Live Review: Fall Out Boy - Band on the Wall, Manchester 15/03/2023
Chicago’s premiere pop-punks Fall Out Boy return to Manchester for a semi-surprise show at Band on the Wall.
When Chicago pop-punks Fall Out Boy announced a double-header of intimate shows in the UK a little over a fortnight ago, it was clear that those lucky enough to land tickets were going to be in for something special.
Those assumptions weren’t wrong. As we arrive at Band on the Wall a little after the scheduled door time, the queue still snakes its way around the corner of the iconic Manchester venue, carrying with it a sense of excitement and anticipation, safe in the knowledge that they’re part of the lucky 500 in attendance.
The same sense of anticipation ripples through the venue as we enter too. A far cry from the usual pub backrooms and dingy basements elsewhere in the Northern Quarter, Band on the Wall is an effortlessly cool venue fitting for tonight’s semi-surprise show.
A roar engulfs the venue as the band emerge onto the tiny stage, belying just how intimate a setting it is. With a new album on the horizon, one might expect it’s material from this that backbones tonight’s show. And as expected, they kick things off in spectacular fashion with recent single ‘Love From the Otherside’.
Surprisingly though, it’s only one of two tracks from the new record to get an airing. The rest of the set is filled with crowd-pleasers and surprise deep cuts to keep even the most long-term fans happy. An early outing of ‘Sugar, We’re Going Down’ provides the first huge singalong, threatening to bring the roof down barely 15 minutes in. “Do you want a tequila?” someone shouts from the crowd. “Sometimes what you want and need are so different!” the band respond to laughs and applause.
Digging deeper, ‘Grand Theft Autumn/Where Is Your Boy’ provides the perfect nostalgia hit; an unexpected call back to a youth misspent on Myspace for those of us over 30. From here on out, just six tracks in, it’s single after single, singalong after singalong. ‘American Beauty/American Psycho’ is followed ‘Dance, Dance’, in turn followed by ‘Hum, Hallelujah’. It’s a testament to just how big of a band Fall Out Boy have become, that a 90 minute set could be filled with almost nothing but singles.
Indeed, that more recent material could fit so easily between particularly early cuts is further testament to the band’s songwriting ability. ‘Calm Before the Storm’ is followed by ‘My Song’s Know What You Did In The Dark (Light ‘Em Up’), an easy highlight of the set. ‘Heartbreak Feels So Good’, the second track from the forthcoming album goes down like an established offering already, quickly followed by ‘Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown On A Bad Bet’, the first live outing for the track since 2009.
By this point, the crowd beneath us as we perch on the venue’s balcony has been whipped into ecstasy. Something only exacerbated by the dual assault of ‘Thriller’ and ‘Thnks fr th Mmrs’ as the set reaches its climax. For the final track however, it’s right back to the band’s roots, before the arenas and the festival headline appearances. ‘Saturday’ is pure back to basics pop-punk from four kids from Chicago and it’s the perfect way to end a set that showcases just how far Fall Out Boy have come over the years.
Without a support band, it’s a set that also feels over unnaturally early. Regardless of the fact, it’s clear that this year’s forthcoming arena shows may not harbour the same career spanning set as tonight, but they’ll certainly be just as popular. An inspiring set from arguably one of the best live pop-punk bands around.
Words by Dave Beech
Photos by Connor Mason
