Thirty Days of Music Day 13 - A Song That Is A Guilty Pleasure

I'm slightly ashamed to admit that XO by Fall Out Boy is my most played song on itunes - racking up an impressive 146 plays.  I bought From Under the Cork Tree when it came out in 2005 and was soon addicted to the incredibly catchy hooks and witty lyrics that Fall Out Boy utilised at the time.  It's one of those albums that you either love or hate, and it polarised ciritics at the time, but I think it's still brilliant.  I admit my music taste has changed dramatically since 2005 but I have to give them great respect for pulling off an album that could have easily been sickeningly poppy.

XO is probably one of the best songs off the album - the whole band's sound changes pace brilliantly, Stump's vocals moving from rushed lists ('to drinks in the club to the bar/ to the keys in your car') to soaringly held chorus notes and the drums following them perfectly.  The album version has simple, but effective echos on some of the vocals and Stump's voice is extremely powerful.  You get the impression that the guitar and bass are pretty redundant in XO, they are barely heard other than at the beginning, being drowned out by the vocals and drums - maybe this is a good thing, though, because it works to create an extremely catchy, swift-footed song that seems to end all too soon.