Wilson (Expensive Mistakes) Explained

Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)
Type:single
Artist:Fall Out Boy
Album:Mania
Released:January 11, 2018
Prev Title:Hold Me Tight or Don't
Prev Year:2017
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Next Year:2018

"Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)" is a song by American rock band Fall Out Boy, released on January 11, 2018, through Island Records and DCD2. It was released as the fifth single from their seventh studio album, Mania. A music video was released with the single.[1]

Composition

Sophie Trenear of The Edge described the song as having a "steadfast pop-punk chorus,[2] while Jake Richardson of Loudwire called the song a "modern emo-pop number".[3] Sarah Beckford of Reflektor noted that "Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)" is "on the lighter pop-rock side" of Mania.[4]

The song bears a resemblance to The Clash's song "Straight to Hell",[5] as well as British rapper M.I.A.'s song "Paper Planes".[6]

Promotion

TV performances

The band performed the song live on Good Morning America on January 22, 2018, along with "Hold Me Tight or Don't", another single from Mania.[7] On April 17, 2018, the band performed the song on The Late Late Show with James Corden in promotion for the Mania Tour.[8]

Music video

The music video, directed by Jason Lester, was released to Fall Out Boy's Vevo channel on the same day the song was released.[1] It portrays a parody of an infomercial, with the members of Fall Out Boy playing the song and auctioning off items from their past, such as the severed hand from the Young Blood Chronicles musical film. A phone number appears several times in the video. When called, the number allows you to fake "buy" the items on the video.[9] [10]

Reception

Despite the mixed reception of Mania, "Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)" received positive reviews from critics. Anna Gaca of Spin called it the best song on Mania, while feeling it was reminiscent of "The Kids Aren't Alright" from American Beauty/American Psycho.[11] Miles Ricketts of Varsity, in a negative review of Mania, felt that the song was "a comforting reminder" of the band's potential, while praising vocalist Patrick Stump's performance.[12]

Personnel

Fall Out Boy[13]

Production[13]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Fall Out Boy's "Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)" Is an Anthem For the Modern Loner. Spin. February 18, 2018.
  2. Web site: Review: Fall Out Boy – 'Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)'. August 5, 2021. The Edge. January 19, 2018. Sophie. Trenear. Always having been an asset to the group, Stump’s voice travels through its soulful roots, winding through to a steadfast pop-punk chorus, to a sweeping, triumphant falsetto and all the way back again..
  3. Web site: Every Emo Holy Trinity Album Ranked From Worst to Best (My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco). Loudwire. Cassie. Whitt. Jake. Richardson. January 26, 2023. August 19, 2022. Single “Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)” functions admirably as a modern emo-pop number, but largely, things don’t hang together here so well..
  4. Web site: Fall Out Boy explores a new sound and aesthetic on 'MANIA'. Reflektor. Sarah. Beckford. December 6, 2023.
  5. Web site: Fall Out Boy: Mania review – songs to appal and appease the hardcore. The Guardian. Dave. Simpson. January 19, 2018. February 2, 2023. “I’ll stop wearing black when they make a darker colour,” Patrick Stump sings on Wilson (Expensive Mistakes), which blasts the Clash’s Straight to Hell kind of shimmer through a processor stuffed with female whoah-whoahs..
  6. Web site: Fall Out Boy resets, sort of, on the delayed Mania. The A.V. Club. Kyle. Ryan. January 19, 2018. February 2, 2023. “Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)” has an opening that recalls M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes” to a distracting degree, with lyrics that are a little taken with their ostensible cleverness. (“I’ll stop wearing black when they make a darker color,” Stump repeats ad infinitum.).
  7. Web site: Watch Fall Out Boy Perform Live on Good Morning America. Celeb Mix. Georgia. Brown. 24 January 2018 . February 2, 2023. Fall Out Boy recently performed two songs from their brand new album, Mania, on Good Morning America. The band took to the stage to play their two latest singles, ‘Hold Me Tight or Don’t’ and ‘Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)’..
  8. Web site: Watch Fall Out Boy Perform Wilson (Expensive Mistakes) On The Late Late Show. Kerrang!. April 18, 2018. February 2, 2023. Fall Out Boy stopped by James Corden's Late Late Show recently to perform M A N I A single Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)..
  9. Web site: James. Taylor. Here's What Happens When You Phone The Number In Fall Out Boy's New Video. Popbuzz. January 11, 2018. February 18, 2018.
  10. Web site: Elias. Leight. See Fall Out Boy's Goofy Infomercial Music Video for 'Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)'. Rollingstone. January 11, 2018. February 18, 2018.
  11. Web site: Review: Fall Out Boy Have The Wrong Ideas About Pissing Off Punk Purists. Spin. Anna. Gaca. January 19, 2018. February 2, 2023. But the album’s more experimental moments aren’t necessarily its strong suit, as evidenced by the fact that the best song, the anthemic midtempo track “Wilson (Expensive Mistakes),” is strongly reminiscent of a highlight from their last album, American Beauty/American Psycho’s “The Kids Aren’t Alright.”.
  12. Web site: Fall Out Boy M A N I A review: "genuinely annoying". Varsity. Miles. Ricketts. January 27, 2018. February 2, 2023. Deep in there, the real Fall Out Boy and their suppressed ability to produce a genuinely good tune must be straining for freedom. On MANIA it surfaces in the form of ‘Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)’, a comforting reminder of their potential, with a soaring chorus distinct from the other disappointingly cynical ones, and a performance from Stump thankfully not distorted with a vicious assault of grating vocal modulations..
  13. Web site: Wilson (Expensive Mistakes). Genius. February 1, 2023.

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