“FOLIE A DEUX” FALL OUT BOY
WHY CARE?: The love-‘em-or-hate-‘em emo punk standard-bearer returns with a fizzy blend of musical genres.
TRIVIA: The album title, pronounced “foe-lee ah do,” is French for “double madness,” a term describing medical cases where two people share the same psychosis.
STANDOUTS: “(Coffee’s for Closers)” has one of the group’s more evocative lines — “Kick drum beating in my chest again” — while the dark bounce of “Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown on a Bad Bet” somehow calls to mind Michael Jackson.
FANS DIG: Mixed-up anthems
ANDY SAYS: The group keeps adding to its emo-punk sound: a death metal interlude here, a Beatlesque splash of strings there. At times, tracks run together and the faux-intellectual lyrics become strained, but overall, these guys deliver a madness worth sharing.
GRADE: B-plus
“24 HOURS” TOM JONES
WHY CARE?: Tom Jones releases his first album of new material for the United States in 15 years, and it’s good.
TRIVIA: Jones was the richest Welsh performer in 2005, with a fortune then estimated at 175 million pounds, according to the BBC.
STANDOUTS: Album opener “I’m Alive” sets the tone, as the 68-year-old lets his undiminished voice tackle the track with the braggadocio of a man half his age.
FANS DIG: Chest hair
ANDY SAYS: Sometimes “24 Hours” is a bit much; “Sugar Daddy” has a boast even Jones can’t sell: “Holy shmoly … I’m the MacDaddy.” But for the most part, the album is great fun. Quentin Tarantino needs to put Jones on a soundtrack already and kick-start a full-on U.S. comeback.
GRADE: B-plus
“WHEN THE WORLD COMES DOWN” THE ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS
WHY CARE?: The band racks up platinum albums while avoiding the paparazzi maelstrom of, oh, say, Fall Out Boy.
TRIVIA: The quartet landed its own “Got milk?” ad earlier this year.
STANDOUT: “Fallin’ Apart” echoes “Come On Eileen” as it opens, which means you’ll either love it or hate it.
FANS DIG: Power pop
ANDY SAYS: On first listen, many songs give a pleasing punch, but they grow weaker upon repeat listens. Even if some of their hooks are hard to deny, the group remains a bit too generic.
GRADE: C-plus
Andy Rathbun, 425-339-3455, arathbun@heraldnet.com
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