Photos + Article by Will Oliver
My Chemical Romance reunion tour has finally kicked off after 2 1/2 years of postponements due to the pandemic. Fans were at a fever-pitch level of anticipation even before the pandemic, as it had been a full decade since they last toured (not counting a 2019 one-off performance in LA). We last caught them back at Bamboozle in 2007, when I was going into my senior year of high school, long before I had determined I wanted to pursue a career in journalism.
Nearly ten years later I caught them again, this time at the MVP Arena in Albany, New York, on August 30th, before their set of dates in Brooklyn at Barclays Center. You could sense the anticipation in the crowd, which was equally full of younger fans who seem to have discovered the band in recent years, along with fans of a similar age to myself, getting to relive their glory days.
The band proved that they were not messing around with their performance of breakthrough single “I’m Not Okay (I Promise)” second in the setlist, and never looked back. A great majority of the setlist was pulled from their two biggest albums, The Black Parade, and Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge – with the band delivering rousing performances that had the packed Arena belting back every word with authority.
What stuck out most to me was how much fun Gerard Way and the rest of the band seemed to be enjoying playing together again, seeming to be in great spirits and as enthusiastic as their fans to be sharing the same space again.
It was hard not to get swept up by the sing-along of tracks like “Welcome to the Black Parade” and “Helena” as you took a trip back to that place in your mind where you were when you first discovered them.
Find a full gallery of photos from their performance posted below.
My Chemical Romance setlist:
1. The Foundations of Decay
2. I’m Not Okay (I Promise)
3. Give ‘Em Hell, Kid
4. Tomorrow’s Money
5. The Ghost of You
6. DESTROYA
7. This Is How I Disappear
8. You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison
9. Our Lady of Sorrows
10. Welcome to the Black Parade
11. Boy Division
12. House of Wolves
13. Teenagers
14. Helena
15. Mama
16. Surrender the Night
17. Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)
18. Famous Last Words
Encore:
19. Vampires Will Never Hurt You
20. Sleep
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