‘You are what you love
not who loves you
In a world full of the word yes
I’m here to scream….
no’
Sometimes, you find a band that sticks with you, a sound that resonates in your mind regardless of what chapter in life that you’re experiencing. Sometimes, songs are created that make you feel just as good at 15 as they do at 25. Fall Out Boy is one of those bands. Their entire catalog of songs have lyrics that, at one point or another, helped millions of teens around the world find a place to feel understood, heard, and related to.
When Fall Out Boy hit the road with Awolnation and Pvris they arranged a perfect show complete with old favorites, new hits, and two of the best opening acts around. The three hours spent inside the arena took you to an entirely different place, full of extreme talent, passionate lyrics, and at the end of the night – a sore throat accompanied by absolutely no voice at all.
Pvris opened the show with a few songs that were almost ambient in nature. The female vocalist, Lyndsey, captured your attention while Alex, Brian, and Justin laid the music for tracks that you found yourself wanting to hear again and again. They opened with White Noise and closed with My House; two absolute powerhouse tunes.
Next on stage was Awolnation – a band made most well known by their radio hit Sail. The mood of the evening switched entirely when they took the stage with their song Run. With lyrics like ‘I am a human being capable of doing terrible things‘ and ‘You people are mistaken if you think that I’m awake and celebrating anything that I’ve become‘, Run is a song that reels you in with it’s unique beat and keeps you there with it’s strong message. The follow up songs were just as great as vocalist Aaron danced around the stage encouraging fans to jump, dance, and be as interactive as possible. The crowd went wild for Awolnation, and with good reason – they have an indescribable live show. Their raw talent, incredible lyrics, and lasting stage presence will live with concert goers long after they’ve left the stage.
When the beat to Irresistible started playing and Fall Out Boy took the stage, fans jumped to their feet and stayed there for the duration of their performance. There wasn’t a second where the energy wasn’t pumping through the speakers and directly into the veins of the fans. Hearing absolute tunes like Sugar, We’re Goin Down, Grand Theft Autumn/Where Is Your Boy, and The Phoenix – fans were taken on a journey to the first times they heard Fall Out Boy, to the time when the band began to gain fame, and then to the present – where they’ve carved an unforgettable piece out of the music industry that will never be touched, never be topped.
Pete Wentz took a moment to talk about doing what you want and being who you are, standing up against depression, anxiety, and anything else that tries to keep you down. He spoke to a generation that is silenced and made to feel inferior unless they meet a certain mold – coming from a man who’s become a hero to Fall Out Boy fans – that part of the show meant so much to each person in the arena.
There was another special moment during Fall Out Boy’s setlist that proceeded to draw an incredible reaction from the crowd. During Save Rock and Roll, the band sang passionately as they paraded around the stage while the audience sang the lyrics back to them. During the tune, the screen that stood as the backdrop for the concert, illuminated with a photo of David Bowie and the crowd almost fell silent for a moment before erupting in applause and respect for the musician who passed away early in 2016. David Bowie’s impact on music and culture itself will always be felt and Fall Out Boy choosing to dedicate a song like Save Rock and Roll to Bowie was a testament to his legacy.
The rest of the concert played out perfectly as the boys wrapped up with more hits before ending their regular set with Centuries. After a small break they returned to the stage for an encore where they sang My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark and Saturday before thanking the audience and exiting the stage for the last time. As fans poured out of the arena the chatter was about everything from how many times they’d seen the band before, to the Bowie tribute, to Pete’s pep talk, and everything in between.
Fall Out Boy is more than a band to a lot of their fans, and they’ve created yet another lasting memory for every fan in attendance at their Louisville, Kentucky tour date.