After pop-punk mega group Fall Out Boy announced they were once again hitting the road for their latestlap of the Earth and its best arenas, fans scrambled for tickets to catch another glimpse of the band that once took up prime real estate on their iTunes playlists.
In support of their eighth studio album, So Much (For) Stardust, the band from a sleepy suburb north of Chicago embarked on a tour that has already taken them across North America and Europe, before heading off to South East Asia and Australia at the end of this year.
Thankfully, one of those stops was at Manchester’s very own AO Arena…
Having sold over nine million albums and counting, the American rock icons know a thing or two about how to sell out an arena, so as we entered the concourse the droves of early-arriving fans sheathed in black merchandise and brightly coloured hair comes as no surprise.
Fall Out Boy opened their AO Arena show with a bang. (Credit: The Manc Audio)
With Sunday pints at the ready, a sudden darkness triggers deafening screams from the congregation of both first-timers and day-oners who’ve waited five long years to sing their favourite emo anthems with the guys who first put them together.
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In a blaze of pyro and smoke, the foursome burst onto the stage with the energy of four teenagers after a wholesale crate of Red Bull, lifting the roof off the arena with their iconic, deafening sound. It’s like they haven’t aged a day.
Blatantly ignoring fire safety protocols, bassist Pete Wentz had strapped a flame thrower to the neck of his guitar and was sending plumes of fire into the sky at every possible opportunity.
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It doesn’t take long to pull out the big guns — no, not the aforementioned fiery guitar of death, but the hits we’ve come to know and love the band for over nearly two decades.
Never gets old.
Riveting performances of ‘Sugar, We’re Going Down’ and ‘Uma Thurman’ set the tempo early on in the show, with the raw harmony of the crowd taking over virtually every chorus they’ve practised in their cars over and over again.
Lighting up their 11th appearance in Manchester, the band continued to dig into the archives of their storied discography, giving fans both in the stands and fans in the mosh pits a mix of the big radio hits and some of the lesser-known tracks which separate the hardcore from everyone else.
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The set felt like a miniature Tomorrowland, with winking trees, oversized starfish, talking moons; a giant Doberman and even a mystic eight-ball looming high in the sky which Wentz used to determine which song would be next on the hit list — whether genuinely random or completely scripted, it was cool.
Frontman Patrick Stump then took a moment mid-set to give fans a piano rendition of everyone’s favourite power ballad, ‘Don’t Stop Believin”, which left some fans feeling like they were stuck in some Glee-based alternative reality or the final episode of The Sopranos (if you know, you know).
Fall Out Boy gave Mancs a bit of every flavour on Sunday night.
They even made time for a bit of magic, as Pete disappeared behind a black sheet and reappeared in the middle of the crowd to give floor-dwelling fans a close-up masterclass on bass, much to the delight of everyone in his immediate vicinity and those on his route back to the stage. These boys like pageantry.
Closing out an epic show, the guys go back to their roots with some classic Fall Out Boy, performing band favourite, ‘Saturday’, from their debut album, Take This to Your Grave.
It was an incredible way to end the weekend and, from the fans, a warm welcome back on a cold October evening. If only the clocks had gone back mid-performance, we could have gotten one more hour of Fall Out Boy smashing the AO Arena. Guess you can’t have it all — either way, what a show.
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‘Til next time, thanks for the memories. For instance, any excuse to relive the pleasure of seeing them at that very last-minute surprise Band on the Wall gig earlier this year too:
The queen of British rap, the one and only Little Simz, is coming back to Manchester for what will be her biggest headline show in this city to date.
A whole three years on from her last album No Thank You, the rapper from Islington is heading back out on the road after wrapping up the recording of her sixth studio LP, Lotus.
The first single ‘FREE’ has already dropped, and despite the release date itself being pushed back, news of a new Little Simz tour later this year more than makes up for it, if you ask us.
Little Simz already has two NME Awards to her name for Best British Solo Act and Best British Album, not to mention a BRIT itself for Best New Artist in 2022; oh yeah, and she won the Mercury Prize as well as a BET Hip Hop Award over in the States for ‘Best International Flow’ – all before she turned 30.
With that in mind, you can understand why so many are frothing at the mouth to hear her new record when it does finally drop.
There doesn’t appear to be any problems with the album itself: Simbiatu Abisola Abiola Ajikawo, to use her full name, is simply busier than ever and has just booked a role in a film because, yes, she acts too.
Lotus will now drop on Friday, 6 June, just in time for fans to get learning the lyrics ahead of festival season, which we have no doubt she’ll play a big part in.
You can hear the first taste of the next chapter down below:
Little Simz returns to Manchester for a Co-op Live debut on 16 October with tour supports still yet to be announced.
Pre-sale goes live on Wednesday, 9 April from 10am for official Co-op members and general admission will be available from the same time on the following Friday (11 April).
London rapper and respected grime artist AJ Tracey is ‘live and direct’ once again, announcing a whole host of UK dates, one of which is a rather intimate gig right here in Manchester.
It’s official: one of UK rap’s leading gents is getting back on the road and he’s showing a ‘Little More Love’ to lots of cities, including Manchester.
In a post on the UK star’s socials, AJ Tracey trades his music persona for that of a sports pundit as he announces the dates for his upcoming tour while impersonating an F1 commentator.
Anyone looking to attend Tracey’s ‘Not Even A Tour’ can catch the star up and down the country on his over 20-date tour with a stop in Manchester as soon as this month.
The rapper has reached phenomenal heights since dropping the unforgettable ‘Ladbroke Grove’ in 2019 and is heading out across the nation to make sure everyone knows about it.
Get ready to spit bars left and right as this rapper’s discography is stacked with serious tunes like ‘Dinner Guest’, ‘West Ten’, ‘Thiago Silva’ and more.
More recently, he collaborated with Walsall’s finest Jorja Smith for a flirty garage beat also known as ‘Crush’ with the video being the two artists talking it out in a good old fashioned caff.
The latest collaboration with Smith marks the start of a new era for Mr. Live and direct as it fell in line with the announcement of his third studio album.
Titled Don’t Die Before You’re Dead, we’re sure he’ll be “building a vibe” wherever he goes and probably previewing a few exclusive tracks from his upcoming project too.
This gig may come as quite a surprise for any hardcore fans of the ‘Ladbroke Grove’ star as the venue in which he’s performing is definitely intimate only, holding just over 250 guests.
This rap giant is bringing his unbelievable beats to none other than the legendary small-cap city centre live music venue, The Deaf Institute, at the end of this month.
It’s safe to say you won’t get many more chances, if any, to see him in such a tight-knit space again.
AJ Tracey is bringing ‘Not Even A Tour’ to Deaf Institute in Manchester on 30 April, with tickets on sale Friday 4 April from 12 noon.