Fall Out Boy guitarist Patrick Stump's first musical instrument was the drums.
"I started playing music when I was really young," Stump said by phone from San Diego. "I didn't start off on guitar because I couldn't fit my hands around the neck and fret board. So I did the drums. And back then, all I did was hit things."
The older Stump got, the more he wanted to play guitar. So he switched. And that made all the difference. "I wouldn't have been able to be in this band if I hadn't played guitar. I had, however, been writing songs for as long as I can remember. So when I joined the band, I had all these songs."
Fall Out Boy — composed of Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, guitarist Joe Trohman and drummer Andy Hurley — formed out of boredom. "We were just a bunch of suburban kids who didn't have anything to do. We were into the hard-core bands and restless. So we decided to play our own music that kind of reflected the scene."
Nearly a year ago, the band released "From Under the Cork Tree," a follow-up to the band's 2003 big-label debut "Take This to Your Grave." The new album's name was inspired by Munro Leaf's children's book "Ferdinand the Bull," a story about a bull who doesn't want to fight but would rather sit under a cork tree to sniff flowers.
Stump said the band learned some new things during this most recent recording process. "If you don't learn anything new with each album, it becomes a waste of time. We learned that there is a danger of getting too caught up in the production. So when we stepped back, things fell into place.
"Recording an album isn't rocket science. You just need to pay attention. We've also been a band who doesn't play for perfection. We just wanted to play in basement parties and have that gritty sound. And now, the parties are just bigger."
If you go . . .
What: Fall Out Boy, All American Rejects, Hawthorne Heights, From First to Last
Where: McKay Events Center, Utah Valley State College, Orem
When: Tuesday, 6 p.m.
How much: $20-$37.50
Phone: 467-8399 or 800-888-8499
Web: www.smithstix.com
E-mail: scott@desnews.com