Fall Out Boy’s second studio album propelled the band into transatlantic fame, having peaked at Number 1 on the Billboard top 200 and the UK albums chart. The album contains some of Fall Out Boy’s best-known tracks, such as Dance, Dance and Sugar We’re Goin Down, and was the breakthrough that transformed them into emo poster boys. Heavy musical arrangements combined with lyrics of depression, heartbreak and jealousy (often incomprehensible when sung by Patrick Stump) that appealed to angsty teenage hearts everywhere meant that Fall Out Boy songs were played just as often on mainstream radio stations as they were on Kerrang. Even with its mainstream success, Cork Tree spoke to kids who felt like they didn’t quite belong and made them feel seen. The title itself reflects this; it comes from The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf, featuring a bull named Ferdinand who would rather sit and sniff flowers under a cork tree than go and fight. It’s a timeless album, one that both emos and preps can dance and cry to.
From Under the Cork Tree is out now via Island Records. Watch the video for Dance, Dance here:
