| Name | Infinity on High |
|---|
| Type | Album |
|---|
| Artist | Fall Out Boy |
|---|
| Cover | Infinityonhigh.jpg |
|---|
| Released | February 5, 2007 (International)
February 6, 2007 (United States)
August 28, 2007 (New Zealand Platinum Edition)
September 7, 2007 (Australian Tour Edition)
November 20, 2007 (Deluxe Limited Edition) |
|---|
| Recorded | July - October 2006 in Burbank, California |
|---|
| Genre | Pop punk, pop rock, emo |
|---|
| Length | 47:49 |
|---|
| Label | Mercury, Island, Fueled by Ramen |
|---|
| Producer | Neal Avron, Babyface, Butch Walker, Patrick Stump |
|---|
| Last album | From Under the Cork Tree
(2005) |
|---|
| This album | Infinity on High
(2007) |
|---|
| Next album | Folie à Deux
(2008) | |
|---|
| Misc | |
|---|
|}}
Infinity on High is the fourth studio album by American rock band Fall Out Boy. It was the follow up to their 2005 album From Under the Cork Tree. Originally planned for release at the end of 2006, it was changed to early 2007. Infinity on High debuted at number-one on the U.S. Billboard 200, and has since been certified platinum by the RIAA.
The title is taken from a letter written by Vincent van Gogh to his brother Theo in 1888, in which he describes his renewed health and the vigor it has instilled in his painting. Van Gogh's exact phrasing has been translated as "Be clearly aware of the stars and infinity on high. Then life seems almost enchanted after all".
The photography for the album was done by Pamela Littky, and the sets on the album artwork were designed by Todd Fjelsted. The artwork for the album was designed by Chuck Anderson of NoPattern. Rolling Stone ranked the album at number 46 on its list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007.
Track listing
All songs written by
Fall Out Boy; additional writers in parentheses.
# "Thriller" – 3:29
# "
"The Take Over, The Breaks Over"" – 3:33
# "
This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" – 3:32
# "
I'm Like a Lawyer with the Way I'm Always Trying to Get You Off (Me & You)" – 3:31
# "Hum Hallelujah" – 3:50 (
Leonard Cohen)
# "Golden" – 2:32 (
Wesley Eisold)
# "
Thnks fr th Mmrs" – 3:21
# "Don't You Know Who I Think I Am?" – 2:51
# "The (After) Life of the Party" – 3:21
# "
The Carpal Tunnel of Love" – 3:23 (Eisold)
# "
Bang the Doldrums" – 3:31 (Eisold)
# "Fame < Infamy" – 3:06
# "You're Crashing, but You're No Wave" – 3:42
# "I've Got All This Ringing in My Ears and None on My Fingers" – 4:06
Bonus Tracks
# "G.I.N.A.S.F.S." (UK Bonus Track) - 3:15
# "It's Hard to Say "I Do", When I Don't" (Japan Bonus Track) - 3:24
# "
Dance, Dance" (Latin America Bonus Track)- 3:00
DVD
# "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" (Live on AOL)
# "The Take Over, the Breaks Over" (Live on AOL)
# "Thriller" (Live on AOL)
# "
Sugar, We're Goin Down" (Live on AOL)
# "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" (Music video)
# "Thnks fr th Mmrs" (Music video)
# ""The Take Over, the Breaks Over"" (Music video)
Deluxe Limited Edition Bonus CD
# "G.I.N.A.S.F.S."
# "It's Hard to Say "I Do", When I Don't"
# "Dance, Dance" (Live)
# "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" (Live)
# "Thriller" (Live)
Versions
Two versions of the album were released in the United States, along with several pre-sale offers issued for certain store chains. Besides the regular edition, a limited edition "book"-style digipak version, containing
tarot cards but no additional audio or video content, was released.
A bonus song, "G.I.N.A.S.F.S." ("Gay Is Not a Synonym for Shitty," sometimes edited "Gay Is Not a Synonym for Stupid"), can be found on the Irish, British, New Zealand, Australian and Japanese releases. The Japanese release also carries "It's Hard to Say 'I Do', When I Don't". The Latin American releases of the album have "Dance, Dance" as a bonus track, most likely due to the success of the song in those countries. Moreover, the deluxe version of Infinity on High doesn't carry the traditional plastic case and album sleeve. It contains a paperback/cardboard case, five "tarot" cards, and a different cover for the album sleeve (a crow perched on a pumpkin).
Those who purchased the CD and inserted it into their computer were able to receive a free download of an EP they recorded on January 29, 2007. The EP is a live EP titled Leaked in London. The location of the recording was at London's Hammersmith Palais. According to MTV, three of the five bonus tracks will be live cuts of existing songs.
On November 20, 2007, the Deluxe Limited Edition became available for sale. It featured the original CD plus a bonus CD, with "G.I.N.A.S.F.S.", "It's Hard To Say 'I Do' When I Don't" and three live songs from the Leaked in London EP.
Song notes
The song "
This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" is reportedly about
lyricist/
bassist Peter Wentz's frustration with the "
emo scene". It also has a reference to the arms race with Russia. As he told
Rolling Stone, "There may be other songs on the record that would be bigger radio hits, but this one had the right message."
The song title for ""The Take Over, the Breaks Over"" is a reference to a line in the Jay-Z song "Takeover".
The song "You're Crashing, But You're No Wave" is based on the trial of Fred Hampton, Jr.. Many believe Hampton was unjustly found guilty for an arson case involving the firebombing of a Korean grocery store following the nationwide protests in 1992 after the acquittal of the LAPD officers who beat Rodney King.
The song "Don't You Know Who I Think I Am?" is yet another John Hughes reference repeating the concept from "A Little Less Sixteen Candles, a Little More 'Touch Me'" on From Under the Cork Tree. In the movie The Breakfast Club, the kids are instructed to write a one thousand word essay entitled, "Who I Think I Am". Also, in spite of rumors, the song is not the same song as "I Liked You a Whole Lot Better Before You Became a Fucking MySpace Whore". The latter song has never been officially released but a recorded version may be found on the internet. The song also refers to an online scuffle that took place between Wentz and former good friend Christopher Gutierrez, or "HeyChris".
The song "Thnks fr th Mmrs" is about two lovers who have broken up, but still have sex and question whether their relationship has really died, or if it's just for their needs. The line "He tastes like you, but sweeter" (as "He tastes like you, only sweeter") is a line from Patrick Marber's play Closer and its subsequent film adaptation in 2004. Pete Wentz States in his **** Live DVD that "this song is about loving a girl so much that being so jealous of her, you just wanna cut her up into little pices and eat her... Because she tastes like you. Only sweeter."
The "hallelujah" choir part in the bridge of "Hum Hallelujah" is taken from the song "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen.
The line "You're a canary, I'm a coal mine..." from "I've Got All This Ringing in My Ears and None on My Fingers" is a reference to the former practice of using a canary as an early warning for the presence of toxic gases in coal mines. The concept is also referred to in the song "Canary in a Coalmine" by the Police on their album, Zenyatta Mondatta.
The first line in "G.I.N.A.S.F.S." ("I love everything about you that hurts, so...") is also another line taken from Closer.
"G.I.N.A.S.F.S." reportedly stands for "Gay Is Not a Synonym for Shitty".
"It's Hard to Say, 'I Do', When I Don't" is a title chosen by a fan through a contest conducted by 'Fall Out Boy's fan club 'overcastkids' the lyrics for the song where sent to all fan club members and was asked to come up with a name for the song, the winning title was named by Colin Yip, a fan from the United Kingdom.'Singles
{| class="wikitable"
! Single information
|-
|align="left"|"
This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race"
Released: January 16, 2007
Chart positions:
* #2 (UK Singles Chart)
* #2 (U.S. Billboard Hot 100)
* #1 (U.S. Billboard Pop 100)
* #8 (U.S. Modern Rock Tracks)
|-
|align="left"|"
The Carpal Tunnel of Love"
Released: February 5, 2007
Chart positions:
* #81 (U.S. Billboard Hot 100)
* #67 (U.S. Billboard Pop 100)
|-
|align="left"|"
Thnks fr th Mmrs"
Released: March 27, 2007
Chart positions:
* #12 (UK Singles Chart)
* #11 (U.S. Billboard Hot 100)
* #9 (U.S. Billboard Pop 100)
* #19 (U.S. Modern Rock Tracks)
* #3 (Australia)
|-
|align="left"|"
"The Take Over, the Breaks Over""
Released: July 2, 2007
Chart positions:
* #48 (UK Singles Chart)
* #17 (Australia)
|-
|align="left"|"
I'm Like a Lawyer with the Way I'm Always Trying to Get You Off (Me & You)"
Released: September 11, 2007
Chart positions:
* #91 (UK Singles Chart)
* #68 (U.S. Billboard Hot 100]
* #31 (U.S. Billboard Pop 100)
* #28 (Australia)
|-
|}
Band members
Patrick Stump – lead vocals, guitar
Joe Trohman – guitar, backing vocals
Pete Wentz – bass guitar, backing vocals
Andy Hurley – drums
Guest artists
Jay-Z – intro and outro on "Thriller"
Chad Gilbert (of New Found Glory) – guitar solo in ""The Take Over, the Breaks Over"" – full lyrics for "The Carpal Tunnel of Love", "Golden". Partial lyrics for "Bang the Doldrums".
Chart performance
{| class="wikitable"
! Chart
! Peak
! Certification
! Sales/shipments
|-
|
Billboard 200
|align="center"|1
| Platinum
| 1,000,000
|-
|
UK Albums Chart
|align="center"|3
| Platinum
| 350,000
|-
|
Australian ARIA Albums Chart
|align="center"|4
| Platinum
| 75,000
|-
|
New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart
|align="center"|1
| Platinum
| 15,000
|}
Release history
Infinity on High was released in various countries in February 2007.
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
! Country
! Date
! Label
! Format
! Catalog numbers
|-
|
Japan
|rowspan="2"| February 5, 2007
|
Island
|rowspan="3"|
CD
| UICL 1065
|-
|
United Kingdom
|
Mercury
| 1720575
|-
|rowspan="2"|
United States
|rowspan="2"| February 6, 2007
|rowspan="2"| Island
| 0008109
|-
|
LP
| B0008109-01
|}
References
External links
Official Fall Out Boy website
Category:Fall Out Boy albums
Category:2007 albums
Category:Albums produced by Butch Walker
Category:Albums produced by Neal Avron
Category:Fueled by Ramen albums
![Hum Hallelujah [With Lyrics] - Fall Out Boy](http://web.archive.org./web/20110109063444im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/5al7c3x7I4c/2.jpg "Hum Hallelujah [With Lyrics] - Fall Out Boy")
