Fall Out Boy at Live Sets: Doing it For The Kids

Sometimes I find it odd that Pete Wentz is such a tabloid star now, the kind of guy who crops up on the pages of InTouch and Us Weekly next to Lindsay Lohan and Brangelina. Sometimes I actually forget that he's reached that kind of celebrity--thanks to his very blogworthy cameraphone exploits and, of course, marriage to Ashlee Simpson--and just think of him as, you know, the guylinered bassist of a popular rock band.

But when I arrived at Fall Out Boy's Nissan Live Sets show, I was quickly reminded of Pete's celebrity status: All sorts of paparazzi types were lined up in front of the studio, waiting for Pete...and, probably, for Ashlee and their baby Bronx, who was born only five days earlier.

Well, the wife and kid never showed, of course--and Pete didn't even make it to the afternoon rehearsal, letting a guitar tech fill in for him during the band's practice run and only arriving for the show later that night, literally minutes before hitting the stage. But I was there super-early. And even though it was somewhat deflating when all the paps expectantly craneed their necks as I passed, then dismissively shrugged and put their cameras down oncethey realized I was "nobody," that still wasn't enough to dampen my excitement as I arrived on set.

See, this was going to be a Very Special Live Sets, as it was not shot on the usual Fox lot where previous Live Sets concert had taken place for the last two years, but at the much more intimate Village Record ing Studio in West Los Angeles. Sure, the Fox Studio venue was small enough, holding 200-300 people...but frankly, it was a little sterile, kind of like a TV studio where Leno or Letterman might be shot. (Titanic and Norbert scenes were filmed there, for instance.) But this room at the Village had a capacity of 50 or maybe 75, max, plus it had a much grimier, clubbier vibe. What a perfect setting for one of the more rock 'n' roll artists to ever do a Live Sets show.

So I showed up, wedged myself into the tiny room, and watched three-fourths of FOB plus the aforementioned stand-in dude run through "Thnks Fr Th Mmrs" and "I Don't Care"--along with some fun non-setlist jams like Living Colour's "Cult Of Personality" (while guitarist Joe Trohman was ironically wearing an In Living Color T-shirt), Megadeth's "Holy Wars," No Doubt's "Hella Good," AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," and Muse's "Stockholm Syndrome." And I couldn't help but admire their matching illuminated guitars--imagine Lite Brite boards with guitar necks strapped to them--and get all excited about how awesome those things were going to look on camera.

There was still no sign of Pete, but finally the fans were allowed to file in--some of them kids who'd originally lined up at 8am, only to be shooed away by the cops (a police station was located right down the street, making it kind of hard for the FOB fans to keep it on the DL). If only these kids had known how itsy-bitsy the showroom actually was, they'd have realized lining up for 10 hours was totally unnecessary. Because no matter where they stood, even in the back, they'd be super-close to the stage with a fantastic view.

And these were real fans, people. (All right, a few parents were there to chaperone the under-18s, but even the 'rents seemed to get into it once the rock show actually started, at least judging by their approving head-bobbing.) With a room this small, there was no available space for some velvet-roped-off VIP section, so the usual Nissan and Yahoo! execs were (nicely) asked to stay home this time, in order to make room for all the hoodie-shrouded, skinny-jeaned, asymmetrical-haired FANS. You know, the ones who'd truly appreciate this opportunity.

And appreciate it they did. When Pete finally arrived, whisking himself past the aforementioned flank of shutterbugs and joining his bandmates onstage, it was obviously that he is a rock star before he is a tabloid star. He and his band totally cut loose, giving the young fans a show they won't soon forget.

Yes, despite how huge Fall Out Boy have become, they are still a band that gives back to its fans (everyone but Pete lingered afterwards to take photos and sign autographs, incidentally), and they've clearly never forgotten who really matters. And that's why the FOB-following kids still line up alongside all those celebrity pro photographers, ready to meet their favorite band and snap their own pics--with their cameraphones.