Singles Roundup: Fall Out Boy, Metallica, & DMB

Big names with big(?) new songs this week.

Fall Out Boy - Love From The Other Side

Last year, I went through a period where I was listening to a lot of the emo stuff I was never super into back in the day. "Sing The Sorrow", "The Black Parade", and yes, the three great Fall Out Boy records. There's no doubt about it; this is the first song since they went on their hiatus that even sounds like Fall Out Boy. But does that mean it's good? Ah, now there's a question. On the surface, the answer is yes. The guitars are back, the electronic weirdness of the last couple records is gone, and you can close your eyes and imagine it being 2005 again.

But while this is the best Fall Out Boy song since then, let's not pretend this is as good as their classic stuff. The hook is mid-tier compared to what they're capable of, and the lyrics don't have the pretentious wordiness that came to define them. I was really missing being able to find one or two lines that were so over-wrought they were clever. This almost feels like the band playing it too straight, because it's been so long since they've lived in this identity.

I won't question motives, but to hear this after what could have been a career-killing album like "Mania"....

Metallica - Screaming Suicide

I wasn't won over by the first song Metallica released for this album cycle, and I'm even less enthused by this one. I could talk about how James' vocals in the first verse sound really odd, or how Kirk's solo has all the fluidity of my own lousy playing, but none of that really matters. The song is the thing, and there isn't much of a song to this, which is the case too often. The first time I listened to it, as was true with "Lux Eterna", I didn't even realize the chorus had kicked in, because it doesn't sound like a chorus. There isn't any real hook to the song at all, and I came away from it feeling like it was written in the Metallica style; an assembly line of riffs put together because they were in the same key. Perhaps bands shouldn't be so revealing about the creative process, because knowing how they write, and how they focus group their songs, can sometimes give a hollow feeling about the results.

I think it's pretty clear at this point I'm only going to talk about the record at length if I have nothing better to do. These two songs are not my thing at all, and putting myself through another seventy minutes or so of this is not high on my list of priorities. I know people have said to me before, "You can't like metal if you don't like Metallica." I'm never sure if I'm supposed to be bothered by being accused of not being a metal fan. I'm definitely not, so maybe the only time I'll ever talk about this upcoming record again is when I make my 'worst of the year' list in December.

Dave Matthews Band - Madman's Eyes

This song is certainly a bit of a throwback. The last two DMB albums have been rather quiet and restrained affairs, whereas this song pulls much more influence from "Before These Crowded Streets". I wonder if the fact that record is turning twenty-five this year might have something to do with that. The strings and horns are very much in the vain of "The Last Stop", while the sinister little guitar line after the chorus has some of the feeling from "Halloween". But what is most up-front about this song is Dave's vocal, where he spends the entire chorus in his higher register. I don't like that choice at all, as it sounds rather strained, maybe even painful, and it's hard for a melody to shine through it. Those last couple records took time to grow on me, which they certainly did, and this song might need the same... if it ever does.