Oct 6

Oct 6 Show Review: My Chemical Romance Bring The Performance of the Year to Oakland

My Chemical Romance
w/ Taking Back Sunday, Surfbort
Oakland Arena
Oakland, CA
October 5th, 2022

Photos and Review by Jared Stossel

It's hard for me to articulate exactly what My Chemical Romance has meant to me over the last fifteen or so years. I discovered them when I was in middle school, my obsession with punk rock and emo only just beginning when a friend of mine told me to check out a song called “Welcome To The Black Parade”. Months later, that album would come out, and that band would take the stage at Oakland Arena (then known as Oracle Arena) on their overtly theatrical, pyro-infused Black Parade world tour. My parents weren’t ready to let me go and experience concerts just yet (“Oakland? On a school night?” I recall them saying). I would see them many months later on the Projekt Revolution tour, and my love for this band’s music only grew fonder. Their songs are chaotic, thespian-like in nature, and deeply personal.

Like everyone else in 2013, I was incredibly saddened to hear that they’d broken up. I had only just begun my journey into concert photography, and I was heartbroken to know that as many artists as I would cover, they’d probably never be in front of my lens in the future. However, time can heal all wounds. The seven-year period in which the four gentlemen from New Jersey had disbanded led them to work on new projects and musings, allowing a moment for the machine to come to a stop and offer a moment of pause. And like everyone else, my heart leapt with joy as I saw the words “RETURN” sprawled across the band’s long-quiet social media pages on Halloween 2019 (during my honeymoon in Paris, of all places).

Last night, after two years of postponement due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and fifteen years since they stepped foot in that same room supporting their Shakespearian third album, My Chemical Romance returned to the stage on their highly anticipated reunion tour. Tickets sold out the day they went on sale in 2020, and it was no surprise as to why; this is a band that have cultivated one of the most (if not the most) dedicated fanbases in all of rock. The band’s hour and a half performance was a glorious return to form, showcasing their biggest songs amidst an array of fan-favorite selections.

The show was opened with a dynamic performance from punk rock act Surfbort, With a DIY attitude and a ferocious catalogue of high-energy tracks, the band powered through their half-hour opening set with ease. Vocalist Dani Miller ended up spending a good majority of their set at the barricade, getting up close and personal with fans and engaging the crowd in a fun way. Surfbort’s performance set an exciting tone for the evening, leading right into a nostalgia-fueled set from New York’s Taking Back Sunday. It didn’t occur to me until I was watching them, but this was the third time in three months that I’d seen Taking Back Sunday perform (we covered their Ace of Spades set in August, and their Riot Fest set last month). This was the best performance of the three I’d witnessed. I don’t know if it was because of the atmosphere of the show, or if it was the song selection, but they were incendiary during the Oakland performance. Opening with Louder Now’s “What’s It Feel Like To Be A Ghost?”, the Long Island emo five-piece breezed through a selection of their best songs, vocalist Adam Lazzara commanding the crowd with charisma and effervescence.

For what felt like ten minutes, a loud and indistinguishable noise filtered through the PA system as the amphitheater. The stage was empty, a smiley face on drummer Jarrod Alexander’s kick drum peering out at the crowd as the atmosphere filled with anticipation. Even with minimal theatrics, this is a band that knows how to put on a show; all it takes is a little bit of sound. The lights barely grew dimmer, and the screams of excitement filled the arena. They were toying with us now. Just one more flick of the arena’s light switch and….they’re here.

Vocalist Gerard Way spray-paints a bloody mark on the forehead of the smiley face, no doubt a reference to the legendary DC series Watchmen. The gentle opening guitar work from Ray Toro and Frank Iero leads into the band’s epic new track “The Foundations of Decay”, their first new piece of material since reuniting. The energy of this set was contained, like lightning in a bottle, and far more intense than what I witnessed at their Riot Fest set last month. Like a shot out of a cannon, they moved straight into the electrifying “Na Na Na” from Danger Days, before Mikey Way battered the strings and pushed the distorted opening bass line from “Give ‘Em Hell, Kid” through his amplifier. The crowd behind me erupted, screaming every word back as if this were church.

As a concert attendee, I was incredibly pleased with this performance and would have been happy only knowing a few songs. As a decades-long fan of this band, their Oakland performance was more than I could have ever asked for. It was incredible to hear songs like “Skylines and Turnstiles” (from the band’s debut album) for the first time, and I was pleasantly surprised to see a helping of B-side tracks like “The World Is Ugly” and the high-voltage “Boy Division” thrown into the mix.

When you step back and look at this band’s catalogue, it’s interesting to see how many of their most popular songs have their beginning’s signified by a guitar riff. “Thank You For The Venom”, “Teenagers”, and “Mama” were all kicked off by Ray Toro, and they elicited some of the best reactions of the evening. My favorite song, “It’s Not A Fashion Statement, It’s a Fucking Deathwish”, was performed; I sang every word with a smile on my face. One of my favorite moments of the evening occurred when the siren signifying the beginning of “Planetary (GO!) rang throughout the venue. My eyes darted around the room throughout the song; not a single person was standing still. Another smile was brought to my face.

Apart from saying “hi” and enticing the crowd into singing happy birthday to one of the members of their crew towards the end of the night, My Chemical Romance didn’t do a great deal of talking; they let the music speak for itself. After playing the self-proclaimed “summer jam” that is “I’m Not Okay (I Promise)”, the anthemic “Famous Last Words”, and the powerful “Sleep”, the band returned to the stage for a two song encore comprised of “Helena” and “The Kids From Yesterday”. Fading into the night, the band said their goodbyes and walked off the stage.

I’ve waited for this moment for over a decade. I met quite a few people that had never even had the chance to see My Chemical Romance when they were in their initial state. I’m incredibly grateful that, for an hour and a half, we all got to forget everything that was going outside the doors, everything that was on the Internet, and just get lost in the music of a band that has moved so many people for the last two decades. This band’s music has changed my life for the better, and their Oakland performance was a reminder of why I started doing what I’m doing in the first place.

On behalf of your entire fan base, I say unto you: welcome back, My Chemical Romance. You have no idea how much we missed you.

My Chemical Romance’s tour resumes tomorrow, October 7th, in Las Vegas, NV at T-Mobile Arena, and they will perform at Sacramento’s Aftershock Festival on Saturday, October 8th. For more on ticketing and show information, visit www.mychemicalromance/tour.

My Chemical Romance Set List
The Foundations of Decay
Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)
Give ‘Em Hell, Kid
Skylines and Turnstiles
The World Is Ugly
Thank You For The Venom
It's Not A Fashion Statement, It’s A Fucking Deathwish
Planetary (GO!)
Boy Division
Welcome To The Black Parade
Teenagers
Cemetery Drive
Vampires Will Never Hurt You
S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W
Mama
I’m Not Okay (I Promise)
Famous Last Words
Sleep

Encore:
Helena
The Kids From Yesterday