Howard Benson Talks Early My Chemical Romance

My Chemical Romance

Howard Benson talked with Grammy.com about working on My Chemical Romance’s Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge:

Nobody wanted to produce them because their record before mine was a thrash record. My manager said to me, “You need to meet these guys. Something is going on with them.” [When] I met them, [they had] no songs [to play for me]. But I looked the singer [Gerard Way] in the eye and I’d done enough at that point in my life where I had this feeling about this kid. He was going to be a star. 

I asked him, “Are you worried about the 3,000 fans you have? Or do you want to have 300,000,000 fans? Which kind of record are we going to make?” He goes, “F— the 3,000 fans.” I was like, “Okay, we can do business.”

Their A&R guy Craig Aaronson called me up one night and goes, “At the end of one of these cassettes is a lyric that goes, ‘I’m not okay.'” I remember going to rehearsal and saying, “We have to write a song around that.” [Gerard] wrote the song literally overnight, came back the next day with a half-written song. From then on, the record took shape. 

Mikey Way Unveils New Fender Jazz Bass

My Chemical Romance

Mikey Way of My Chemical Romance has a new Fender Jazz Bass for sale.

Featuring an alder body finished in dazzling silver sparkle and a sleek maple neck with black binding, block inlays and gloss black painted headstock, this bass is sure to turn heads. Boasting more than show-stopping looks, the Mikey Way Jazz Bass is built for maximum punch and versatility. A powerful pair of vintage-style ’70s single-coil Jazz Bass pickups deliver the classic sound that defined an epic era of rock. The ’70s “C”-shaped maple neck is comfortable and easy to maneuver for speedy riffs and high-octane gigs. Other features include a vintage-style 4-saddle bridge, ’70s style “Fender” stamped tuners, “Bullet” style truss rod nut and Mikey’s signature on the back of the headstock.

Review: My Chemical Romance – Conventional Weapons

My Chemical Romance - Conventional Weapons

The circumstances that led to My Chemical Romance releasing a collection of scrapped album material, known now as Conventional Weapons, could’ve come under happier situations. However, shortly after the release of the album, that was spread out over five 7-inch records (called Number One, etc.) the band would shock their rabid fanbase and music fans alike by announcing their breakup on March 22nd, 2013. I vividly remember being cautiously excited when Conventional Weapons was first announced, because I’ve seen this formula all too well when bands suddenly release all of their previously scrapped material or extended B-sides before going their separate ways. MCR unfortunately would follow down this unfortunate path, and would not reunite until their announcement was made on October 31, 2019.

Conventional Weapons being observed as a compilation of B-sides, or scrapped material, is a bit unfair since this material flows well in the 10-song sequencing and many fans still consider this to be a “fifth” studio album from My Chemical Romance. The band has even continued to incorporate many of these songs into their setlist on their US tour, so one could argue that the band still believes strongly in these tracks as well. From the aggressive opening sequence of “Boy Division” to the closing bars of “Burn Bright,” MCR made sure their legacy was left intact on this record that has started to get more notoriety over time.

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