My Chemical Romance: 'We Are More Mature, More Confident On New Record'

Ray Toro, guitarist for My Chemical Romance, is justifiably proud of the band’s newest album, The Black Parade. When you hear it, strains of Queen and The Beatles come floating out of the speakers, big and thick orchestrated guitar lines and dominant vocal melodies hovering over a big bed of bass and drums.

What you don’t realize when you hear the songs, when you hear the single, “Famous Last Words,” is just how much work goes into making these songs sound that way. What sounds like a simple little guitar lick could be a dozen overdubs in various neck positions augmented by a guitar synth and maybe even a keyboard. Sounding simple isn’t simple.

Here, Ray talks about some of those songs and how he created the sounds.

Ultimate-Guitar: Did you know going into the studio that you wanted to make a big record with a strong guitar sound? An epic record to be compared to the likes of Queen and The Beatles?

Ray Toro: We had done a lot of writing on the road a year before we went into the studio. A lot of the stuff that came out was stuff that sounded very similar to (Three Cheers For Sweet) Revenge or sounded a lot like what could be the follow-up to Revenge. So we finished up that year in Australia, I think, around December. We took a couple of weeks off, we came back, and when we started writing again one of the first pieces that got brought to the band was something that Gerard was working on. It was the intro to the record, the song “The End.” It just started out as some strummed chords and it was very reminiscent of “Five Years.” We were like, “Fuck, wouldn’t it be great if like “In The Flesh” drums come just crashing in, and the chord progression becomes like that single-note riff and very brooding and very large.” So we did that in the studio and it just felt fucking awesome.

We connected that intro to the song “Dead” that we had written the year before. It just felt really great, just like the transition from the intro into a really fast, punk-beat song. It just felt really awesome. We were like, “Fuck, this feels really, really special.” It felt much bigger than anything else that we had ever written. “The End” into “Dead” kind of set the bar for the rest of the record. I think that’s when we were like, “You know what? The rest of the songs have to live up to this in size and feel.” We just kind of went from there.

That’s kind of where we first started talking about writing a concept record, but really it was always about the songs first. The songs, I guess, kind of told us what the record wanted to be. But I think by that point, after “The End” and “Dead” got written, we were like, “We want to try to go left of field. We want to try something a little different than what we’ve done in the past.” So that’s how that started.

Did it inspire you to check out new guitar rigs or sounds? Was there a feeling that you had to come to the studio with new and more panoramic guitar sounds?

For us, we met with Rob Cavallo in New York. He just came to the practice studio and we hit it off with him right away, just talking about music, talking about guitars and some of our favorite sounds from some of our favorite records. We hit it off just right away. What kind of drew us to him was not only his knowledge of guitar and sound – he’s got this huge, huge collection of great vintage amps and tons of great guitars. But there was just like an attitude that he had that was very similar to us. He just loved making music for the sake of music. We knew that we would get a lot if we went with him. What we got was a stable of guitars and amps and just years and years of recording know-how. We just had this guy that we could trust.

Me and Frank, at least, we’re not the biggest tech heads. We’re not too heavily into gear. We’re kind of very just plug into an amp and play. At that point, we needed someone to kind of guide us, I guess, a little bit in experimenting with different sounds and different amps and things like that. Rob was the perfect person to kind of get our feet wet.

When the band first started, we were at that point where we could only buy and play what we could afford. What we could afford was pretty much nothing. I remember the first cabinet that I ever had was this Laney 4 x 12 that by any standards is a piece of garbage. You wouldn’t even want to power your car stereo with it. It was what we had to us, and that’s pretty much what I had been using. I didn’t have the knowledge, I guess, and just the resources to experiment with different gear setups and stuff. On this record, we got to play a lot with different toys and just different things to kind of create some different sounds.

Had Rob not done the Green Day record, would you still have been attracted to his producing skills?

It was kind of funny. I think it’s more if we hadn’t toured with Green Day. When we toured with Green Day, they knew that we were heading in to going in to make the next record. I know they were doing a lot of behind-the-scenes kind of talking to him and also talking to us. And I guess, unbeknownst to each other, the guys from Green Day were like, “You guys would love Rob. You guys should work with him. I think he would make a great record with you guys.” To Rob, behind the scenes, they were like, “You’ve got to work with My Chem. They’re a great band.” So they were kind of almost like…You know when you want to set up a friend of yours with a girl? They’re kind of talking behind their backs and kind of dropping little hints. That’s kind of how that came about. I guess someone of Rob’s caliber, I guess we never thought we could even work with him. So I think that’s why he never came up.

When you look at his body of work, he’s done so many great records. What’s great about him is he’s got a really wide range from working on soundtracks to like Disney movies with Phil Collins, to having recorded with Fleetwood Mac to having recorded with Jawbreaker, with Green Day. He’s just got a really wide range of musical styles. It was like, “Fuck! We could work with this guy? Let’s do it!”

Regarding American Idiot, I think what that kind of showed us was a punk rock record and a rock record can still be relevant today. It’s still important and can still make a mark. If anything, that kind of gave us the courage, I guess, to break away from what we had done before and kind of try and bring some of the music to more of the roots of stuff that we used to listen to when we were younger. I think American Idiot set that up for us.

"We had done a lot of writing on the road a year before we went into the studio."

How would you describe the previous album musically? How did you intend to make The Black Parade different?

I think in Revenge you’re hearing a band that necessarily didn’t find its legs yet. It didn’t find what it truly was. I think that there are flashes of that in songs like “Helena” and “Not Okay” and some of the other tracks. But I think it was our first record that we had written with Frank. At that point, he had been touring with us for a while but still kind of a new member. The way that me and him kind of played together was very different from the way we play together now.

Back then, we had such a small practice space and everything was so loud that you can’t really hear somebody else’s playing. You’re only hearing what you can play. A lot of the guitar stuff on that record is very much him coming up with his own parts and me coming up with my own stuff, then us just laying them down. That’s interesting how that works together, but never really figuring stuff out together. It was more he wrote his stuff, I wrote my stuff, and then we tracked it. For this record, we tried to concentrate more on working together on the guitar parts and making sure that if what I was playing had to be a little more simple or what he was playing had to be a little more simplified, then we would do it.

When we do the live show, we kind of split it up between The Black Parade set and My Chem songs(presumably is referring to the material from the Revenge album). On the My Chem songs, our fingers are moving all over the place. We’re constantly playing, and sometimes to the point of overplaying. I think that’s because we really couldn’t hear what each other were doing. So I think this record, it’s a lot more concentrated and it’s a lot more focused with the music. I think we tried to orchestrate the guitars a little more and kind of make them work together, as opposed to us just playing whatever we wanted. I think that’s kind of like one of the biggest differences between the previous record and this one.

Another thing, too, is our first record, we suffered from that writing thing, where you have like a million parts. When you’re a young band, you hate the idea of choruses. You hate the idea of hooks. You just don’t want to hear those words. So you try and cram in as many sections into one song as you can. On Revenge, working with Howard Benson, it was like, “You know what? It’s okay if certain parts come back.” We had gotten, I think, into a little bit of a rut actually. Some of the songs, they’re your basic arrangements – verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus, out. On this record, we kind of had to unlearn what we learned on the last record. I think this record is very much more a mature band that feels a little more confident in their songwriting ability and in their playing as well. I think it’s a much more mature My Chemical Romance.

On the opening track “The End,” you hear everything from acoustics to guitar synth. How did you orchestrate that?

So you have a single-note riff. When you have a really cool single-note riff like that, it kind of leaves it more open to orchestrating it. What we talked about doing was not only doubling the riff…Frank kind of doubles the riff that I’m playing, but kind of plays like hanging single notes over it. He’s kind of arpeggiating the chords while the riff goes through. In the studio we were like, “Fuck it. Let’s try playing every octave that we can on the guitar to see what that does, to widen that.” It’s really interesting.

When you sit in front of the console, you’re sitting in front of the speakers and you have your low G on the low E string and you’re playing the riff there. Then you move it up a notch. Then you’re playing the same riff on the B string. Then you move it up a notch and now you’re playing it on the B string. Then you move it up one more octave and you’re playing it on the high E. Then you move it one more octave. We use a slide, so we can get to the 24th or 28th fret on the guitar. You know, a fret that’s not there. So we use the slide to get an even higher octave on the guitar. It’s cool because as each octave got added, you’re sitting in front of the console and sitting in front of the speakers. You can literally hear the sound and the scope of it widening. It’s hard to explain, I guess. You can only hear it. I guess your field of sound was kind of concentrated when it was a single note. Then as you added the octave, it would spread farther and farther. It sounded like an orchestra.

On top of that, we also doubled the riff with really, really low piano. That did the same thing, where it just made it even wider and wider. I think it was Rob’s idea. I guess he was just driving one night and he was listening to it on his stereo, the demos. He was like, “I want to try and really widen this and make this as big as possible.” That’s what we did. That’s kind of how that track came together. Like I said, it’s a complete tribute to “In The Flesh.” The Wall is one of our favorite records. It’s a record that we kept listening to and tossing around. We watched the movie tons of times when we were making the record. So that’s kind of our homage to that. It’s such a great, great opening that we wanted to kind of pay homage to that. A lot what “the End” is directly comes from “In The Flesh” because it’s such a great way to kick off a record.

Is there a guitar synth on there? If so, whose idea was it to bring that in?

There’s no guitar synth on that song. There are B3 organs in the back, but there’s no guitar synth on that. We used the guitar synth on the track “Disappear” and “Mama.” There are certain sections, where you have big, single-note riffs. Because of what we did on “The End,” instead of stacking the octaves higher, we decided that we went the other way. We played around a lot with this guitar synth – I think it’s like a Roland GS1. I can’t remember the exact model number. You plug in a MIDI guitar to it. It has a MIDI out and you can plug it in to a MIDI guitar. You have access to all these cool sounds, and one of them that we found was like a subsonic sound. It’s almost like the sound that you can’t hear, but you more feel. Like when it’s mixed into the track, you can feel it. We ended up using that on the slow riffs on “Disappear” and “Mama” to give it this really, really cool, low, rumbling bottom that you couldn’t really get from anything else. So we used that a little bit.

There’s just this one part, I also played…It sounds like horns on the verses of “Mama,” which we used the GS1 for. That was really cool. There are a lot of cool effects on there that you can play around with. It was definitely something that we were, in the future, looking to use even more. There are just a lot of really cool things you can do with that.

Are you playing the acoustic on “The End”?

Yeah. On the record, it’s actually the Martin that Billie Joe used to record “Time Of Your Life” with. Rob’s had it for like the longest time, and it’s a really, really, really nice-sounding guitar. It’s just really full. It’s almost like what you would wish an acoustic guitar would sound like. It was definitely a pleasure to be able to play that guitar. That song “Time Of Your Life” was fucking such a great, great song by Green Day. I was kind of like, “Whoa, I get to play this guitar.”

Is that same guitar on “Disenchanted”?

Yeah, it is.

Is that a finger-pick part?

Yeah, the top, the intro. That’s all finger-picked stuff.

“Dead” has the big staccato guitars and the big lead lick. Did you have a basic guitar-amp setup?

Yeah, the basic guitar setup for most of the record was what we used during the writing of it. I was using a Marshall 2000, a JCM 2000. It ended up going down before we started writing.

That must have been discouraging.

Yeah! It actually ended up working to my advantage. I guess there was this limited run of JCM 800s that I guess Guitar Center, they had bought up and they had sitting in a warehouse for the longest time. When people started asking about these 800s, they released a limited edition. I think it was like limited to 2, 000 or something, and Rob ended up getting one of those heads. It was fucking amazing. I would be like at 1 or 2, and everybody else would have to be like maxed out to 10. It was literally the loudest, most aggressive amp I have ever heard in my life.

We used it for the writing and I just fell in love with. We tried a couple different heads. We tried an Orange and a Hi Watt We were just like, “Let’s just use the sound that we used to write the record.” It just seemed more natural. So we just ended up using that 800 into probably like a 1968 Marshall. That was pretty much the main rhythm sound for the record.

Did you ever come up with a sound that at first seemed perfect, but later on didn’t quite work with the song?

Yeah. There are definitely times where it’s a lot of guess work. A lot of times, the way your ear hears something is a lot different than it sounds on tape. So there’s a lot of experimentation. Sometimes you have the right amp combo, but you don’t have the right guitars. That happened with a lot of the lead sections, where you have your amp setup, but you just don’t have the right guitars. You have to go through, maybe 3 or 4 guitars and track each one to see what it’s doing inside the track. Not only do you have to get a great sound right off the bat, but you also have to get something that fits in well with the track.

One of the things that you learn is you don’t want to overmix anything. You don’t want to overcompensate for the fallacies of the tone when you’re mixing. You want to get the best tone possible because this way you have more to work with. For example, if a tone that you have doesn’t have a lot of high end or doesn’t have the right mids, you don’t want to make up for that in mixing. You want to have it there so you can even add on top of that. It’s a lot of experimentation.

I know for the solo on “I Don’t Love You,” we had the right amp combination. We were using a Fender Bassman with a Blues Driver pedal. But we went through a couple of different Fenders. I knew I wanted the Strat for that solo. We actually ended up using the Strat that Rob put in the P-90 in it. I’ve never heard a Strat with a P-90 in it before, but it was fucking awesome. It sounded great, so that’s what we ended up using for that. But there were definitely times where you’re like, “Fuck, I’ve got this really great sound.” Then you hear it in the track and you really can’t discern any of it. That definitely does happen.

"I think this record is a lot more concentrated and it's a lot more focused with the music."

On the solo for “I Don’t Love You,” there are almost Hendrix bends. Then it goes into slides and things. Because it’s a ballad, did you run through different ideas in creating it?

For me, it all depends. I usually go on first instinct. It’s just like when you’re tracking in the studio, the first 1 or 2 or 3 times that you lay down a part is usually the best. That’s when it’s really coming from the inside. You’re not overthinking it. Then when it gets past that, that’s when the overthinking starts and you’re not really playing from the heart. That’s just how it works. For that song, I had been playing pretty much the same solos since when we first wrote the song. I just tried to go for something very simple and very tasteful.

For a song like that, we try to call upon Credence. “Who Will Stop The Rain” is probably the song that influenced that song the most. I just tried to think of something, I guess, they would play. Something really, really simple, really straight. Something that’s not too many notes, just something very classic. That’s what ends up coming out.

Like a song like “Dead,” I think was one where I went through a couple of different ideas for the solo section on that and I kind of pieced it together. Certain songs take a little more time, but other ones just come very naturally. The solo for “Black Parade,” that song used to be in a different key. That song went through a lot of different forms before it became what it is now. The song was in a very different key, but the thing that always stayed with it was the song was very based around that Canon in D kind of chord progression. It’s very classic-sounding. It’s basically you’re following down the roots of a major scale and it’s just this really great, grand chord progression. That never really changed. So I tried to base the solo around that and try to make it very melodic.

When we ended up tracking it, the key changed from D to A. Well, actually, from B to then G and then A. So I had to kind of transpose it. Then I found that some of the leads that worked in the key of D didn’t necessarily work in the key of G. So I had to kind of re-approach what I was playing. That’s kind of where a lot of the fun stuff comes. When you’re done, you set up your M Box or whatever recording you have and you use your Garage Band. I love that shit. I love sitting in a room and staying up till like 2 or 3 in the morning, working out a part until you get it just right. This way, you can go into the studio the next day and just nail it.

On the solo for “Black Parade,” there’s – I don’t even know why – I think it was because it was like the last thing that got tracked. It was the last thing that I tracked. I think it was just I didn’t want to get out of the studio, so I kept fucking it up and I couldn’t hit it right. We just ended up using what I recorded in my hotel room. We just ended up using that and dumping it in for the recording. It’s pretty funny. I’ve heard that a lot about a lot of bands, where there will be a really cheap demo of the song. Whether it’s the playing of the parts or the singing, there’s just an energy. There’s just something about the quality of that demo recording they can never recapture in the studio. I’ve heard of a lot of bands using those demos or using parts from those demos to get it right. That happened with that song.

What kind of guitar are you playing on “The Black Parade” for the solo?

I have this Gibson Les Paul that I picked up in Toronto like an ’86 or something. I used that for most of the record. That’s kind of like my main live guitar as well.

The harmony guitar parts in “The Black Parade” bring to mind Brian May and Queen. Are you thinking along those lines when you’re composing?

Yeah, absolutely. He’s definitely like a big influence on those parts. What you do, is you go back and listen to some of the things he did. What’s cool is he picks and chooses where harmonies will be, and he also chooses where a complementing part will be. You listen to a lot of his leads and they’re not necessarily…not every single note is harmonized. Maybe he’ll throw in the octave of one of his licks on one little section and that’s it.

I also know Randy Rhoads did that on some of his solos, where you hear just the octave of something come in. Or like Tony Iommi did it a ton of times, where he’ll have like 2 guitar solos that are completely different but end up working together. I kind of took a little bit of that from Brian May, where not everything has to be completely harmonized. Like on the solos for “Black Parade,” it’s very heavily influenced by his work.

Are you playing the main parts and the harmonies?

I’ll play the main lead and then add the harmony on top of it. It’s always interesting playing to yourself. It’s weird.

In the song “This Is How I Disappear,” there’s a breakdown section over the vocal part. It gets kind of crazy around there. Talk about how you created that.

That part, like you said, that’s the section where it’s leading into that really heavy riff that pops in. It’s like the vocals are getting crazier. There’s this sense of anticipation that something’s going to happen. I think what we did with that, that’s pretty much feedback. I know I was kind of like pulling the strings off the guitar. It just created this really crazy sound. We ended up putting the guitar right in front of the cabinet, and it just got this crazy, crazy airplane-sound feedback. It’s just really hard to describe. It was cool to leave in there. It’s always those little moments where you try something a little different, a little bit out of the box, and that’s usually where you come up with some of the cooler sounds. That’s kind of what that’s about. How do you make the guitars and music kind of complement what you want the listener to feel?

“The Sharpest Lives” has that 16th note, kind of Green Day thing. There is so much depth and presence to the riff. Are there any delays or studio effects on it?

I know on “Sharpest Lives,” the main riff that starts the song, we wanted that song to sound a little different, to sound a little more electronica compared to the rest of the songs. What we ended up doing, I played each note, single note. Then we ended up sampling it. So instead of me actually playing the straight pulse, it’s kind of almost like a loop of it. It’s funny because when we first heard it back, it sounded like a CD skipping. We were like, “Are people going to rewind or press play or something on it?” It ended up sounding, like you said, like really thick.

Our keyboard guy who came in, his name is Jamie, he came in and did a lot of the B3 stuff and some of the piano work. He put a lot of underlying synth notes underneath to kind of thicken it up. So that part’s cool. Live, we get a really good approximation of it. I use a POD pedal. The POD has become like one of my favorite tools because you can set it where you can have a sub-octave, 1 octave up, 2 octaves up. I think you can go even up to like 3 octaves up. That works perfect for the set because a lot of the single-note stuff that’s on the record, we usually either double lower or higher. It works perfect. On that song “Sharpest Lives,” I use the POD with the sub-octave and it creates that synth sound. In the studio, you can do a lot more than you can live. It’s like, how do you approximate those sounds? How do you recreate or how do you make it better?

"I think in Revenge you're hearing a band that necessarily didn't find its legs yet."

On “Famous Last Words,” is the song in D Minor?

Yes.

Talk a little about how that progression would develop? It’s a progression we’ve heard before, but your band makes it really unique.

That’s one of my favorite songs off the record. I think I was playing guitar and it was really super-late at night. We were staying at the Paramour House and I was in the big ballroom where we had the practice kit set up and all the gear. I was just playing and I remember Gerard coming down in his pajama pants, and we were just hanging out, talking. He was just like, “I’ve got this vocal melody. Could you play something to it?"

That’s how that song started out.

A lot of the chord work that I do, I try to have both fingers moving at the same time. So instead of playing power chords all the time, I try to maybe play a D position power chord. Then keep my pinkie on the A, but then just slide my index down to the C. So you have a C on the bottom and an A on top. A lot of the chords in that song are kind of created like that.

And you’re also doing a Bb kind of a change?

Right. Then it’s the Bb and an open A pops in along with the F that would be left on top. A lot of the chords that are in that riff are chords like that. That’s something I got from listening to classical music, where there’s always movement in the chords. There is always melody along with the roots.

That’s another thing, too, which is funny. Fat Mike from NoFx came out to the show yesterday. That’s another band where there are 2 guitar players. When I listen to their records, I hear it as 1 guitar and not 2. When I was learning their songs, a lot of their songs are kind of the same deal. One guy will be on the octave, like a B. Then the other guy will be playing a third up from it on an octave. So you learn how to play chords like that and kind of switch around your hands. So a lot of that comes from that.

I think the most important thing for that song was finding that chorus. The verses are very minor and very dark, and then the chorus is kind of like the light at the end of the tunnel, where you move to the relative major. It kind of gets lifted. It’s the same deal. It’s a familiar chord progression, but it’s all about adding the little things that you can do to make it sound new again. That’s kind of the basis. That’s how the verse and the chorus came together.

The solo section, it started out as that kind of descending single-note riff with the drums. The song is kind of just trying to build again. The drums start out playing lots of fills. Then it goes into a straight beat. It’s almost like you’re pulling back to go forward again, then pulling back to go forward again, and pulling back to go forward again. Finally you let loose and you go forward, and the beat kicks in just straight. From there, it was just like the perfect time to do a really quiet breakdown. Go from all this anticipation that you built up and all this energy that you built up, and just kind of suck it away.

That song is fun. It goes through a lot of different changes, but one of the most important things that we’ve learned with music is always keep moving forward. If you are going to do a lot of changes, where you’re getting a little more aggressive and then you pull back, then you’ve got to give it again. That’s the idea for that song. It pulls back and everything gets sucked out except for just the vocal and just the guitar playing the chord progression. Then everything builds back in again.

One of my favorite songs is “Only In Dreams” by Weezer. That song does the same thing. It builds to this crescendo, everything gets sucked out of it. I love that section of the song. It’s just totally simple things. The drums are playing the kick-snare-ride beat. Then he pulls away the snare. Then he’s just playing the ride and the kick, I think. Then he pulls away the kick drum, and then he’s just playing 8th notes on the ride. Then he goes from 8th notes to quarter notes, then from quarter to half notes. Then he pulls back. Everybody’s doing the same thing. Then the drums get re-introduced. So it re-introduced the kick drum, re-introduces the snare. But now, he’s playing everything in unison and just building that tension until you can’t handle it anymore. Then it explodes. The 2 guitars are playing these cool lines together. That was kind of the same idea with “Famous Last Words.” We wanted to get that feel of taking away and then building it back up. I think that’s some of the stuff that makes that song really work.

What does it feel like to reach the level you’re at and to be respected by fans and critics? Does that amount of praise match the amount of work you put into the record?

For us, it just all feels like a dream that we’re living right now. The success of the record has kind of surpassed anything that we ever thought possible for it. We knew it was really special and close to our hearts. It’s just incredible to see that other people feel the same way about it. It’s validating and it feels good to be recognized.

When people call you a Guitar Hero, does it make you feel good?

I don’t know why they do, but it feels great.

2007 © Steven Rosen

Comments

[kaptink]

Good interview. Toro is definatly my favourite aspect of MCR

[f1f2]

hahah
go ray

[l_ampao_l]

Great interview! I learned a lot. MCR's turned from good to great.

[f1f2]

his favorite quotes are:
"we were like" or something like that

[Moontard]

the black parade was a really creative record

[blacklabelsdmf]

the dude should leave MCR. he's way too good for them. gerald way is a ****tard

[dann_blood]

Get rid of Gerard and replace him with a good singer and we have good MCR.
Guitarist is the only good part of the band.

[chrisontheroad]

Great guitarist. But he ruined his coolest point: his hair. He looked like a ginger version of Slash. :]

[Learn_to_fly]

gerarad is actually a good singer! not the best, but certainly not the worst thing bout the band. they just need a more exciting bassist and a more creative rythm guitarist. seriously, even pete wentz is more talented than the mcr noob bassist.

oh, and ray toro is l33t.

[bollocks 101]

alright, good stuff.
but compare them to Queen? what the hell were you smoking??

[FRDesign]

chrisontheroad wrote:

Great guitarist. But he ruined his coolest point: his hair. He looked like a ginger version of Slash. :]

LOL! SO true.

[KileManA7X]

If there were no Gerard, there would be no MCR. He started it. You can't just kick everybody out of the band because you don't like them. Ray has little or no say. It's Gerard's game. If you don't like MCR, get off this fu**in review. Go get a job.

[Prodigy999]

YOU ROCK RAY!!! KEEP ON ROCKING WITH YOUR FRICKING KICK.... GUITAR SOLOS!!! WOOT WOOT!!!

[#1pornstar]

Learn_to_fly wrote:

gerarad is actually a good singer! not the best, but certainly not the worst thing bout the band. they just need a more exciting bassist and a more creative rythm guitarist. seriously, even pete wentz is more talented than the mcr noob bassist.

oh, and ray toro is l33t.

dude the bass player is the singer's brother, they can't get rid of him

[jeowy]

the bass player already left, cos he got married. didnt you see the article here on UG, just about a week ago?

and the bassist wasnt that bad anyway. boring, but solid. its the other guitarist, frank iero thats the problem. hes a PROPER emo. get rid of him, tell gerard way to put his balls in an incubator for a while, and there will be a great MCR on our hands.

[LewisMasonx]

Their bassist DIDN'T leave, if you bothered to read the interview, he just temporarily left and they've got a replacement member for now.

Ray = own

[Jawkster]

cool band, cool guy.

Desmond Chekker

[mathieupM13]

I learned a lot.Awesome interview

Ray Toro you're a god

[HyperBoy2519]

very good interview. good dude. should make music till he cant solo anymore

[FRDesign]

the singer of mcr needs to smoke more. His voice sounds too girly.

[mentaldonkey182]

i used to hate mcr with a passion, but they're growing on me, i like a few of their songs now. might get this album.

[punk_mike_88]

Ray definetely explored more guitar-wise on The Black Parade than on Three Cheers. I was really glad to hear him soloing more, cuz he's a really underated guitarist.

[KeepDreamin]

ray > just about every new guitarist out there now.

[dragonstriker]

Ray Toro you are excellence defined.As is your band.And I think some of the people on here should be a little less, shall we say 'opinionated' *cough*
biatchy*cough* and critical of them, I'd like to see them get to the stage My Chemical Romance are at.The comment which states Gerard Way's voice is girly and he needs to smoke more is stupidity in a nutshell.And also the label of 'emo' is just plain daft, Frank is mint!

MCR are amazing.Mr.Toro, indeed you a guitar hero.

[JL Sevenfold]

i dont care what you all think, Gerard is the best sound for the band. Everyone kicks major ass, especially Toro. This interview rules.

[The Spoon]

Ray is my favorite!! im glad they put up an MCR interview.

to JL sevenfold, my thoughts exactly

[that1l)ude]

ray > just about every new guitarist out there now.

I personally think ray toro is the most overrated guitarist there is. even in mainstream rock theres guitarist that would crush him (ie mark tremonti, tom morello).
but its just my opinion, i dont want to be attacked by an army of fanboys, im merely letting my opinion be known.
And as much as i cant stand this band at least they made an attempt to sound different, whether they did or not.

[LoveMCR]

jeowy wrote:

the bass player already left, cos he got married. didnt you see the article here on UG, just about a week ago?

and the bassist wasnt that bad anyway. boring, but solid. its the other guitarist, frank iero thats the problem. hes a PROPER emo. get rid of him, tell gerard way to put his balls in an incubator for a while, and there will be a great MCR on our hands.

Mikey (the bass player) didn't leave.
He just left for a LITTLE BIT cuz he got married, he's on his freaking honeymoon.
More than likey, he's coming back.

Besides, Frank helped the band progress along alot. more then you know. so don't critize them when you don't know what they've done for the band.

[AdamV]

franks a good guitarist, just listen to some of his parts, they make the songs sound better

[Bassplayer1234]

Hey why did Mikey get married right before going to Charoltte. That was the concert i went to.

[Bassplayer1234]

Jeowy, Frank is not an emo. He like the best guitarist ever!!!!!

[o d y s s e y]

good guitarist, but hate MCR

[G0ply]

"I would be like at 1 or 2, and everybody else would have to be like maxed out to 10."

Well that 10 is the problem, your amps need to goto 11...

I must say I'm not too impressed with MCR but they have there own talents, just not my tastes, although black parade is getting closer to my type then any of there other stuff...

[IronfistGuy]

Is it just me, or does Ray Toro look like Simon Amstell? :S

[_sam_]

haha that guy talks alot but yeah good band i agree, their bassist is a little boring
he can play, but he doesnt really add flava to the music.
new cd is good...personal favorite is teenagers

[MusicalMinority]

G0ply wrote:

also I hate to say it but yes MCR is emo, if they say so or not period end of storie, if your band sounds like punk but the words are just whaa whaa cry cry im in a bad place and life sucks blah blah whaa whaa, then you are EMO! they are getting away from it yes and maybe some day they will no longer be so but as it is, 90% of there music falls into this catagory and i think the majority of your music tell what type of music you are... After all Garth Brooks is not a Rock'n Roll player even though he plays it also, he is a Country player... but then again this may only be my opionin

So does that make Ozzy emo?

Didn't think so.

Ray = AWESOME.

[whocares09]

I learned alot in this article, i never put much thought into the adding teh octaves thing when recording. i'll have to tell my band about it
great interview

a.guitarist: don't type all in capitals, it's annoying to read.

[Kurtsmyhero06]

actualy i saw them live and the rhythm guitarist was actualy entertaining he was jumping around everywhere *he can do taht bcuz of the simple guitar riffs i know lol* but yeah he made that concert alot more fun

[xx-Vampire-xx]

Ray you rock! you guys inspired me,now im in a band, i play rythem ( like Frank lol) everione i know whos heard you guys think you rock,anyone who's heard mcr and think there crap needs there ears tested

[duncang]

Their new album is definitely more respectable, but I still found it rather bland until I had to learn I Don't Love you today, they have a lot of harmonic knowledge.

On “Famous Last Words,” is the song in D Minor?

Yes.

lol. because the interviewer couldn't have just take a minute to check that.

[jeowy]

i stand by what i said before. take away frank iero and get gerard way to be a bit more manly and theyll be amazing.

fine, you can claim that frank iero "advanced" the band, but if you take him away, that means ray will have more of a say on guitars, and he's clearly far more talented.

and i think mikey is a decent bassist. it doesnt matter how good he is, as theyre not a bass-orientated band. if they decide to make heavier or jazzier songs, then mikey will have to start playing more complex stuff.

i think hes talented enough to do it. just lazy, or the band decided they wanted simple bass so the songs were catchier or more easy to listen to

[musiclover2399]

It's nice that there's proof that people who play simple things still know a lot about the inner workings of the sounds you hear.

[G0ply]

"So does that make Ozzy emo?

Didn't think so."

Ya your correct it doesn't but Ozzy doesn't play punk and he doesn't whine about hating life eather lol...

[G0ply]

lol, lol, you couldn't have read my post... anyway...

[rocknrollreject]

G0ply wrote:

"So does that make Ozzy emo?

Didn't think so."

Ya your correct it doesn't but Ozzy doesn't play punk and he doesn't whine about hating life eather lol...

no one even said anything about ozzy

[G0ply]

singing about hating life and situations ect. what not is not emo it's only when you whine about it and complain that it becomes emo... The Warptour isen't even punk anymore, the last tour where it was punk was about 3 or 4 years ago, now its just a big emo tour...
Ray may be a good guitarist that's a whole diff story, I don't like music that sounds like static, if I wanted to listen to that I would listen to a crappy radio...

[comet2797]

Bassplayer1234 wrote:

Hey why did Mikey get married right before going to Charoltte. That was the concert i went to.

Seriously! He wont be there for the one in Reading im going to, just wont be the same

[G0ply]

"no one even said anything about ozzy"
did too!! lol j/k but ya it's 13 posts above this one

[swashbuckler]

ugh, if i ever hear mcr mentioned in the same sentence with great bands like queen and the beatles again i think i'll vomit.

if mcr gets rid of gerard way i might be able to tolerate them, but i doubt it.

[eelreggit]

i actually like mcr. compared to most bands today they're pretty good, at least they care about their guitars some. it's not just power chords the whole time. i don't think they can hold a candle to some older music, though. my only complaint is that the bass is a little boring, mikey should try to do a little more than just mimic the guitars.

[eelreggit]

oh yea, the thing about ray looking like a ginger Slash was pretty good, it gave me a chuckle

[Tallman]

The record wasnt that creative.

The first track was a complete rip off of In the Flesh by Pink Floyd.

Most of the tracks still used the same emo-pop-punk formula, but attempted to ide it behind Brian May-esque solos and marching bands.

[Cassy_Lee]

Great interview. Ray is awesome; so is the rest of MCR.

Can't wait to see 'em during their Canadian tour.

[jonas33]

the black parade is so much better than revenge...revenge was good, but alot of teh stuff didnt flow, teh vocals and guitar kinda clashed, and the leads and rythms didnt always go together well....this albulm however the guitar and vocals are great...ray did a nice job of expanded the influences, alot of jimi hendrix, chuck berry kidna of stuff in solos, but also rocked the **** out..good job

[samerika]

LoveMCR wrote:

jeowy wrote:

the bass player already left, cos he got married. didnt you see the article here on UG, just about a week ago?

and the bassist wasnt that bad anyway. boring, but solid. its the other guitarist, frank iero thats the problem. hes a PROPER emo. get rid of him, tell gerard way to put his balls in an incubator for a while, and there will be a great MCR on our hands.

Mikey (the bass player) didn't leave.
He just left for a LITTLE BIT cuz he got married, he's on his freaking honeymoon.
More than likey, he's coming back.

Besides, Frank helped the band progress along alot. more then you know. so don't critize them when you don't know what they've done for the band.

Sorry for saying that I hope that the bassist leaves because his playing is soo bad.

[mcrPwnsyou]

maans. you guys who are bashing on mcr are retarded. there is already a 'good' mcr. nothing can beat the original. just talk about the article.

[powerchordjunki]

oh joy another bashing thread... how bout this guys? GO WHINE ABOUT YOUR PROBLEMS SOMEWHERE ELSE AND TALK ABOUT THE ARTICLE

[RunawayKaren]

This album didn't sound like it was as complicated to make as he's making it out to be. But hey I wasn't there when they made it, so who am I to judge.

[Shredlet]

mitch311 wrote:

rocknrollreject wrote:

senorpepe wrote:

i hate MCR, i think the new albums sucks, and i think this guitarist sucks, but thats my opinion
i think it sucks ass too mcr fob and all these gay bands should die there ruining music they shouldnt be labeled under rock and punk should be under crap and thats what all the good bands that were here way before them are sayin too that there killing music Yea I can't believe people are saying good stuff about them. They suck so bad

Yeah i thought this was a site for guitarists lol
but i dont reckon the guitarist is that bad better than me

[dookie_dude_]

even though they are one of the hugest sellout bands, they have some pretty good skill

[JakTheGuitarMan]

He is an alright guitarist but yea comparing them to Queen.....

Checked/deleted/warnings issued

[benenov]

KeepDreamin wrote:

ray > just about every new guitarist out there now.

that's not saying much at all....

[ad4mZX]

This guy is thinking he's like the most talented person on Earth, really stuck up.

[xmetallinut84x]

Ray toro and My Chemical Romance are kick ass. They make great music and Ray is a fantastic guitarist, definitely underrated, and dude how can u say hes stuck up, he definitely is not!! Dude, the guy is just stoked to be in one of the biggest rock bands out right now, wouldn't you be??!! you're a fool bro, a damn fool, but anyway Ray and My Chem will be around for along time like it or not, and really, for anyone who bashes My Chem or Ray Toro, why would u even read the article, so to everyone who actually wont even read the whole interview, and then just comment and say they suck, get out and comment on whatever bands u do liek and od the rest of us a favor by not having to read your lame-ass negative comments.

[ChemicalXMels]

Awsome interview
Ray is amazing, and you can see that he love music

about Mikey I think he's a great Bassist. ok his parts aren't complicated but for example his part in the song "Give em'hell kids" sound really good(even live). He does have talent! + he's so funny in the interviews, I meet him and he's a AWSOME person !

and yeahhh MCR rocks ,The Wall rocks, Ray Rocks and the interview aswell.

[I'm a real boy]

ray belongs in a metal band. He's wasting his time with mcr. He could be good enough 2 play with ozzy osbourne(depending if zakk wylde leaves)

[di4gram]

I'm so sick of hearing MCR compared to Queen. As a Queen lover I can't the comparison.

Queen was made at least 75% by Freddie's voice and personality. I loathe any interview that mentions "Queen-like" in reference to MCR. Gerard Way is in no way even comparable to Freddie Mercury in terms of talent or in terms of lyricism. I wish their fanchildren would stop insisting this.

[Schredmark]

I really hate to say, but no matter how hard I try to like MCR, I can't... I just can't stand their vocalist..

[Gorilla Fingers]

I'm a real boy wrote:

ray belongs in a metal band. He's wasting his time with mcr. He could be good enough 2 play with ozzy osbourne(depending if zakk wylde leaves)

Don't get your hopes up.

And no, they don't sound like Queen, they don't sound like the Beatles: in fact, he has been said to think the Beatles are "overated". MCR...please, go away.

[drummerdude92]

i really like the new album and i reckon hes a pretty good guitarist

[paul21]

Ray Toro is a good guitarist.. he is my guitar hero

[bac27]

Ok...as a big mcr fan i have to address most of you guys..let me go through each member..GERARD: his voice isnt girly, and it isnt manly, he is the one who brought the band together, the band is fueled off of his visions, they wouldnt be here if it wasnt for him..MIKEY: not the best player, but like someone mentioned, their music doesnt call for a really flashy bass part, he does tend to get a little lazy yes, but dont kick him out...FRANK: is an amazing rythm, he has energy, and thats what you need, he is comfortable and confident in his playing, thats what makes him great, and him leaving wouldnt give ray more say in guitar..watch life on the murder scene, frank specifically says that Ray helps him with most of his stuff already, so he already has the most say in it, but its mainly his energy that makes him great...RAY: excellent, watch some of their live videos of their older stuff, he will just bring out a riff that isnt in the song, and its fast and amazing, look at him doing the solo for VENOM, he comes up with amazing solos...FOR THE WHOLE BAND..a lot of their work does sound like pink floyd and queen, but they openly say that "thats where most of their influence is"..in the interview ray says "in the flesh" is how they wanted it to sound...and they arent emo for expressing themselves..they arent afraid to say whats true..they arent afraid to show who they are..and yes Frank does have that emo vibe, and its different, each member is so different from each other..and it makes them have such great chemisty together..thats what makes them one of the greatest bands out there..if youve seem them live..like i have many times..you can see how they are all different..they all look like they should be in other bands, and it draws them closer..many say they are overrated..but in truth they are underrated, i believe in the future they will finely be credited as a great band then just some more emo-scene kids..remember now..its the bands that make the scenes..and the kids who follow..so its not their fault kids are trying to be like them..so all of you guys saying "my chem is emo...they suck"..go *&(& your mothers and stop being JEALOUS..you pricks..

[bac27]

they all have heart...they are all dedicated..and so are their fans ans we will F*$@#! fight to the end..

[DaBlackE]

I could give two shits about this band but what I don't get is why the interviewer saying "That must have been discouraging" after the guy said he used a Marshall JCM 2000? What's wrong with a JCM 2000? I got one & I like it. And why is the interviewer throwing in his opinion?

[markisouvlaki]

it was discouraging because the amp 'went down' before the start of recording.

[hardcoreatheist]

What's wrong with a JCM 2000?

I believe he was saying the amp went bust. Not sure, but that's the impression I got.

[mcr_1991]

GO fif2..este ray..hehe

Checked

[Gibson_SG_uzr55]

Ray Toro=My Guitar Hero!

[Gibson_SG_uzr55]

I love The Black Parade, but I wish they would go back to the band they once were. On the next record, they should write songs that could fit into Bullets or Revenge, and still have it musically fun, like the Black Parade. Musically exciting punk ftw!

[whitebluesboy]

I normally talk a lot of shit on MCR, but Ray Toro actually is a really good guitar player with respectable classic rock and metal influences and knows what he is talking about so I can't say anything bad.

[WhereArtEsteban]

"Black Parade" is oodles better than their old stuff.

[break-me-in]

ad4mZX wrote:

This guy is thinking he's like the most talented person on Earth, really stuck up.

Ray wrote:
When people call you a Guitar Hero, does it make you feel good?

I don’t know why they do

[break-me-in]

di4gram wrote:

I'm so sick of hearing MCR compared to Queen. As a Queen lover I can't the comparison.

Queen was made at least 75% by Freddie's voice and personality. I loathe any interview that mentions "Queen-like" in reference to MCR. Gerard Way is in no way even comparable to Freddie Mercury in terms of talent or in terms of lyricism. I wish their fanchildren would stop insisting this.

The comparisons aren't based on the vocals though. The comparisons are between the sound of the guitars (which are Queen-ish on The Black Parade) and the grandiose sound that they've adopted. Obviously Gerard Way is nothing like Freddie Mercury. That's absurd.

[Lock'n'Load]

Why are so many people suggesting that MCR change the line-up or change their vocal sound? Look at their success?!

Why in hell would you purposely change the line up of a band that is HUGE at the moment. Each member of the band has a sound that works for their band... if you don't like their sound, that's your own issue. It might not work for a band you'd like to be in... but are any of you selling out tours at the moment????

[minichibi]

Learn_to_fly wrote:

gerarad is actually a good singer! not the best, but certainly not the worst thing bout the band. they just need a more exciting bassist and a more creative rythm guitarist. seriously, even pete wentz is more talented than the mcr noob bassist.

oh, and ray toro is l33t.

he left the band on the 23rd :o well they announced it at least. I saw them 2 days ago or something live and it looked like Mikey Way... I was like "wtf are you doing here?"

[Lock'n'Load]

OMG... Mikey hasn't left... look, this from their official website:

Hey Guys,

...I'm very proud to announce my brother's recent marriage...In light of this joyous event, the band has decided to give he and his wife a much needed break from the road to start a life and have a proper honeymoon and do all of the things a newlywed couple should do.

I know this is upsetting news, as it is for us, but we will continue to tour with a temporary replacement until he has situated himself in his new life.

We thank all of your for your love and support, and know you are all as happy for him as we are.

See you on the road,

Gerard

[poisongirl_92]

i like this interview

[SURFraptor7]

I just gained SO much respect for this guy.

It's refreshing that someone in this genre actually knows their shit.

And The Wall is one of my favorite records too. The fact they based a lot of their album off of it is pretty cool.

[Gibson_SG_uzr55]

I loved the Black Parade, but I wish they were the band they once were. They need to make songs that could be Bullets or Revenge, and still make the musical like the Black Parade. Musically exciting punk ftw!

Checked

[Sexi Lexi]

I LOVE YOU RAY!!!! YOU ROCK!!! I LOVE ALL OF YOU GUYS!!!!

[Partyboy2k05]

I have to say I actually do like their music. The voice does get annoying on some songs, I'll admit that. Like I can't stand the song "I'm not ok" The screaming it over and over again got to me. But other than that, I do like this band. Sure the bassist could be better, but he doesn't have to be, just keep the rhythm. If he does that and doesn't get out of time, then it works. Bass doesn't have to be complicated.

All in all, pretty good interview. I liked how he was so excited to go into detail about every song and the notes or scale he used. So it looks like he does know some partial theory, or possibly even more. I think they'll be around for a while though.

[papersun87]

The first side of the new album is pretty solid (side two got kind of repetitive), and I absolutely hated MCR before that. I still think they should ditch Gerard for a manlier vocalist, but they are at least headed in the right direction. It might not be the next Zeppelin IV like they hoped, but it's still a pretty fun album to listen to.

[The Spoon]

Ray is so awesome~!

[punkbass481]

#1pornstar wrote:

Learn_to_fly wrote:

gerarad is actually a good singer! not the best, but certainly not the worst thing bout the band. they just need a more exciting bassist and a more creative rythm guitarist. seriously, even pete wentz is more talented than the mcr noob bassist.

oh, and ray toro is l33t.



dude the bass player is the singer's brother, they can't get rid of him

they did "get rif" of him he got married and hes taking like a year off.

[mychemtotheend]

Ray finally gets attention :]

and its GERARD
G-E-R-A-R-D

not Gerald
not Gerad
not Gerarard

G E R A R D


and Mikey is not a bad bassist.
those 5 guys is what makes My Chem
if they replaced/kicked anyone out (well, besides the whole Matt story, but that was a while back), they would not be My Chem anymore.

okay that sounded lame, but you get the point


and Mikey is taking a break off the tour to go on a REAL honeymoon with Alicia, his new wife. He's not leaving completely.

[TallMidget210]

it's good to see a band completely focused on the music, not making a political statement...it also helps that they're all pretty mature, too

[TallMidget210]

by the way i agree with the guy before me, these guys grew up together as a garage band, if they kicked out or replaced anybody it would prove they're too focused on their own interests and not each others, and not to mention piss off a ton of fans

[mychemtotheend]

:/
wow
I've been reading some of the other comments.
If you don't like My Chem, why put the people who do like them down?
Yes, I like them a ton.
I've liked them since '04.

I bet Ray has more talent for guitar in his hair than most of you guys have.


& Mikey still isn't a bad bassist.

[mychemtotheend]

someone said Frank is boring?
johnnychrist.
now thats funny.


Has anyone watched Life On The Murder Scene?
he's the most entergetic guitarist i've ever seen/ever will see.

although LOTMS is about a year old.
ahwell.
and he's had some struggles on The Black Parade tour, illness wise.

-is SuperFan-

umyeah
I'm a bit over obsessive.

[Junesongtrigger]

BOTH guitarists in this band are extremely talented.

Ray is actually a better singer than Gerard.

Checked.

[Jonjy2]

Haha didnt know there were this many MCR fans on UG...Learn something new everyday

[ThePerfectDrug]

Not my favourite band, but doesn't mean they aren't extremely talented, especially this man right here.

[Mr Apparataus]

Ray Toro is the best guitarist i hav ever heard yea he rocks and i loved the concert they did in Sydney in 2007

[Mr Apparataus]

yea u r rite mychemtotheend[b]
Franky is awesome

[waranghira]

f1f2 wrote:

his favorite quotes are:
"we were like" or something like that

his favotrite quote starts at "F***" XD

[wideeyed21]

ok people i read just about all these posts on here, most people agree that MCR is a good band, most would also agree they arent the best band, but to all of you who are criticizing there, go try and tell me what you think about working with five other guys, trying to come up with something thats not just three chords a fill and a little solo, try it, add drums a bass, and a another guitar, it tough, and to you who say they are ruining music, all those hair bands of the 80's said the same thing about nirvana, pearl jam, and stp, its progression, besides whats really ruining music, is that rap bullshit, there is nothing worse than that

[D&DLover]

I love ray toro

[D&DLover]

His hair is magical

[Codeman26]

Anyone whos vomplaining about them then why would you click on a loink that says thier name. If you don't like them then don't waste your time get a hobbie or something lol.

Checked.

[revelationxas]

ray is ****ing awesome. i saw him on the 27th.

[fcolbert]

so basically he's saying they made the record by throwing together as many different things as they could then ripping off as much of Bohemian Rhapsody as possible. Put some whiney vocals over that and wala the masses have something to drone to

[Smilestar>3]

big mcr fan here... glad for people who care about them, it's amazing .
and it is true their music saves your life, i know that first hand.
peace

[Lock'n'Load]

I'm sorry, but I have to be skeptical of people who say 'MCR saved my life'. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan... but every little teenage emo kid goes around saying it and it just makes me think 'You're only saying it because Gerard says it...'. I have no doubt that some people mean it, I know music has a powerful effect... but that phrase is so overused it's become meaningless.

[Bm-Dm-Owns]

some of you seriously think ray toro is a good guitarist? and some of you were dumb enough to say he belongs in a metal band? thats a joke im sorry and im not here to just bash but honestly the guys not good, overplaying the same chords with from fruity other guitar riff playing along doesnt make someone a good guitarist, maybe if he had more variety and actually played something good for a change instead of the same repetitive sounding stuff then he might be ok MIGHT BE ok you want a real guitarist check out muhammed suicmez

[Bm-Dm-Owns]

and i guess i should of added one thing, most likely all you ppl saying ray is a good guitarist most likely dunno a thing about guitar. obviously people have different styles and ways of doing things but seriously what has he done thats even worth any recognition? nothing you know why? cuz he blows and hes repetitive

kirby Check and roll

[AdayTripper]

Lock'n'Load wrote:

Why are so many people suggesting that MCR change the line-up or change their vocal sound? Look at their success?!

Why in hell would you purposely change the line up of a band that is HUGE at the moment. Each member of the band has a sound that works for their band... if you don't like their sound, that's your own issue. It might not work for a band you'd like to be in... but are any of you selling out tours at the moment????

It's because if you don't actually MOVE FORWARD as a band, you'll stagnate as a band.

[TallMidget210]

Bm-Dm, first off you apparently haven't listened to some of his new stuff (you might want to listen to the beginning solo on dead, or the end solo, his guitar playing has improved immensely)...second off, i'm no guitar player enthusiast but i have no idea who the hell mahammed gandhi ali whatshisface is...and third, i could still name a ton of guitarists that deserve much more fame than gandhi AND toro, (coughhendrixvanhalencoug
h) although toro is extremely talented

[deathbringaz]

MCR wont be the same if they change a member..they are currently in excellent form..even if u said pls change gerard or mikey or frank, wud u like sayin "the band is much better now" ?? i doubt that...if u want to change that much..how abt u[who wanted change the band] replace them?? i bet ppl will say shitty things abt u..

[yamaha182]

hes like the best guitarist in the world

[Partyboy2k05]

wtf TallMidget210? Why would you even bring Gandhi into this conversation? How could you say that you could name a ton of guitarist that deserve more recognition than Gandhi? Do you even know his impact on India. India has over a billion people...so obviously he'd have an impact on every single one of them.

Jimmy Page, Hendrix, clapton, B.B. King, Dimebag, Stevie Ray Vaughan all combined don't make a bigger impact than he would have. There's a huge difference between selling millions of albums and helping liberate a country. Think twice before such an ignorant statement and having your foot in your mouth.

Now having said that, all the guitarist I mentioned have a profound impact on me, but to say that any of them deserve a higher mention than someone such as Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. is just retarded.

[o d y s s e y]

yamaha182 wrote:

hes like the best guitarist in the world

you wish

[girl-tarist]

dudes, they've really refined their sound... in their dvd, they talked about how they were helped by the producer who did motorhead, who showed them the meaning of making music that made sense. THEREFORE, if ray toro began shredding or tearin' up the fretboard in a song for no apparent reason... that their music would be jack shit! mcr are dudes who don't overdo the music for the sake of sounding like guitar gods or drum gods, whateves... they work really hard to create music that make sense, and sounds good.

[irishRW]

I hate these guys because of the singer. BUT! after reading this interview, i have new-found respect for the guitarist, im goin to download this album right away an check him out.

Any guitarist that name-drops 'in the flesh' is a friend of mine.

[_zac_]

mature isnt the first word that comes to mind when i think of my chemical romance (which i dont do very often) but the guitarist seems like a cool guy who knows his shit. maybe ill give MCR a better listen. and maybe i wont.
and tallmidget210, you are an idiot. Mohatma Ghandi was one of the greatest men that ever lived and if you think that even a single guitarist has made more impact on more poeples lives than he is then you can go **** yourself. this is coming from someone who is a huge guitar enthusiast by the way

[rockergurl09]

this guy is the only part of MCR worth admiring. He changed the band from disgusting to somewhat tolerable.

[zerodeck]

rockergurl09 wrote:

this guy is the only part of MCR worth admiring. He changed the band from disgusting to somewhat tolerable.

completely right, though I saw a live video of them yesterday and when he had to solo, he suddenly walked to the back of the stage and turned his back to the crowd when the solo sounded trough the amps, sorry if I find it particulary weird, you don't do that in a solo, and if you can't play the solo live, just admit it

checkeddddd

[toro_iero_fan11]

honestly, you can see right here that I am a huge fan of MCR.
Ray Toro is really a big influence on my guitar playing, same with Frank Iero.
Honestly, if you didn't have EITHER of them there wouldn't BE a My Chemical Romance.
You can't kick any of them out. No not even Mikey.

Frank brings the energy to the band and Ray brings the music and heart.

Ray is seriously an amazing person. I mean, he's one of the best lead guitarists in OUR generation. Well...cause there's no way he can beat like...Hendrix or whatever.

But the man's a f***ing genius. And I MEAN that.
Concerning Frank, he can't and SHOULDNT leave the band. A: DOn't call him emo. Seriously now. DONT.
B: He has a heart. He's been into the guitar since he was 11. Inspired by his father and grandpa?

johnnychrist how can you say that he should get kicked out?

Mikey? Mikey's on his freaking HONEYMOON. He'll be back for bob's sake. And, he's not the BEST bassist but he's a GOOD bassist. He's not the "OMG UR THE BEST BASSIST IN THE WORLDD!!" type. He's good and he writes good parts for MCR's songs. Honestly, listen to his solos.

Gerard? If you get rid of Gee there will be NO MCR. He's the FOUNDER and CREATOR. You can't get rid of him!
And yes, I believe that he is an excellent singer and good for this and.

And if you're not a MCR fan, why bother reading this?

For god's sake this band has heart and loves what their doing. Is there something wrong with that?

Anyway, GO RAY!

[DrunkenClam]

^^ How mature of you. That's really saying something. UG usually have the immature comments. Unfortunately. =/

[Dannyboy1087]

mcr is way too obsessed w/ death, and it gets annoying. but hes a good guitarist.

[Anfini]

KileManA7X wrote:

If there were no Gerard, there would be no MCR. He started it. You can't just kick everybody out of the band because you don't like them. Ray has little or no say. It's Gerard's game. If you don't like MCR, get off this fu**in review. Go get a job.

Ray is also one of the co-founders mind u... and Matt (who's out now) was also one of the co-founders. its gerard's game, but yet u read that gerard needed Ray to play a sound to his vocal part?

[Edkohl420]

Great interview, great guitarist, great band.
Ray if you are check out your interview with UG which was very insiteful, Pleas take the time to chcek out my cover of Famous Last Words
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=524132&songID=
4855098

[Lock'n'Load]

AdayTripper wrote:
It's because if you don't actually MOVE FORWARD as a band, you'll stagnate as a band.

But their music is moving forward, each album has been a different, newer sound. Why does that mean that the line up has to change?

U2 haven't changed their line up since 1978. That's nearly 30 years and they're still extremely successful. I don't see any body's point... if it ain't broke don't fix it.

[toro_iero_fan11]

DrunkenClam wrote:

^^ How mature of you. That's really saying something. UG usually have the immature comments. Unfortunately. =/

Honestly, yes I am immature. I'm sorry for being YOUNG.
I don't attempt to sound mature online, because well....it IS online.

But seriously now, Ray is very influential. Frank DOES have energy in the band. Gerard is the FOUNDER of the band *Ray as the co-founder*. Mikey actually DOES play. His parts are actually very noticable on certain MCR songs. And I believe that no one brought up good 'ole Bob.

Overall, if you kick out any member of MCR then, technically, they wouldn't be My Chemical Romance anymore.

And MCR isn't as obsessed with death as before. Honestly now, their not the ONLY band around obsessed with death. There are other bands as well, but I can't name them off the top of my head.

And, this is something I don't get. I've always wondered WHY MCR-haters read articles/interviews about them if they don't like them.
If you say you're wasting your time reading it, then don't read it. *Then again, I don't think anyone said they were wasting their time reading it*

Was that mature enough for you now?

[RSOB Bass]

G0ply wrote:

"I would be like at 1 or 2, and everybody else would have to be like maxed out to 10."

Well that 10 is the problem, your amps need to goto 11...

That made me laugh. Spinal Tap and MCR all the way!

[ponnightingale]

He does look like Simon Amstell! lmao!

[Gregoric]

Okay firstly Ray Toro is a very good guitarist, watch the DVD and you'll notice, hell just read the interview and you can see he knows what he's talking about.

Secondly with the whole Mikey Way being crap on bass...how can you criticize him for simply playing root notes etc. when practically every punk bassist today does it (hell even Sid Vicious did it). I think people just LOOK for reasons to slate a band they don't like, simply to sound superior or soemthing and I personally think it's pathetic!

Good interview

[SOUPerman432321]

KeepDreamin wrote:

ray > just about every new guitarist out there now.

I don't think so, Ray is an amazing guitarist and is one of the best but synyster gates from A7X is way better.

[hxc_pwn_pirate]

frank is not emo. emo is dead (it cut too deep)

[evill22]

blacklabelsdmf wrote:

the dude should leave MCR. he's way too good for them. gerald way is a ****tard

dann_blood wrote:

Get rid of Gerard and replace him with a good singer and we have good MCR.
Guitarist is the only good part of the band.

Gerard is the foundation of the band. His sound is what attracted me tot he band in the first place.

[TehDoors]

G0ply wrote:

"I would be like at 1 or 2, and everybody else would have to be like maxed out to 10."

Well that 10 is the problem, your amps need to goto 11...

I must say I'm not too impressed with MCR but they have there own talents, just not my tastes, although black parade is getting closer to my type then any of there other stuff...

hmmm is the amps need to go to 11 a reference to spinal tap?

I Think Ray is a fine guitarist. not soo great as to be compared to the likes of jimmy page, Brian may, Stevie Ray Vaughan their real guitar hero's. but still a good guitarist.

like wise i think mcr are a good band but not overly great. like The black parade is a good concept album and a homage to the wall but althroug hthe album may be rather good, it sucks compared to the artistic integrity of Roger waters, David Gilmour and richard Wright (pink floyd). i mean just look at dark side of the moon and the wall. Fantastic concept albums. I personally believe however that the best concept album Ever has to be Roger Water's The Pros And Cons Of Hitc Hiking

[A_GOOD_TABBER]

BASSIST SUCKS ASS. get rid of him! dont care if hes gerards brother, kick him out! he puts all bassists to shame! I dont even like this band that much anyways...might get black parade.

[Gibson_SG_uzr55]

ad4mZX wrote:

This guy is thinking he's like the most talented person on Earth, really stuck up.

What the hell are u talking about? Ray is one of the most down-to-earth musicians out there w/ the bands fame status as high as it is. He don't care about being a huge rock star, he is possibly the hardest working young man in the genre today. He's too modest.

[TehDoors]

Gibson_SG_uzr55 wrote:

ad4mZX wrote:

This guy is thinking he's like the most talented person on Earth, really stuck up.
What the hell are u talking about? Ray is one of the most down-to-earth musicians out there w/ the bands fame status as high as it is. He don't care about being a huge rock star, he is possibly the hardest working young man in the genre today. He's too modest.

I Agree with gibson_sg_uzr55 he doesn't at all in the interview boast if anything eh put himself down by talking about gadgets making funky noises then tells it like it is he doesn't make it biased (: or make him seem cool he just tells yo what goes down he doenst try too loo kcool he tried to make you understand the process.

[evilbeavil]

What the ****? Why would you ever compare MCR to Queen and The Beatles? I thought it was actually pretty obvious that there is no comparison. Mainly because the latter 2 bands actually have talent.

[mister bass guy]

A_GOOD_TABBER :
BASSIST SUCKS ASS. get rid of him! dont care if hes gerards brother, kick him out! he puts all bassists to shame! I dont even like this band that much anyways...might get black parade

yea, i'm better than mikey way at bass...
but mcr IS awesome. just need a better bassist...

[MyChemicalLaura]

dann_blood wrote:

Get rid of Gerard and replace him with a good singer and we have good MCR.
Guitarist is the only good part of the band.

The Band All Work Together As A Whole To Create Good Music
Take One Of Them Away
IT ISNT GONNA WORK
pffft
Gee Is A Great Singer
You Have A Go At Filling His Shoes
(y)

[Bunson666]

Thumbs down.

Check

[OddOneOut]

jeez, enough negativity. Good article, i would say the same regardless of what band was being interviewed. am i the only person who finds it almost interesting how certain bands achieve that sound? am i the only person who will actually take what i've read and use them to develop some amazing songs? i should hope not.
think mcr are rubbish? well then go make your own songs up and get as successful as mcr are, then maybe we can all talk dirt about you.

[MyChemicalLaura]

OddOneOut wrote:

jeez, enough negativity. Good article, i would say the same regardless of what band was being interviewed. am i the only person who finds it almost interesting how certain bands achieve that sound? am i the only person who will actually take what i've read and use them to develop some amazing songs? i should hope not.
think mcr are rubbish? well then go make your own songs up and get as successful as mcr are, then maybe we can all talk dirt about you.

good point =]

[thedarkblues06]

that1l)ude wrote:

ray > just about every new guitarist out there now.
I personally think ray toro is the most overrated guitarist there is. even in mainstream rock theres guitarist that would crush him (ie mark tremonti, tom morello).
but its just my opinion, i dont want to be attacked by an army of fanboys, im merely letting my opinion be known.
And as much as i cant stand this band at least they made an attempt to sound different, whether they did or not.

Totally agreed.

[war666child]

I LOVE MCR! they rule! they inspire me soo much! oh just to let you all know... they ALL belong together!!! okay?!?! those five guys (Gerard,Ray,Frank,Micky,B
ob) MAKE MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE!!! oh there not emo either, they ditched Emo.. there ablum is full of life! it's amazing! RAY! your awesome! your my guitar hero! oh and you to FRANK! i love you guys!

[LoveMCR]

Partyboy2k05 wrote:

wtf TallMidget210? Why would you even bring Gandhi into this conversation? How could you say that you could name a ton of guitarist that deserve more recognition than Gandhi? Do you even know his impact on India. India has over a billion people...so obviously he'd have an impact on every single one of them.

Jimmy Page, Hendrix, clapton, B.B. King, Dimebag, Stevie Ray Vaughan all combined don't make a bigger impact than he would have. There's a huge difference between selling millions of albums and helping liberate a country. Think twice before such an ignorant statement and having your foot in your mouth.

Now having said that, all the guitarist I mentioned have a profound impact on me, but to say that any of them deserve a higher mention than someone such as Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. is just retarded.

Dude. wtf. He even said he didn't know who Gandhi is. Dont be such a smart ass.

[LoveMCR]

and. He was commenting on another person's comment. so actually read the comment before you critize someone like that.

It's not like I see your tour selling out.

[LoveMCR]

break-me-in wrote:

di4gram wrote:

I'm so sick of hearing MCR compared to Queen. As a Queen lover I can't the comparison.

Queen was made at least 75% by Freddie's voice and personality. I loathe any interview that mentions "Queen-like" in reference to MCR. Gerard Way is in no way even comparable to Freddie Mercury in terms of talent or in terms of lyricism. I wish their fanchildren would stop insisting this.


The comparisons aren't based on the vocals though. The comparisons are between the sound of the guitars (which are Queen-ish on The Black Parade) and the grandiose sound that they've adopted. Obviously Gerard Way is nothing like Freddie Mercury. That's absurd.

And Gerard Way dosen't have AIDS.
And he's not gay. =].

[jtotheackie]

people who say gerard is girlie are right....i say him and HE HAS THE GAYEST VOICE EVER!! this is from a fangirl who loves mcr...but got it sounded gay....and he called maryland marilyn...ftw!! but yea they'r emy favorite 4eva!!! HOPE TO SEE THEM AGAIN!! lol i saw them the day before this interview

[Old Vendetta\m/]

Bassplayer1234 wrote:

Jeowy, Frank is not an emo. He like the best guitarist ever!!!!!

You, are a jackass. and MCR is garbage and Ray Toro ist as great as people claim he is. he has at least some talent tho and that still makes him way too good for MCR and comparing them to Queen and the Beatles is possibly the dumbest shit ive ever heard.

[Old Vendetta\m/]

Bassplayer1234 wrote:

Jeowy, Frank is not an emo. He like the best guitarist ever!!!!!

You, are a jackass. and MCR is garbage and Ray Toro isnt as great as people claim he is. he has at least some talent tho and that still makes him way too good for MCR and comparing them to Queen and the Beatles is possibly the dumbest shit ive ever heard.

[TallMidget210]

wtf TallMidget210? Why would you even bring Gandhi into this conversation? How could you say that you could name a ton of guitarist that deserve more recognition than Gandhi? Do you even know his impact on India. India has over a billion people...so obviously he'd have an impact on every single one of them.

Jimmy Page, Hendrix, clapton, B.B. King, Dimebag, Stevie Ray Vaughan all combined don't make a bigger impact than he would have. There's a huge difference between selling millions of albums and helping liberate a country. Think twice before such an ignorant statement and having your foot in your mouth.

Now having said that, all the guitarist I mentioned have a profound impact on me, but to say that any of them deserve a higher mention than someone such as Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. is just retarded.

Actually I was making fun of a guy's name. Sooo uhhh not trying to offend you, i know what Gandhi did alright, if you would've read and understood the whole thing i said maybe you wouldn't have jumped the gun so quickly.

[xkaitlynxcorex]

**** you all bitches. MCR is fuxing RAD.every fuxing member. they are better then all of you are so i wouldnt say shit you all know they fuxing own.do any of YOU hoebags have a CD thats worth something? didnt think so. and whoever said shit about Gerard fuxing way..im gunna find you and fuxing cut you open ****. MCR fuxing owns, douchebags. so **** you, **** your opinions and **** yourselves with something hard and sandpapery.

kthx.

Shetbags.

oh and by the way,

BLOWME


XkaitlynX****faceX™

[MCR FAN]

toro_iero_fan11 wrote:

DrunkenClam wrote:

^^ How mature of you. That's really saying something. UG usually have the immature comments. Unfortunately. =/


Honestly, yes I am immature. I'm sorry for being YOUNG.
I don't attempt to sound mature online, because well....it IS online.

But seriously now, Ray is very influential. Frank DOES have energy in the band. Gerard is the FOUNDER of the band *Ray as the co-founder*. Mikey actually DOES play. His parts are actually very noticable on certain MCR songs. And I believe that no one brought up good 'ole Bob.

Overall, if you kick out any member of MCR then, technically, they wouldn't be My Chemical Romance anymore.

And MCR isn't as obsessed with death as before. Honestly now, their not the ONLY band around obsessed with death. There are other bands as well, but I can't name them off the top of my head.

And, this is something I don't get. I've always wondered WHY MCR-haters read articles/interviews about them if they don't like them.
If you say you're wasting your time reading it, then don't read it. *Then again, I don't think anyone said they were wasting their time reading it*

Was that mature enough for you now?

well said ha ha

[daveowen]

I do like MCR... I'm not their biggest fan or anything like that... but I don't get why so many people put them down. They're all talented and creative musicians. I think the only reason people don't like them is because they're aparently 'emo.' I think, if they changed their image, people wouldn't have a problem. Its kind of sad really, that the music bands create, comes second to the way they dress...
Thats my opinion anyway...

[SIeepy]

RAY TORO OWNS THE FRET BOARD!!!