I'd have to say that 2006 hasn't been the best year for music. There are some exceptions such as Let Love In by the Goo Goo Dolls and Amputechture by The Mars Volta. Well, next week, the music scene is going to change when My Chemical Romance's "The Black Parade" hits shelves. What might be the most anticipated album of 2006 lives up to it's reputation. When My Chem recruited Rob Cavallo many knew that My Chemical Romances next album could be one of the biggest of 2006. After recent success with Green Day and American Idiot, Rob wanted to bring the life into My Chem. What happened was magic. After recording the album in a house that was said to be haunted, the album came out with a haunted sound that celebrated death. "The Black Parade" is a masterpiece in it's own. Hooks, melodies, screaming guitars, bellowing vocals, and orchestration that lights up almost every song. Rob Cavallo has done it again, another rock opera. "The Black Parade" will be the biggest album of 2006 and possibly 2007.
My Chemical Romance
Gerard Way - Vox
Frank Iero - Guitar
Ray Toro- Lead Guitar
Mikey Way- Bass
Bob Bryar - Drums
Album - The Black Parade
The End - A perfect introduction to the album. With tons of piano and acoustic guitars. What you thought would be slow and melodic turned into loud and dark. The vocals are both respectful and scary. A beautiful way to start the album. 9/10
Dead! - Starts with a chugging guitar and a flatline noise. Soon follows a sweet guitar solo. Dead! almost sounds like an anthem and a praise to actually being dead. The chorus is catchy as hell. More orchestration adds a lighthearted feel until turning into another guitar solo that serves the song extremely well. Towards the end there is just about 100 people singing "La La". A great rocker! 9/10
This Is How I Dissapear - Starts with a heavy intro of guitar and drums. Right before the chorus, it just sounds like a dog fight between drums and guitar. The chorus itself is probably one of the catchiest of the album. I think it's my favorite for sure. Another loud rocker that still has the melodie and a great dark feeling. Towards the end it just takes off into a dark metal line that will leave you wanting more 10/10
The Sharpest Lives - This song starts with a lower vocal before kicking into ANOTHER catchy chorus. Near the middle of the song, small guitar solo's and a great build into the chorus. Tons of shining moments for little guitar parts. Another solid song. 8/10
Welcome To The Black Parade - The lead single. A beautiful intro with piano and Gerard singing solo. With the addition of bells and a drum cadence, it only gets better. The build into the first verse is brilliant. It's an anthem with beautiful guitar and Gerard singing his heart out. It then kicks into high gear and sounds like a My Chemical Romance song a fan knows. The chorus is catchy, easy to sing. There's a pretty sweet build up to the final chorus with the cadence and back up vocals. It's a huge anthem that also has a fun little guitar solo. With added orchestration, the song is a great first single. The final "Carry On!!" just has a ring with the drum cadence and ending with a huge boom of the floor tom/bass drum. 9/10
I Don't Love You - As close to a ballad as you can get for this band. It's a little more mellow and defined with Gerards voice. The verse leading up to the chorus is very clean and beautiful, even though the lyrics may not agree. The chorus is very sad, but again... Very catchy. I really love the feel of this song. Between the instrumentation and Gerards vocals, it's a sweet little ballad. There's also a small guitar diddy, not necessarily a solo. A great, but different song for them. 9/10
House Of Wolves - It instantly hits hard. It's extremely loud and upbeat. Sounds like a typical upbeat rocker. The way Gerard sings each verse is awesome, particularly the second one. The chorus is not as catchy as the others, but is still easy to sing along with. There are some awesome little additions that make the song really cool. There's also a pretty sweet guitar solo near the end that caps off this rocker. 8/10
Cancer - This is one of the sadest songs I've heard from this band. It's basically Gerard singing with a piano. For being such a sad song, lyrically and emotionially, it's beautiful. Finally some violin and drums are added to effect the end of the song. Gerard is gently singing his heart out. It's fantastic. 9/10
Mama - So this starts out with a old sounding guitar and Gerard just singing this little jig. This is the weirdest song on the album, but it hits hard. The chorus is loud and fun. My first thought is that it sounds like something from a Carnival or Fair. You'll hear that in the second verse. Finally, some extremely weird instrumentation that turns into just a downright dark and heavy riff. The strangest part of the song is when Liza Minelli herself adds a small vocal appearance before kicking into the Carnival music that's just fantastic. It's so dark and fun. The end that leaves orchestration that sounds just like the fair. A masterpiece! 10/10
Sleep - This song starts very melodically with piano and voices speaking before kicking into one of the best riffs on the album. I fell in love with it instantly. The song is pretty simple throughout each verse. I really love the chorus though. Gerard says "Just Sleep!!!!!!!". Everytime he says it, I get chills. The lyrics fit well for the song. The piano kicks back in before it kicks into one of the best parts of the album musically. It's absolutely fantastic. The melodic riff heard in the beginning is taken into effect with Gerard screaming at the top of his lungs before getting into the voices and a single guitar. Well done, impressed again! 10/10
Teenager - Sounds like a Status Quo song for sure. It's by far the catchiest song on the album. The line.. "Teenagers scare the living shit out of me" is a classic. There's a sweet guitar solo that's added. This is a fun song and could be a favorite among fans. 9/10
Disenchanted - A beautiful acoustic guitar intro that gets into Gerards vocals. This song has been floating around for awhile as they performed it live last year all the time. The first verse is catchy as hell and will make you want to get the lighter. The backup vocals are beautiful as it kicks into one of the most melodic and meaningful choruses they've ever written. Beatiful guitar solo's and orchestration add to the feel. It's a great feeling song. One of the best songs they've written and performed. 10/10
Famous Last Words - The second single to be. It starts with Gerard's vocals and a clicking guitar that gets into an upbeat melody. Before you know it, you're at another awesome chorus and some awesome guitar work following it. As I've read by other fans, it's an instant favorite from the album and a great closure. Some great guitar parts add a little flavor. The final moments of the song are just the chorus repeated over and over again. It's an anthem. The end is Gerard and the band singing the chorus one last time. Great way to end the album. 9/10
Bonus Track - Just sounds like something that was written in the 1930's. It's just a little flavor they threw in. It's actually called "Blood" and it's exactly what it sounds like. You won't hear that until you get the album. It's interesting but I found it rather dumb. 6/10
Heaven Help Us (B-Side) - My brother really likes this song, it's rather upbeat and again, the chorus is very melodic and catchy. You'll be able to catch this song on the "Welcome To The Black Parade" single. It's a great song though and it could fit in with the album. 8/10
So again, believe it or not. This is a "My Chemical Masterpiece". Rob Cavallo worked extremely hard and it has the same effect on me like Green Day's American Idiot did. Honestly, even if you don't think it could possibly be any good, trust me. It's a fun listen and I'm sure you'll appreciate it for what it is. "Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge" was a big album with a few huge songs. This album is out of this world and I have a feeling can double the sales that their last album did. I give the album a solid 9/10. Enjoy it and I hope to be the person to say... "I told ya so."
You can stream the entire album at:
www.theblackparade.com
Ryan
10-20-2006, 02:12 AM
Review: My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade
