Fall Out Boy
By Alex Jones
The headliner for the first night was the one and only Fall Out Boy. The crowd started to wait for their performance over an hour before it was scheduled to start. If you paid close attention you could almost feel the teenage angst in the air as people eagerly waited for the 9:45pm performance. The Great American Insurance building watched over Bunbury’s main stage as Fall Out Boy took the stage to close out night 1.
Right off the bat FOB brought the energy, and their popular classics to the performance. As fireworks blasted in the background from the Reds game, and pyrotechnics erupted on stage, FOB absolutely killed one song after another. My inner middle school boy was screaming through every song.
My personal favorite song from the performance was “The Phoenix.” As flames shot out from the back of the stage, and song the continued, bassists Pete Wentz shot flames out of his bass guitar via a flamethrower attached to the instrument. It was truly incredible to see, and I’m not sure I’ll ever see anything like it at a live performance again. The flames from the bass flame thrower were as powerful as the performance itself.
Another special song from the performance was none other than “Sugar, We’re Going Down.” Lead singer Patrick Stump had every person in the crowd belting out every line from the iconic song. In the distance you could even see people on nearby bridges, apartments, and garages singing and dancing.
Between set changes, the band gave drummer Andrew Hurley the spotlight, allowing him to play solo drums of songs by Kendrick Lamar, and Nirvana while the rest of the group prepared for a new wave of songs. At first it seemed peculiar, but after Stump had the crowd sing happy birthday to the drummer, it was perfectly fitting to give the drummer all the spotlight that night.
A strong point of the performance came from the ease at which the band interacted with the crowd. At one point Pete Wentz began talking to a little kid in the crowd, asking him what it would take for his friends to not believe the night he had. The band proceeded to have the boy taken back stage for a meet and greet, pictures, and signings from the band.
Other great songs from the performance include “Thnks fr th Mmrs” “Uma Thurman” and “American Beauty/American Pyscho.”
Fall Out played a total of 22 songs, including a small encore as the night came to a close. They brought the energy you would expect from a headliner on night 1 of a festival, and they did anything but disappointed. Their performance was a great nostalgic way to kick off a weekend of rock artists.
Website: https://falloutboy.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/falloutboy?lang=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/falloutboy/
Fall Out Boy
By Megan Randall
Closing out Day 1 of the Bunbury Music Festival, pop punk music giants Fall Out Boy ended the evening with an amazing show of lights, purple confetti, and flaming guitars(!). Starting their set with “Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes” from 2008’s Folie a Deux, the group ran the gamut of Fall Out Boy’s discography. Deep into the set list Patrick Stump and crew whipped out Grand Theft Autumn/Where Is Your Boy from the band’s debut album, 2003’s Take This to Your Grave. New fans delighted in “Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea,” a techno-based track off their 2018 album Mania.
The wide range of sound is what captures fans of all ages at a Fall Out Boy show, but the stage antics are what really brings you back in for more. The band always delivers a high-energy performance and their performance on the Monster Stage at Bunbury Music Festival was no exception. Pete Wentz’s bass was LITERALLY on fire; pyrotechnics at the tip of his bass spewed flames out during his performance erupting the audience in cheers.
In a sweep of perceived sentimentality, the band decided to close their set on their classic “Saturday,” also from 2003’s Take This to Your Grave.
Sadly, if you missed this epic performance in Cincinnati you will have to wait to catch the band live. Their only two upcoming tour dates are in Japan.
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Photographs by Shawn Wiseman & Michael Deinlein
