Toxicity - Fall Out Boy's "MANIA"

M A N I A, by Fall Out Boy

October 17, 2021

The year was 2017. I’d just been on a first date. I was too young to see the warning signs. This date set the tone for the relationship: denial, frustration, tenuous complacency, and finally a terrible breakup.

My first date was, of course, Fall Out Boy’s new single, “Young and Menace.” The relationship was the months-long affair I had with their 2018 album, MANIA. The title is stylized M A N I A. The title is the best part of the album. During 2017, I had listened nonstop to Fall Out Boy’s discography and was overjoyed they were releasing a new album soon. I loved “Young and Menace” and its autotuned, fractured, chaotic chorus. I heard that song over 60 times. The songs on MANIA I heard nearly 450 times, according to my lastfm profile.

One shattering day, I actually listened to “Young and Menace.” Panicking, I played the rest of MANIA. It was unimpressive, and I finally heard it. I saw all the red flags. MANIA’s promise of good things coupled with its constant failure to deliver what I wanted to hear.

As with any toxic relationship, years passed and I learned to love again. Not “Young and Menace,” but a good handful of tracks from MANIA. This love is not blind; it is a more mature love that is born out of knowing who you are and what you like. These days, I like MANIA for its pop catchiness. It’ll never be another Folie à Deux; it won’t even be Save Rock and Roll. I’ve come to terms with that.

MANIA taught me three lessons I’m still applying. First, don’t pin too many hopes on your current favorite band’s next release. Oasis put it well: “Please don’t put your life in the hands of a rock and roll band.” Second, it is okay to like pop music. Can’t be told you have poor taste in music if you like all genres of music. Third, don’t try to force a release into a genre in which it doesn’t belong. MANIA is not PAX AM Days.

Highlights:

• “Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea:” Classic FOB lyrical twists and a driving beat to open the album. Plus, it's not "Young and Menace."

• “Sunshine Riptide:” Featuring Burna Boy, and underscoring the poppier aspect of the album, this song is wonderfully catchy.

• “Bishops Knife Trick:” My editor’s eye hates this song; my music taste loves it. The final track on the album, it closes MANIA in classic, anthemic FOB style.