Twenty-years after their scene-defining debut, Fall Out Boy returns after a five year break fully revitalized.

In 2003 there were no iPhones. No Spotify or Hulu. The best selling car was a Toyota Camry (which is interestingly still in the top 5 as of 2022), George W. Bush was President, and American Idol was broadcasting into 14 – 15 million homes every Tuesday and Wednesday nights. A lot’s changed since Fall Out Boy released their debut studio album Take This To Your Grave, almost 20 years ago to the day. The band have since released eight LPs (with a couple of live and compilation albums thrown in for good measure), and are now seen as elder-statesmen to a genre who’s popularity came and went (but is starting to see a mini revitalization). Long gone are the Warped Tour days for the Chicago-based quartet, and mostly, for better.

Fall Out Boy has released four albums since their infamous hiatus (read: break) back in 2009, each to varying degrees of success and criticism. While they’ve released a couple smash hits such as 2014’s stadium anthem Centuries (their most played song on Spotify), they’ve also certainly lost favor with many long standing fans, some of whom believe the band had gone too far into the “pop” realm. One thing’s clear, though; Fall Out Boy has never been afraid to do just whatever the hell they want. From the long, absurd titles of tracks on 2005’s Take This To Your Grave, to features from prolific rappers Jay-Z and Lil Wayne, to trying their hand at EDM/dubstep on Young and Menace from 2018’s M A N I A. And while every decision they’ve made hasn’t quite worked out, there’s something to be commended about trying to push the envelope. However, So Much For Stardust feels like a love-letter to the past, while not giving completely in to nostalgia-bating. It does just enough to push Fall Out Boy forward, while paying homage to their roots. It’s the perfect blend of both worlds.

On first impressions, So Much For Stardust, intuitively, feels like band’s best record since the break. And the band knew it had to be. In a recent interview with NME, bassist and lyricist Pete Wentz said, “We wanted to make an album that felt like it made it worthwhile to go and tour it … A ‘whatever’ album from Fall Out Boy 20 years in is probably not worth making.” While it’s predecessor M A N I A isn’t necessarily “bad”, it does sort of feel like a “whatever” album. If the band wanted to stay relevant 20 years in, they had to deliver. And boy, did they ever.

From the soft piano intro that crescendos into ripping guitars and drums of the opening track and first single, Love From The Other Side, you can tell this time is different. It exudes confidence and poise. It’s a statement. One that says they’ve still got it in them. And while the next couple of tracks reach back into that “pop” bag that defined the previous two records (for better and worse), there are no gimmicks this time. It’s just the four of them and what they each do best. Pete Wentz with the snappy tongue-in-cheek lyrics, Patrick Stump with the sultry, yet boisterous vocals, Joe Trohman shredding on the guitar, and Andy Hurley pounding the drums. Hurley is the obvious standout here. Where in the previous three albums, though he had his moments, he was suppressed and didn’t get to show his full capabilities. Here, though, the talented drummer gets to let loose, most notably on the titular track and album closer.

The back half of the album is definitely the stronger collection of songs. After what is essentially an intermission with Ethan Hawke’s monologue from 1994’s “Reality Bites” on The Pink Seashell, there’s not a single miss. From the theatrical and haunting I Am My Own Muse, to a track that could easily be mistaken for a Soul Punk era deep cut in What A Time To Be Alive, to the booming and emotional finale So Much (For) Stardust (which is probably their best overall track since the break). Where the front portion of the album has it’s highs and a a couple lows, the final five songs are their A-Game. It’s Fall Out Boy at their finest.

While So Much (For Stardust) probably won’t win very many fans back that said good-bye to the band post-hiatus, the ones who decided to stick around to see if Fall Out Boy still had one more in them will likely be pleasantly surprised. The possibility of the band ever making another hardcore pop-punk record like their debut is slim. However, what they seem to have finally grasped, is that they can still take elements of the past while still explore new, exciting elements. It’s not a perfect record by any means, but this feels like the absolute best effort by a band 20 years in that has seen and done just about everything. Where they go next is really a mystery. But if they do decide to hang it up after this, So Much (For) Stardust is one hell of a send-off.

Rating: 8.5/10

-Devyn Tammons