Disclaimer: I recited all dates from memory. Let it be noted that they are unreliable. For instance, Sump did not announce his album until 2010, and Fall Out Boy did not go on hiatus until 2009. Some people might frown upon me, a serious listener, even trying this album out, let alone reviewing it. However, I grew up with Fall Out Boy in my life, and sure, there were good and bad parts of their career, but I still think "20 Dollar Nosebleed" is a good god damn song. In fact, Folie A Deux was a good god damn album...except for maybe America's Suitehearts. In any case, my point is that I like Patrick Stump and most of what Fall Out Boy was/is, and sometimes it's important to let go and just indulge in some purely shallow music, so on with it:
In 2008 Fall Out Boy officially went on hiatus, and almost immediately Patrick Stump made promise of his own solo album with a snazzy video of him playing some instruments and looking cool. This, I think, brought plenty of surprise for plenty of reasons: for one, sure, he might have been wearing the same old sailor shirt, but Stump suddenly had more hair and less fat. I was worried, of course, because he was suddenly not only attractive in talent (multi-intrsumentalist with the best voice a fourteen year old girl has ever heard plus production skills that made all of her favorite bands happen? An itch downstairs she might feel.) but also in physical being, which meant that his label - which he pretty much owns anyways - could sell him the same way they had sold Wentz in 2007.
For two, after about half a year had passed and we hadn't seen a solo album (which had been set to release that summer, supposedly) videos started popping up on youtube. Videos of Stump playing new songs. They weren't what I expected, especially after prior mentioned snazzfest preview circa summer '08. We could find him up on a stage picking at his guitar, making little sound, and singing along to it, while someone played a very quiet and basic drum pattern. This isn't to say I was disappointed with what would eventually become the "Truant Wave EP", just surprised, and more or less curious. I am, and always have been, confident in Stump's ability to create accessible pop music, so I was definitely interested in what direction these live performances would go.
The real surprise, and subsequent disappointment, came when a solo album didn't. 2010 passed, Stumpless, without any real set in stone word of a release. My suspicion is that Stump dropped the album, took the scraps, formed "Truant Wave" and began work on a new project, which would eventually become "Soul Punk".
Which brings us to now, more than three years since the album was announced, and it's finally released. Am I disappointed? Not in the slightest. Underwhelmed? Not at all. "Soul Punk" is exactly what I expected, except in a different package. A better package actually. Patrick Stump's solo debut is, and most likely always has been, meant for night life. Tracks such as "Allie" and "The 'I' in Lie" have me thinking back to Kanye West's "Graduation" - "Flashing Lights" and most definitely "Big Brother", for instance.
Musically, this album is a solid pop release. I can see almost any of these songs on the radio, or at the club, or even on my late night playlist. I'm actually pretty sure I'll find myself listening to "Run Dry (X Heart X Fingers)" quite often.
The problems with this album are just as apparent as the best parts, however: Stump can't write lyrics to save his life, and the theme/style/whatever of the packaging and promotion is clown shoes. Besides that, the first two tracks might set any listener off of the rest of the release: mostly because they suck.
The pros do outweigh the cons, I think. Just getting to listen to Stump show off his voice like he really never has is, in itself, worth listening to "Soul Punk". And besides that, there are a couple basslines ("Run Dry", looking at you) that might throw Daft Punk fans back to their "Discovery" days. There's also a heavy amount of synths floating around the whole endeavor, and without them, there wouldn't really be that night life atmosphere. There are even a couple good riffs hidden, and when you fall into them, if you're anything like me, you might blink twice. Stump said when he had first announced the album that he was mostly doing all of this so he could play the drums again - and I can see why. If that's him across this whole album, he's got amazing swagger.
So, in the end, I guess maybe this album isn't going to be one of those I recommend to all of my friends, but I am going to be listening to it quite often. I mean, there isn't anything wrong with indulgent pop music every now and then, and Pat seems to be the king of our bubblegum stations sometime between 9 and 1 p.m..
8.3
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