My Chemical Romance Concert Review

In the hit “Welcome to the Black Parade,” My Chemical Romance vocalist Gerard Way sings, “I’m just a man, not a hero.” But to fans at the half-filled Jobing.com Arena (Ticket Brokers | My Chemical Romance Tickets), he wasn’t only a hero; he was a demigod.The crowd, many of whom donned black eye make-up and black-dyed hair, screamed feverishly for the New Jersey quintet straight from the opening lines of “The End.” to the closing number “Helena.” Whenever Way encouraged fans to sing lyrics to his group’s songs, the audience instead screamed like heyday-era Backstreet Boys fans.

My Chemical Romance called itself The Black Parade for the first half of the show, during which they played the album “The Black Parade” in its entirety, sequentially.

“The Black Parade don’t drink at all. The Black Parade don’t even know what a cell phone is. But you love this s— anyway,” Way said to the fanatical audience.

The concert opened with a stagehand rolling out The Patient, the concept-album’s focal character, on a gurney to the middle of the stage. As a heart monitor beeped, The Patient–Way dressed in a hospital gown–slowly sat up. The singer, whose once-platinum hair is now dyed black, sang the beginning of “The End.” alone at the front of the stage with merely a black curtain backing him. Midway through the song, as the pomp and circumstance of the song picked up, he tore off the hospital gown to reveal a black and white marching band uniform, and the black curtain opened to expose the rest of the band: bassist Mikey Way, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, guitarist Ray Toro, drummer Brian Bryar and a touring keyboardist.

Gerard Way introduced “The Sharpest Lives” as a “dance” song and told the crowd, already on their feet from the time the lights dropped, to dance. Strobe lights gave the arena the feel of a nightclub.

The most moving part of the night was Gerard Way’s dedication of the ballad “Cancer.” “This next song is about a disease that affects one out of every three in this country. … I’m sure this awful disease has touched nearly everyone here. This goes out to you guys.”

“I Don’t Love You” had a bizarre affect on the Hot Topic-clad couples in the audience. Many teens slow danced and kissed to the anti-relationship song. During Toro’s guitar solo, Gerard Way marched in a circle with his finger pointed upward.

The stage was simple. Haunting images graced curtains behind the band. Seven pyrotechnic plumes lit up and heated the arena during songs such as “Mama.” As the group played “Welcome to the Black Parade,” floats ascended from the floor on both sides of the stage. Confetti, shot from the front of the stage and the soundboard, filled the arena as the song came to a close, and Gerard Way lifted his arms victoriously as it rained down on him.

Gerard Way’s vocals were pristine, down to the exaggerated inhalations in “The End.,” the soaring words in “This is How I Disappear,” and the quivering lyrics in “Dead!” and “Mama.” His gestures were dramatic and grandiose. In “Dead!,” he fashioned his fingers into a gun and held it to his head as he sang “wouldn’t it be great/if we were dead.” The singer turned his back to the audience during “House of Wolves” and wiggled, much to the delight of many in the audience.

The band’s ability was best displayed during “House of Wolves,” thanks to Bryar’s jungle beats and Toro’s KISS-like guitar licks. Bryar was on a revolving stage that held two drum kits, with a proper big-band snare in between. Toro, Mikey Way and Iero traded off instruments for “Cancer.” Iero, who missed the European tour after wisdom-tooth surgery caused a massive sinus infection, played acoustic guitar. For the beautiful “Disenchanted,” Toro alternated between 12-string acoustic and standard electric guitars.

After the rollicking “Teenagers,” Gerard Way hinted to the future of The Black Parade. “The Black Parade has to go away very soon. I know. I know. I know. It’s f—ing tragic but we’ll be back one day.”

When “Welcome to The Black Parade” wrapped up with “Famous Last Words,” Gerard Way introduced the show’s second half. “My Chemical Romance is up next, if you’re into that s—,” he said.

During the encore, Gerard Way, ironically, encouraged fans to be themselves. “We like to think of ourselves as a band who has something to say to you,” he said. “Be yourself. Believe in yourself, and don’t take anyone’s s—.”

My Chemical Romance’s members wore all black for the encore, and Mikey Way returned to wearing old-school, black-framed glasses. (Mikey Way, who reportedly has had Lasik surgery correct his vision, was the subject of many a female’s screams.)

As the band played hits like “I’m Not Okay (I Promise),” “The Ghost of You” and show closer “Helena,” it confirmed that My Chemical Romance–and The Black Parade–should look to full arenas the next time around.

April 2007

14 – Houston, TX – Reliant Arena
15 – Dallas, TX – Edgefest
16 – San Antonio, TX – AT&T Center
18 – Pensacola, FL – Pensacola Civic Center
19 – Tampa, FL – St. Pete Times Forum
22 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – BankAtlantic Center
24 – Atlanta, GA – Gwinnett Center
25 – Nashville, TN – Nashville Municipal Auditorium
26 – Charlotte, NC – Cricket Arena
27 – Washington, DC – Merriweather Post Pavilion
28 – Williamsburg, VA – William and Mary
29 – State College, PA – Bryce Jordan Center

May 2007

1 – Columbus, OH – Nationwide Arena
2 – Pittsburgh, PA – Peterson Events Center
5 – East Rutherford, NJ – Meadowlands Sports Complex
6 – Portland, ME – Cumberland County Civic Center
8 – Worcester, MA – DCU Center
20 – Vancouver, British Columbia – Thunderbird Stadium
21 – Seattle, WA – WaMu Theater
22 – Portland, OR – Rose Quarter-Memorial Coliseum

Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

March 26, 2007
Categories: My Chemical Romance Concert Review, My Chemical Romance Concert Reviews . . Author: rockconcertnews . Comments: 1 Comment