My Chemical Romance is an American rock band formed in Newark, New Jersey in 2001, the theatrical heart of 2000s emo. The Black Parade (2006) is the concept-album peak — it hit number two on the Billboard 200 — and Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge (2004) is the breakthrough that got them there. Shop My Chemical Romance vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
My Chemical Romance formed in Newark, New Jersey in September 2001, with Gerard Way famously citing his witnessing of the September 11 attacks in New York City as the catalyst for forming the band. Their debut I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love (2002) on Eyeball Records established their early gothic rock and post-hardcore approach. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge (2004) brought them commercial breakthrough with the singles I'm Not Okay (I Promise) and Helena. Their 2006 album The Black Parade - a conceptual album following the titular Black Parade death narrative - is widely cited as one of the most important emo albums of the 2000s and reached number two on the Billboard 200. Their 2010 album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys marked a creative pivot toward post-apocalyptic concept material. The band dissolved in March 2013 and reunited in October 2019 for ongoing touring activity. They have not released a new studio album since the 2019 reunion, although Foundations of Decay (2022) brought them new commercial attention.
My Chemical Romance's sound combines emo, pop punk, gothic rock, post-hardcore, alternative rock, and rock opera with Gerard Way's distinctive theatrical vocal delivery, dramatic dual guitar arrangements, conceptual approach to album-length work, and lyrical content addressing death, identity, alienation, and broader existential themes drawing on gothic literature, comic books, and theatrical traditions.
Reprise Records pressings of the My Chemical Romance catalog have been issued in extensive color variant editions and elaborate limited deluxe pressings, with collector demand.
Listeners new to My Chemical Romance typically start with The Black Parade (2006) or Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge (2004).
