The crowd looked nervous at The Metro, waiting for the return of Fall Out Boy and wondering if their favourite band would disappoint them. A 3-year hiatus will do that to even the most solid of fan bases. Would they be rusty? Would they look like they aren’t enjoying it anymore? Would they only play music from their new album and forgo the hits that brought us here in the first place?
That said, absence does make the heart grow fonder. So too does an amazing show.
Fall Out Boy burst onto the stage to roars and squeals and, to our great relief, the boys were just as we remembered them – a little older, but they’ve not aged poorly. Patrick sounds as good as he always did, Pete is just as handsome, Joe is still ridiculously talented and Andy is still a kick-ass drummer though there are more tattoos and, now that their fans have grown along with them, there’s a lot more swearing in the general banter too.
Thriller was the first number – not an obvious choice, but the crowd ate it up all the same. Pete was mugging for the cameras, something that clearly comes quite naturally for the extroverted bassist. After he quit posing, Pete stopped the crowd from ‘smooshing’ the patrons in the front row, asking everyone to take one big step back – a responsible thing to do considering how harmful the pit can be. He was obviously anticipating a surge in energy, as he declared the next song was actually written for the circle pit, and they kicked off This Ain’t A Scene, It’s An Arms Race, following up with Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner.
Taking a bit of a “breather”, we were then treated to slower number I’m Like A Lawyer… (Me & You). Tell That Mick He Just Made My List Of Things To Do Today was next, a definite turnaround from the previous song – these guys did not need much time to bring their energy levels back from the dead.
After they played Hum Hallelujah, Pete started talking about his Australian friend Nick, who has a habit of calling him every morning at the crack of dawn and telling the bassist that he is an honorary Australian. During the middle of the rather entertaining story, the crowd started chanting. “Pants off! Pants off!” they cried, either an unsubtle dig at Pete’s naughty photo scandal from ’06 or the crowd genuinely wanted Pete to take his pants off. Who wouldn’t?
During I Don’t Care, it was easy to see that Patrick seemed to be more comfortable in his skin, allowing more of the showman to shine through in his performance and personality, rather than letting Pete have all the fun. There was definitely more flamboyance to his stage presence. The pair nattered about their new album coming out, and how music started sounding the same to them when they were on hiatus. They made fun of the dubstep phenomenon, which convinced them that they wanted to play new music, new songs. Essentially, they wanted to put rock back on the radio – a fitting intro to their new radio-friendly single Light Em Up, and then a flawless cover of Michael Jackson’s Beat It a couple songs later.
The band had a few things to say about their public perception – that, according to the internet, “we’re supposed to bitch about a bunch of stuff, so for the next 3.5 minutes or so we want you to feel as if you’re in a perfect moment with us now”. Sugar, We’re Goin’ Down was the soundtrack of choice and they were right – it was a perfect moment with a perfect song.
They left the stage for a brief time and the crowd began to chant for more, the band reappearing promptly for the encore, announcing, “You guys chant like champions!”
Thnks Fr Th Mmrs would have been an exceptional song to end on, and the boys thanked fans for sticking around for the past couple of years and being fans in general. To show their appreciation, they surprised the overjoyed crowd with one more tune, Saturday, with Pete leaping off stage and getting in amongst it with the fans.
And that was it. It was all over. The crowd loved it and the band did not disappoint. If this is what to expect from a group after a 3-year hiatus, more bands should probably be following in Fall Out Boy’s footsteps.
Fall Out Boy @ The Metro, Sydney 25/03/2013 – Setlist
Thriller
I Slept With Someone in Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me
A Little Less Sixteen Candles, a Little More “Touch Me”
Dead on Arrival
This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race
Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner
I’m Like a Lawyer With the Way I’m Always Trying to Get You Off (Me & You)
Tell That Mick He Just Made My List of Things to Do Today
Grand Theft Autumn / Where Is Your Boy
Hum Hallelujah
Dance, Dance
What a Catch, Donnie
The Take Over, the Breaks Over
I Don’t Care
My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light ‘Em Up)
Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes
Beat It (Michael Jackson cover)
Sugar, We’re Goin Down
Encore:
Thnks fr th Mmrs
Saturday
