The weather was dreary, but Fall Out Boy had a large turnout at the Rodeo. | Kelly Schafler/The Cougar
For the past few days, Houston has been subjected to rainy, cold weather enough to discourage any citizen from going out. But on Sunday at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the nasty weather couldn’t keep 70,000 people from fighting pneumonia to see Fall Out Boy.
Vocalist and guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, interim guitarist Josh and drummer Andy Hurley humbly owned the stage for over an hour, with Wentz and Stump frequently saying how they were blown away that this was Fall Out Boy’s first rodeo.
Regular guitarist Joe Trohman was missing in action, with the band’s website confirming in a message from Trohman that he would not be able to perform with the band at the rodeo “due to a medical emergency, and subsequently needing emergency back surgery.” Fans of the band should not fear, as Trohman said that if all went well, he should make a “really fast recovery.”
The set list was exactly what the crowd wanted, with a balanced mixture of songs from their newest album, “American Beauty/American Psycho,” as well as the old-school songs that had old-time fans in love from the beginning.
Recent hits like “Centuries,” “Immortals,” “Irresistible” and “My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark” got the crowd excited, but it was fan-favorites like “This Ain’t A Scene, It’s An Arms Race,” “Dance, Dance” and “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” that kept the crowd on its feet.
A large number of young teenagers who probably got hooked on a recent chart-topper were in attendance, but the other portion of the audience seemed to be filled with adults and young adults who’d been fans since before Stump had massive sideburns. Regardless of age, all of the concert-goers could be seen screaming and pumping their fists along to Fall Out Boy’s always-rocking lyrics and beats.
As the concert came to a close, Wentz addressed the audience and smiled.
“Before we play our last song of the night, I just want to thank all you guys, because the hospitality has been amazing,” he said. “And this definitely won’t be our last rodeo.”
The crowd gave a huge cheer, and then the familiar crescendo of the intro to “Thnks fr the Mmrs” began, ending the pleasantly nostalgic evening.
I was at the concert and it was fantastic!