Beyond ‘The Black Parade’: My Chemical Romance’s Most Underrated Tracks
There's much more to My Chem than that marching band.
The holiest of 2000s emo deities, My Chemical Romance, have returned.
The announcement of their reunion on Friday morning caused pandemonium among their fans, and even surprised the band themselves.
Despite their absence from the scene over the last six years, My Chemical Romance’s impact has endured, penetrating the DNA of all boisterous rock, punk, and heavy outfits since. But with “emo-nostalgia” creeping back into mainstream pop culture discourse in recent years, it has at times seemed that My Chemical Romance’s expansive discography and legacy has been boiled down to (albeit excellent) MTV hits that fill the dancefloors of emo club nights, and cringey guy-liner jokes.
However, beyond the iconic chorus of ‘Welcome To The Black Parade’ is a discography that flexed and pushed genre boundaries, and influenced countless acts in the years since. In honour of My Chem’s return, we went through their back catalogue to pull out some of their most under-appreciated deep cuts, album tracks, and B-sides.
‘Headfirst For Halos’ — I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love (2002)
Released in 2002 and produced by Thursday’s Geoff Rickly, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love was the incubation stage of the New Jersey natives marrying their aptitude for classic rock and metal with in-vogue emo and “scene” flavours.
‘Headfirst For Halos’ is a prime example — a shred-guitar-101 lick prances over stadium rock drums during its climactic intro, allowing space for the track to descend into theatrical chaos. It’s equal parts Misfits and Queen — a blend soon to be distilled on 2006’s The Black Parade — where bleeding hearts and frenetic octave chord crescendos allow for Gerard Way’s signature wails to thrive.
‘Early Sunsets Over Monroeville’ — I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love (2002)
Never has Gerard Way’s admiration of Brit-pop and indie rock been more on display.
‘Early Sunsets’ calls back to The Smiths, Pulp, and The Stone Roses, and also tips a hat towards classic ’90s emo acts like Texas Is The Reason and Cap’n Jazz. It was early tracks like this that indicated My Chem were more than capable of pulling from a broader pool of influences — an ability which distanced them from the standard emo sound of the time.
‘Cemetery Drive’ — Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge (2004)
2004’s Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge was a firestorm of thematic songwriting and musicianship. While singles like ‘I’m Not Okay’ and ‘Helena’ saw the band make their first foray into the pop world, the album’s deeper cuts showcased their flair for quirkiness.
‘Cemetery Drive’ is the bloody, emotional apex of the tragic narrative which shapes Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge. Despite its graphic, bold depictions of grief that litter the marching-band beat-driven verses, it’s the chorus’ simplistic bellows of “I miss you” that encapsulate the raw feelings of betrayal and longing.
‘Hang ‘Em High’ — Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge (2004)
‘Hang ‘Em High’ screams youthful rebellion and total punk rock mayhem. Spaghetti western whistles intro the track before it blows out into a frenetic emo conniption — needless to say, it remains one of their best live tracks.
It’s a one-two punch of hardcore punk, and one of Three Cheers’ most impactful tracks.
‘Bury Me In Black’ — Life On The Murder Scene (2006)
Previously released as a bonus track on Japan’s version of Three Cheers, ‘Bury My In Black’ found a wider audience on the Life On The Murder Scene live album.
If you needed further proof (outside ‘Thank You For The Venom’) that My Chemical Romance could riff toe-to-toe with any metalcore band of the era (sorry, Avenged Sevenfold and Bullet For My Valentine) look to ‘Bury Me In Black’. Ray Toro’s dizzying, virtuosic guitar playing was never more powerful.
‘Disenchanted’ — The Black Parade (2006)
Considering The Black Parade’s cultural status and popularity, it may be rich to even consider a track from the album “underrated”.
However, amid the confronting nature of ‘Cancer’ and the angst of ‘I Don’t Love You’, the often forgotten ‘Disenchanted’ offers another look into a hopeless abyss. The ballad is one of the finer displays of My Chem’s songwriting — they’ve finally learned that pain doesn’t just live in the loud and ear-splitting, but can be equally devastating in the quiet.
‘My Way Home Is Through You’ — The Black Parade B-Sides (2006)
Another superb addition to My Chem’s endless sources of rocket-power fuelled punk tracks, ‘My Way Home Is Through You’ rounds off The Black Parade era in a large helping of distortion. The track features one of Way’s most unique vocal performances, carried by an arrangement that lays the angst on thick.
‘S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W’ — Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys (2010)
2011’s concept album Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys proved to be the My Chemical Romance’ most divisive record. The band pushed well beyond their established sonic palette, creating some of their most interesting, experimental, and daring tracks.
While the dreamy-power pop blanket that covers ‘S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W’ may have turned off fans who were yearning for riffy-punk, it allowed the band to explore their psychedelic side, and leaned more into influences like Teenage Fanclub and Pixies than anything remotely ’emo’.
‘The Only Hope For Me Is You’ — Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys (2010)
The industrial-electro repetition that coats ‘The Only Hope For Me Is You’ makes it hard to believe this was the same band who wrote ‘Give Em’ Hell Kid’ just under a decade before. Luckily, for fans who were worried they’d lost their anthemic edge, the chorus still hits as hard as any in their arsenal.
‘Boy Division’ — Conventional Weapons (2012)
Released as a series of five EPs, Conventional Weapons allowed fans an insight into the scrapped Save Yourself, I’ll Hold Them Back album recorded prior to Danger Days.
‘Boy Division’ is sonically more straight-forward than The Black Parade, leaning into an alt-rock groove that wouldn’t feel out of place on a Foo Fighters record. Since their release, the Conventional Weapons EPs have become cult-favourites amongst fans.
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‘Fake Your Death’ — May Death Never Stop You (2014)
Only My Chemical Romance could make familiar, suspended piano chords feel totally brand new. The band’s last ever single (for now…) ‘Fake Your Death’ revels in the grandiosity and bittersweetness of a high-school graduation song, with the band grappling with their failures and faults — the very trait first endeared My Chem to their fan base.
Drenched in equal parts irony, tongue in cheek humour and solemnity, ‘Fake Your Death’ is a final call to arms for their believers.
Bianca Davino is a writer and critic based in Sydney. Follow her on Twitter.