My Chemical Romance is a cult American rock band that was formed back in the early 2000s. Over the years of their activity, the musicians managed to release 4 albums.
Considerable attention should be paid to the collection The Black Parade, which is loved by listeners all over the planet and almost won the prestigious Grammy award.
The history of the creation and composition of the group My Chemical Romance
The history of the creation of the team is closely connected with the terrorist attacks in New York on September 11, 2001. Gerard Way was so impressed by the fall of the towers and the number of people who died that he wrote the musical composition Skylines and Turnstiles.
Gerard was soon supported by another musician - drummer Matt Pelissier. A little later, Ray Toro joined the duo. Initially, the musicians worked without a common name.
But when a dozen tracks came out from the pen of the musicians, the trio decided that it was time to give their offspring a name. My Chemical Romance is an idea by Mikey Way, Gerard's younger brother.
The musicians recorded their debut tracks in an unprofessional, but creative environment - in the attic of Pelissier's house in Newark (New Jersey). Soon the songs were included in the compilation The Attic Demos. After Way's younger brother listened to the disc, he dropped out and joined the band as bassist.
Debut album release
Soon the musicians started recording a record, which they worked on at the recording studio Eyeball Records. There, on a happy occasion, the soloists of the new band met Frank Iero, the vocalist and guitarist of Pencey Prep.
Soon the guys signed a contract with Eyeball Records. The result of their collaboration was the recording of the debut album I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love.
After Pencey Prep disbanded in the early 2000s, Iero became part of My Chemical Romance. It is noteworthy that the musician became the new soloist a few days before the release of the album I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love.
The musicians created the collection I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love in more than 10 days. During the recording of the album, Gerard Way suffered from a tooth abscess, but, despite the great discomfort, the guys did not want to postpone the recording of the songs.
The debut album is a musical mix that consists of such genres as: emo, post-hardcore, screamo, punk rock, gothic rock, pop punk and garage punk. Despite the lack of experience, the first album was successful.
I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love is a concept compilation. At the center of the "events" are the proteges of Bonnie and Clyde, who are killed in the desert. Fans of the rock band's creativity assumed that the next collection Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, which was released a year later, the musicians continued the fascinating story of two lovers.
In the second studio record, the man who killed the couple ended up in purgatory and made a deal with Satan. Despite the obvious similarity of the plots in the first two collections, the musicians of the My Chemical Romance group do not confirm the information about the storyline.
In the debut album, the musicians touched on another interesting topic. They recorded several tracks about the so-called "energy vampires". To feel the mood of the musicians, just listen to the musical compositions: Early Sunsets Over Monroeville and Vampires Will Never Hurt You. If you turn over the album cover, you can read the following:
“Material cannot be copied. If you stumble and violate the effective laws of the United States of America, then Gerard Way will come home and drink your blood.
The creative path and music of the group My Chemical Romance
Despite the fact that after the presentation of the debut album, the musicians began to be recognized, yet they remained “in the shadows” for a long time. To expand the audience, the group began to play in clubs and bars in New Jersey.
Brian Schechter attended one of the group's performances. After the performance, the man made an offer to perform "on the heating" of the popular band The Used.
The result of this acquaintance was that Brian became the manager of MCR and ensured that the album I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love was heard by the producers of the prestigious Reprise Records label. In 2003, the musicians signed a contract with Reprise Records.
The next step is the Avenged Sevenfold tour. After the team returned from the tour, they started recording a new album. Soon the band's discography was replenished with the second collection Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, which was released in 2004.
This album is one of the best works of the rock band. The release of the collection was accompanied by the radio singles I'm Not Okay (I Promise), Helena, The Ghost of You. In addition, video clips were also filmed for the tracks, which were played on MTV. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge was certified triple platinum in the United States and sold 3 million copies.
On the cover of the new collection, there were "cartoon" girl and guy who look into each other's eyes. The faces of the lovers were stained with blood. The same picture appeared on the DVD compilation Life on the Murder Scene. However, if the album cover was decorated with a picture, then the cover of the video collection was a photograph. The idea of the soloists is that this is a live album, which means that the cover should be as realistic as possible.
The new compilation included three LPs, two DVDs and one CD, which contained unreleased performance videos, new tracks and interviews.
Fans who want to get into the "life" of their favorite musicians in more detail should definitely check out Something Incredible This Way Comes. The film contains moments from the band's life from 2002 to the release of the most powerful album The Black Parade.
Recording and presentation of The Black Parade album
To record The Black Parade, the soloists of the group attracted real professionals in their field. The presentation of the album took place in 2006. Rob Cavallo (producer of Green Day albums) worked on the sound quality. Video clips for the musicians were shot by the famous Samuel Beyer, the author of videos for Smells Like Teen Spirit Nirvana and American Idiot Green Day. Perhaps now there are no questions left why The Black Parade is considered the best album in the discography of My Chemical Romance?
To advertise the new collection, the musicians played a concert in London. More than 20 thousand people came to their performance. Tickets were sold out at the box office in 15 minutes.
Before the performance, the organizers of the concert took the stage and shocked with their statement. They announced that The Black Parade will now take the stage. The audience was a little bewildered, profanity was heard in the crowd, some even started throwing bottles onto the stage.
However, despite the organizer's announcement, MCR appeared on the stage in full force. The guys explained that The Black Parade is the second name of the band.
Soloists very often used a new creative pseudonym. Before the audience, the musicians appeared in the form of a marching band. Gerard Way was always the first to step on the stage. We can say that The Black Parade is a separate team. Musicians often changed not only the style of clothing, behavior on stage, but also the presentation of musical material.
The Black Parade is a rock opera about a patient suffering from cancer. Death awaits him, and, according to Jerad, death looks like the best memory from childhood.
Must listen songs: Teenagers, Famous Last Words, The Sharpest Live. The listed compositions became the main hits of The Black Parade.
In support of the collection, the musicians went on a big tour. During the tour, the group visited more than 100 countries around the world. It is interesting that initially the musicians entered the stage under the creative pseudonym The Black Parade, and then as MCR. Some viewers expressed the opinion that The Black Parade is a separate team that “warms up” the audience before the release of My Chemical Romance.
The musicians were at the top of the musical Olympus, it seemed that nothing could overshadow their success. But one day in the newspaper The Sun there was news about 13-year-old Hannah Boyd. The girl committed suicide.
According to journalists, this tragedy was the result of the prosperity of emo culture in the United States. The public blamed MCR in general and The Black Parade in particular.
The society was divided. Some said that music cannot affect the emotional state. Others, on the contrary, insisted that tracks about death push teenagers to commit suicide.
The soloists of the group did not comment on the tragic event. They announced that they were going on a tour of the United States, after which there would be a forced creative break.
The musicians returned to the recording studio in 2009. And in 2010, the discography was replenished with the collection Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys.
Two years later, the musicians presented the disc Conventional Weapons. Officially, the disc was not a studio album. The compilation includes 10 tracks, including the hit The Light Behind Your Eyes.
Breakup of May Chemical Romance
In 2013, information about the breakup of My Chemical Romance appeared on the band's official website. There was an announcement on the site:
“Over the years of creative activity, we have managed to experience something that we never dreamed of. We sang for those whom we truly love and respect. At the moment, we want to tell you that everything beautiful comes to an end sometime. Thank you for sharing this incredible adventure with us."
A little later, Gerard said that the collapse of the team is not related to conflicts. The musicians simply realized that the logical end of their activities had come.
Despite this, in 2014, rock stars presented a new collection, May Death Never Stop You. Fans warmly welcomed the creation of idols.
A little later, the band re-released The Black Parade compilation with previously unknown demos. The musicians not just re-released one of the most popular albums, but in honor of the decade of The Black Parade collection.
Reunion of My Chemical Romance
In 2019, it became known about the reunion of the musical group My Chemical Romance. The rock band announced on Twitter a concert in Los Angeles. This is the band's first performance since the breakup in 2013. The concert was called "Return".
In 2020, the team released several clips. Disappointing information appeared on the official page of the musicians:
“Due to the current Covid-19 Coronavirus pandemic, we have made a difficult decision for ourselves. We will have to cancel upcoming shows until 2021. The health of our fans comes first. Thanks for your support and understanding. We love and appreciate you…”
The soloists of the group decided to cancel the tour. The latest news about the band can be found on the official My Chemical Romance band page. Perhaps the forced break due to the pandemic will push the musicians to create a new album.
