[November 18, 2005] Headline: Hot music on a cold night Tweet Deck: Fall Out Boy stands out amid mixed bag of bands MUSIC REVIEW By KYLE MUNSON REGISTER MUSIC CRITIC Tuesday night's frenzied, sold-out stop on the "Nintendo Fusion Tour" was a musical tale of five similar-sounding bands whose punk-pop anthems blurred into each other. Personality-wise, the concert at Val Air Ballroom in West Des Moines had an even more narrowly focused plot: the rising star power of a single musician, hyperactive Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz. Wentz led his band through its headlining set presented in two acts, to allow a wardrobe change (from Kanye West-worthy sweater vests to black indie-rocker T-shirts) as well as a thematic split between newer and older songs. The Chicago quartet proved why 2005 has been a breakout year of massive MTV exposure and platinum sales for its "From Under the Cork Tree" major-label debut: It delivered hooks aplenty and sing-along choruses that were belted out by the crowd of 2,700. The audience numbered nearly four times as many fans as the band played to in April, its most recent visit to Des Moines. There was no mistaking the enthusiasm that rippled through the venue; some fans even camped out the frigid night before on the ballroom's doorsteps just to ensure a spot near the stage. One lead singer after another begged the audience to take a few steps back to relieve the crush of bodies down front. By the time FOB cranked up its guitars, security guards were straining mightily to pry fans out of the pit. "Sugar, We're Goin Down," "Dance, Dance" and the band's official anthem of suburban angst, "Sophomore Slump or Comeback of the Year," fueled some of the most raucous action in the pit. FOB's energy never flagged. Singer-guitarist Patrick Stump's aching tenor never faltered. Wentz appeared on stage plenty before FOB's set. At the start of the show he flung snowballs at Panic! at the Disco lead singer Brendon Urie, who complained of flu symptoms but had to persevere through only a five-song set. Five songs? Maybe there is something to the old saw about video games ruining attention spans. How about fewer bands and longer sets? And how about a more stylistically jumbled lineup? Last year's "Nintendo Fusion Tour" also dwelled on punk-pop/emo, but there was more variety among My Chemical Romance, Story of the Year and Lostprophets. On Tuesday night, it was four FOBs-in-training that amounted to a mixed bag. Boys Night Out showed promise as it capitalized on the richness of three vocalists -plus a cameo by Wentz, who dashed on stage to help scream a chorus. (BNO keyboardist-singer Kara Dupuy was the only female musician among the five-band lineup. Are video games still such male sport? Women seemed to outnumber men in the concert audience.) Motion City Soundtrack -With the swelling main theme from "Back to the Future" as its grandiose intro music, it rated the second-best band of the night. The Minneapolis quintet gelled around frontman Justin Pierre, while sparkplug Jesse Johnson treated his keyboard playing more like a calisthenics workout. Motion City Soundtrack should have been flip-flopped in the lineup with the Starting Line, the so-so Philly band that performed prior to FOB. It was Wentz, of course, who got in the last word on Tuesday night, promising to bring his band back to Des Moines in the spring. As fast as FOB has blown up, you can bet the bassist has his sights set on arenas, not ballrooms, for 2006. Reporter Kyle Munson can be reached at (515) 284-8124 or [email protected] Blog your review Post your own review of the concert as a blog response at DesMoinesRegister.com/Munson Photos_By: DAVID PETERSON/REGISTER PHOTOS Two acts: Fall Out Boy musicians John Trohman, left, with drummer Andy Hurley hidden behind, Patrick Stump, center, and Pete Wentz won over the crowd Tuesday. Squeezed together: A fan is passed along by others who crowd the mosh pit at the show Tuesday night in West Des Moines. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]