There isn’t a rock band that has lasted as long as Fall Out Boy. Their music has a history of shifting and evolving, with new songs always seeming fresher and more lyrically complex than their earlier albums.
Their latest album, American Beauty/American Psycho, sees them pushing the boundaries again; a far more pop-minded sound than Folie A Deux. It also features a guest list of songwriters including My Chemical Romance’s Brendon Urie, Weezer’s Gabe Saporta and blink-182’s Travie McCoy.
The album’s lead single “Centuries” combines David and Goliath mythos with the Christian concept of public martyrdom to create something that feels both familiar and foreign. It was written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley, Justin Tranter and Michael Fonseca in mid-2014.
Wentz described the song as an interpretation of the Biblical story of David and Goliath. Using the Hebrew word for “giant,” he wrote the track as a call to action for people to challenge their perceived societal limitations, stating, “I want people to stand up to the big bad guy, and not let him get the best of them.”
It reached 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 in its 20th week (week ending February 7, 2015; the same as American Beauty/American Psycho’s debut), becoming the band’s first top 10 hit in almost eight years. It also reached a peak of 15 on the Pop Songs chart and 13 on the Adult Pop chart with heavy airplay.