Fall Out Boy

Fall Out Boy started in 2001 in Wilmette, Illinois, just outside Chicago, as a pop-punk side project that Pete Wentz and Joe Trohman cooked up while playing in the city's hardcore scene. Patrick Stump signed on almost immediately, and after a parade of drummers Andy Hurley settled in behind the kit. The debut, Take This to Your Grave, built them a devoted underground following one sweaty tour at a time.

The formula is simple and ruthless: Wentz writes the words, wordy, wounded and wickedly sarcastic, and Stump sets them to melodies that soar out of that big, soulful voice. From Under the Cork Tree, in 2005, was the major-label breakthrough. "Sugar, We're Goin' Down" and "Dance, Dance" were everywhere, the album went double platinum, Wentz became tabloid fodder, and the band got a Best New Artist Grammy nomination. Infinity on High debuted at number one in 2007, with "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" and "Thnks fr th Mmrs" going worldwide, bigger, bolder and cockier than anything before.

Folie à Deux stumbled, and after a greatest-hits set they went on hiatus. They came back swinging with Save Rock and Roll in 2013, another number-one album, then American Beauty/American Psycho in 2015 with "Uma Thurman", and Mania in 2018, which topped the chart too and took them to their first headlining stadium show at Wrigley Field. So Much (for) Stardust followed in 2023.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.