![]() That kind of enthusiasm is refreshing when I so often see lots of quiet head nodding and complaining, so I can appreciate the complete lack of cynicism that was on display. And it showed, with the packed crowd bursting into an a cappella rendition of “Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes” while waiting in line, still 20 minutes to doors opening. ![]() But with these FOB tickets being gone in less than ten minutes, there was a lot of time for fan excitement for the event to grow to a fever pitch. Vegas isn’t really known as a city that sells out shows, at least not months in advance. A lot has changed for the band over the past 10 years – they began to incorporate influences from outside the punk and hardcore spectrum, they saw a period of immense pop culture saturation (particularly for bassist and lyricist Pete Wentz) and they took an extended hiatus where the members all dabbled in solo and side projects – but I was excited to be there when they made a triumphant return to Vegas last week, after a 5 year absence. “I know I’m not your favorite record/But the songs you grow to like never stick at first,” Stump yelps on the speedy “Dead on Arrival.” But the urgency of Take This to Your Grave makes each of its songs an instant-release megadose of pop-punk euphoria-and the way that the brightly hued yet regret-wracked “Grand Theft Autumn/Where Is Your Boy” and “Saturday” remain in the band’s live repertoire some 20 years after their release shows how early in their career they were crafting music with staying power.Back in 2003, I caught Fall Out Boy opening for Less Than Jake at the House of Blues and they immediately won me over with their Lifetime-influenced pop punk, catchy hooks and dynamic stage presence. ![]() The album’s full-bodied sound, too, gives extra brawn to cuts like the punchy “Grenade Jumper” and the sneering “Calm Before the Storm.” While Stump’s voice has yet to reach the full flower that added a dollop of soul to Fall Out Boy’s punk on later albums, there are moments, like the outro of the sweetly crunchy “Saturday,” when he flexes his falsetto. Its songs combine the twist-tie riffs of Midwest emo, the potent harmonies of power pop, the gang vocals of heavily tattooed hardcore, and the intricate yet mighty drumming of metal, with pithy, away-message-ready lyrics cementing their indelibility. Take This to Your Grave is a period-appropriate amalgamation of edge-dwelling rock-a flag-plant amid the still-clearing dust of the century-ending alternative boom. Fall Out Boy’s strength has long laid in the way its four members click as a band their back-to-basics punk instincts collide with their world-conquering ambitions in thrilling ways, resulting in songs that are as suitable for catalyzing mosh pits at the beloved Chicago DIY space Fireside Bowl as they are for inspiring mass sing-alongs at Wrigley Field. The album opens with “Tell That Mick He Just Made My List of Things to Do Today,” which lays out the blueprint: Trohman’s power chords give way to Hurley’s breakneck drumming, which sets the stage for Wentz’s surreal yet sardonic lyrics, delivered in Stump’s wail. ![]() And the way Take This to Your Grave has an immediate appeal while reaching beyond punk’s three-chord ethos and toward ideas that are both knottier and bigger shows how they got there. In the two decades since, the Chicagoland foursome of vocalist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurley has become one of rock’s biggest acts. When Fall Out Boy recorded the songs that would become their 2003 debut, Take This to Your Grave, they were living on the edge, sleeping on borrowed floors and bargaining with the studio for PB&J money. ![]()
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