantly and not let go. I heard a leak of "Sugar.." before the album came out and now I'm sick of that song (it's just not very good except for the lead in lines to the verses). "Of all the gin joints.." holds its liquor (haha, that was nice, eh?) better than the single. It doesn't get tiresome, and if anything, it just gets more catchy every time you hear it. "Dance Dance" is another track specifically worth mentioning because it's just a little different. I love the bridge that leads into the 2nd and last chorus. Other highlights include "Nobody puts baby in the corner", "I slept with someone in FOB..." and "A little less sixteen candles..."
Finally, the closer. If you aren't blown away by the closer to Take this to your grave, then you must be reading this in preparation to make fun of Fall Out Boy since you sure as hell don't like pop punk. Does XO live up to the greatness of the last album closer? I'd have to say, almost. "XO" is a fantastic track from start to finish. Definitely my second favorite on the album. It's upbeat but has a slow paced flowing chorus that carries on towards the end to bring the album to a close.
I won't deny that there are some lowpoints on the album such as: beginning of "I've got a dark alley...", the pseudo screaming (although I'm fairly sure it's a joke, so stop saying FOB is trying to be something else and doing a bad job, I think they realize they suck at it), and the worst part, the talking at the end of "Get busy living...". It sucked when From Autumn to Ashes did it, and it still sucks now.
Overall though this is a solid record that puts everything around it to shame even though it is far from flawless. I may rate other albums higher stars or something but I think I just don't have the heart to love this too much because of Take This to your Grave and the fact that Sugar is really annoying to me now. But listen kids, if you want to look "cool" so bad and hate emo at the same time, then save us the trouble of having to filter through your pointless reviews and go sit in a corner in your room and listen to your Shadows Fall cds (Yeah, that's right, they're not cool, shocker, eh?). Take your anger out on something way less good than this album.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fall Out Boy = amazing!, July 28, 2005
FOB outdid themselves with this one. I enjoyed Take This to Your Grave, but the songs on this album are much more catchy and enjoyable. I wasnt even a huge fan of their first album, but this one made me a hardcore FOB fan. First of all, I'd like to say that their use of lyrics are amazing. My favorites: "I keep my jealousy close cause its all mine, and if you say that makes you happy than I'm not the only one lying." Also, the infamous "Am I more than you bargained for yet?" Its so easy for so many people to relate to their songs. Many of their songs are about them being bitter at exes, although the style of music isnt exactly depressing either. I also love how every song is catchy. My favorite song on the album is "Dance, Dance," because it has amazing lyrics, and great drums and bass. Another favorite is "Nobody Puts Baby In the Corner," which I love way better than the acoustic version. Other favorites are "Champagne for my Real Friends..." and "XO." I LOVE pretty much every song on the album, and that rarely happens for me.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Worthy successor to Take This To Your Grave, May 7, 2005
Second albums aren't always as good as first albums. You have you entire life to make the first one but only a year or so to make the second one. But this band has not let us down with From Under The Cork Tree.
Like TTTYG, there are no fillers on this CD. Any one of the 13 tracks could easily be a single or video.
Not only has Fall Out Boy earned their signing to a major label, they have proven that they will not compromise their artistic integrity (i.e. "sell out"). The sound of the second CD may be a little more polished and produced, but it is unmistakably Fall Out Boy. This is not a Simple Plan or Dashboard Confessional CD by any means.
Song-by-Song reviews:
1) Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued - Great song to open the album with. The beginning sound effects (the camera clicking) sort of echos "Tell That Mick..." from TTTYG, but this is an entirely different (and much less angry) opening act. 9/10
2) Of All The Gin Joints In All The World - Not a filler by any means, but not my favorite on the album. 7/10
3) Dance Dance - Catchy and yes, danceable. 8/10
4) Sugar We're Going Down - One of my four favorites on the album. It's the obvious first single and hopefully the song that will break the band. 10/10
5) Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner - Excellent song. The full-band version rocks, but I do prefer the acoustic version. I think a better choice to be remade would have been "It's Not A Side Effect of Cocaine. I'm Thinking It Must Be Love." 9/10
6) I've Got A Dark Alley And A Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth - This is a big sudden left-turn for the band. It almost has a retro 80s Smiths/Morrissey sound. Very refreshing, very different. 10/10
7) 7 Minutes In Heaven - Good song, but like "Gin Joints" doesn't stand out quite as high as the rest. 8/10
8) Sophomore Slump or Comeback of the Year - Another good one. Great chorus, good hook. I think this one will definitely be a single. 9/10
9) Champagne For My Real Friends, Real Pain For My Sham Friends - Good song, but unfortunately the title is better. This one is not a stand-out either. 7/10
10) I Slept With Fall Out Boy And All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me - I like this one. 8/10
11) A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More 'Touch Me' - Another one of my favorites. I think this one is the "Grand Theft Autumn" of the album. It stays in your head hours after listening to it. 10/10
12) Get Busy Living Or Get Busy Dying (Do Your Part To Save The Scene And Stop Going To Shows) - I'm noticing alot of reviews mentioning this song as one of the weaker ones, but I absolutely love it. Pete sings a bit in this one and the poem read at the end is chilling. 10/10
13) XO - I'm wondering if this one is a sequel to "Tell That Mick...". The lyrics reference "I hoped you choked and crashed your car". It's a dark stalker anthem and very creepy. A perfect song to end the album with. 10/10
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An Amazon.com Best of 2005 selection.
Interact With Your Music: Discover, listen to, and buy new music, all from the pages of SPIN's digital edition, free to Amazon customers.
~ Fall Out Boy
~ Fall Out Boy
~ Panic! at the Disco
~ The All-American Rejects
~ My Chemical Romance
by Fall Out Boy 
