📍3TEN at ACL Live — Sept. 19
Written by Clinton Camper
Friday night at 3TEN ACL Live felt like stepping back into the mid-2000s—except with better beer options and a slightly older crowd who somehow still remembered every lyric. Austin’s own Y’all Out Boy had the room packed and sweaty, running through Fall Out Boy’s From Under the Cork Tree in full, front to back. It didn’t feel like watching a cover band; it felt like being part of a room full of people who never let go of their emo phase—and never wanted to.
The moment the guitars hit on “Our Lawyer Made Us Change the Name of This Song…,” the floor shook. Standing near the middle, all I could hear were hundreds of voices drowning out the band. A guy next to me tried filming the first three songs before finally giving up, shoving his phone into his pocket, and screaming until his face turned red. That’s when you know it’s a good night.
When “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” landed, the energy spiked even harder. A group of friends a few rows in front of me linked arms and shouted every word like it was 2005 again. One drink went flying into the air, and while I couldn’t see their faces clearly through the crowd, I imagine the eyeliner was smudged and the smiles were wide—pure joy in getting to scream those songs together again. During “Sophomore Slump or Comeback of the Year,” someone sang with eyes closed, head tilted back, like they were right back in their bedroom with posters on the wall and headphones blasting too loud.
“Dance, Dance” was chaos in the best way. People bounced off each other, the entire back half of the floor moved like one big wave, and a guy in a Taking Back Sunday shirt tried climbing on his friend’s shoulders before nearly crashing—saved at the last second by two strangers who caught him. Messy, communal, and exactly how these songs are supposed to be experienced.
What made it all work was how loose and playful the band kept it. They weren’t pretending to be Fall Out Boy; they cracked jokes, leaned into the absurdity, and played it straight when it mattered, giving the crowd permission to scream until their voices gave out. Between songs, they grinned at the mayhem, almost daring everyone to get louder.
By the time they closed with “XO,” people were drenched in sweat, hugging friends they’d lost in the crowd, and smiling like they’d just been dropped back into their teens. Walking out into the humid Austin night, I heard someone say, “That felt like high school, but better.” And they were right. Y’all Out Boy didn’t cover From Under the Cork Tree—they made it feel alive again, in a room full of people who never stopped loving it.