The Fall Out Boys Are Back in Town

The band's new album returns to where it all started 20 years ago.

- JUSTIN CURTO

THE FIRST TIME Fall Out Boy headlined beloved Chicago rock club Metro could've been their last. For a band that, until then, had been a bare-bones project, the gig was a substantial step: top billing at a venue where they'd seen all their heroes. It was February 2003; they had just solidified their lineup (singer and guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist and lyricist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurley) and were preparing to prototype emo pop with their debut, Take This to Your Grave, in a few months. Stump and Wentz hoped booking such an important show would persuade their families to allow them to do music instead of school.

"We were like, 'How do we get some production?'" says Wentz. "We couldn't really afford anything. So we had these giant inflatables," Wentz continues, "and they were penis-shaped." And taller than the whole (famously short) band, in fact. That night, some made their way up to the balcony. One whacked Wentz's mom; another, Stump's grandmother. "This is actually insane," Wentz thought. "After that, it was the first time my parents were like, 'Well, maybe you should just take a year off from college and do that.'"