Gig Reviews: My Chemical Romance at iTunes Festival, London 09.07.2011

by megansmith

No other band creates quite the same atmosphere as My Chemical Romance do when they’re in town. After queuing out along the street for hours, some even sleeping overnight, the fans hurry into the venue; eager to get a spot as close to the stage as possible, ready for when their heroes come on. Opening act, Evaline, Californian alternative rockers, do their best to get the crowd going; charismatic vocalist Richard Perry putting in most of the legwork. The band have a few energetic stand-out tracks but, for the most part, the songs are nothing special; the loudest screams being heard when handsome frontman Perry throws himself into the sea of female fans concentrated at the front of the stage. That being said, towards the end of their set, the crowd are expressing some appreciation for the band’s sound; but it becomes obvious that the fans are anxiously waiting for Evaline to leave, so to make way for tonight’s headliners.

The tension quickly builds and the impatience increases; over the sound of the 3000-strong crowd’s restless chants, an eerie voice is suddenly audible; ‘Look alive sunshine…’ echoes around the venue and the deafening reaction shows that the fans know what is coming. The New Jersey four-piece explode onto the stage with the effortlessly catchy ‘Na Na Na’ and the show begins.

The band then launch into hit after hit; the set has been tailored for all fans, new and old, even including ‘Vampires Will Never Hurt You’, an early single from the first album, released nearly a decade ago now. A vital component of MCR’s success is their ability to relate to and interact with their adoring audiences; and it’s beautiful to watch. The best live shows are the ones where the band feed off of the crowd’s energy and vice versa; and tonight, the boys are on top form. In between the sassy dance moves and singing his heart out, Gerard Way and his ‘three brothers’ exchange bewildered glances and grins and occasionally, between songs, the red-head will embrace one of his band mates. Bearing in mind the pop-rock veterans can easily sell out arenas up and down the UK, it is surprising that they don’t take the passion and dedication displayed by their huge fanbase for granted nowadays; and that they are still shocked and overwhelmed by the response they receive everywhere they go.

Almost as soon as it had begun, it seemed, it was over. For the first of a two-song encore, Way, vulnerable with only a keyboard accompaniment, delivers a raw, beautiful and emotional version of ‘Cancer’.  The rest of the band then return to the stage, to finish with sing-along anthem ‘The Kids from Yesterday’, before having to  leave their London fans to continue forwards on their path towards world domination. For the couple of thousand lucky enough to have been here tonight, many feel this “magical night” has come to an end prematurely, nevertheless, each and every person leaves with a smile on their face.