A night of big songs, wild moments, fire, and plenty of black eyeliner!
By the time we got to the Alamodome on Saturday, September 12, it was pretty obvious what kind of night this was going to be. Fans had arrived early, many already carrying My Chemical Romance merch, and the sidewalks around the venue were full of black, red, military-inspired jackets, plaid, fishnets, platform boots, and outfits pulled from different eras of the band. You can check our Fans Gallery HERE.
What I liked most was how mixed the crowd felt. There were younger fans experiencing The Black Parade for the first time, longtime fans who have been around since the beginning, and plenty of people somewhere in between. Everyone seemed to have their own version of the band.
Inside, there was that particular feeling you get before a big concert where nobody really wants to sit down. The Mars Volta were up first, and by the time My Chemical Romance took the stage, the Alamodome was ready. What followed was much more than a straightforward rock show. It was part concert, part theater, part ceremony, and very much My Chemical Romance.
THE MARS VOLTA
The Mars Volta are not exactly the kind of band you put on as background music. Their set demanded attention from the start.
With Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala leading the band, the performance moved between tightly controlled musicianship and moments that felt completely loose. Songs like “Viscera Eyes,” “Cue the Sun,” “Alba Del Orate,” and “Teflon” gave the audience plenty to dig into, especially for fans who appreciate the more unpredictable side of progressive rock.
They also worked “CIA Man” by The Fugs into the set, followed by “Son et Lumière” and “Inertiatic ESP,” which was a particularly fun nod for longtime listeners.
One of the highlights was guest vocalist Teri Gender Bender, whose presence added another layer to an already busy performance. There was a lot happening onstage, but it never felt like musicians were simply showing off. The technical skill was obvious, especially in the way the band shifted between sections, but the songs remained the focus.
The Mars Volta were a strong choice for this tour. They have their own very distinct world, and watching that world collide with The Black Parade made the opening set feel like part of the evening rather than something to get through before the headliner.
MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE
THE BLACK PARADE
When the opening notes finally arrived, the atmosphere inside the Alamodome changed. But even before that, My Chemical Romance made it clear that this was not going to be a standard greatest-hits set.
The show opened with “Overture”, accompanied by “The National Anthem of Draag” performed by mezzo-soprano Lucy Joy Altus. Hearing that voice fill the stadium before the band appeared was strange in the best possible way. It immediately established the theatrical tone.
Then came “The End,” “Dead!,” “This Is How I Disappear,” and “The Sharpest Lives.” The crowd knew every word. Gerard Way barely had to encourage anyone to sing because thousands of voices were already doing it.
The staged election that followed was another reminder that The Black Parade has always been about more than just the songs. The audience voted “YEA” to execute the Dictator and make Gerard the Dictator, sending the show deeper into its theatrical storyline before “Welcome to the Black Parade” brought everyone together for one of the biggest singalongs of the night.
“Cancer” was quieter, with a beautiful violin arrangement that gave the song a different weight in the stadium. Then things got weird again. During “Mama,” King Diamond appeared onstage, adding another unexpected layer to the spectacle. Afterward, he knighted each member of the band, which is not something you see at most concerts.
The rest of the main set moved through “Teenagers,” “Disenchanted,” “Famous Last Words,” and “The End.” Then the band moved to the B-stage for an extended run of songs, including “From A to B,” “Helena,” “Na Na Na,” “Summertime,” “To the End,” “Ambulance,” and “I’m Not Okay (I Promise).”
They closed with “The Foundations of Decay.” Between the fire, pyrotechnics, costumes, staging, and the sheer amount of material packed into the show, there was always something happening. Still, the songs were never lost underneath the production. That is probably the hardest thing to pull off with a show this big.
A Show Built on Ceremony
The biggest difference between this concert and a normal My Chemical Romance set was how deliberately theatrical everything felt.
The Black Parade has always existed somewhere between rock concert and fictional world, but this version pushed that idea further. The election, the Dictator storyline, the violin during “Cancer,” King Diamond’s appearance, and the knighting ceremony all felt like pieces of the same strange universe.
And then there were the pyrotechnics. Fire shot up around the stage during key moments, adding a physical punch to songs everyone already knew by heart.
Gerard Way, Ray Toro, Frank Iero, and Mikey Way seemed completely comfortable inside the spectacle. Gerard especially knew when to let the production do the talking and when to step forward and connect directly with the audience.
It also helped that the crowd was so invested. This wasn’t a room full of people waiting for the next song. Fans knew the words, the references, the outfits, and the history. They were part of the show.
How My Chemical Romance Built Their World
My Chemical Romance formed in New Jersey in 2001, when Gerard Way and drummer Matt Pelissier began working on music after the events of September 11 inspired Way to pursue music more seriously. The lineup eventually grew to include Ray Toro, Frank Iero, and Mikey Way, and the band quickly developed a sound that mixed punk, alternative rock, emo, and theatrical songwriting.
Their breakthrough came with Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, but The Black Parade turned them into something much bigger. The 2006 album created an entire visual and narrative world around songs like “Welcome to the Black Parade,” “Famous Last Words,” and “Teenagers.”
That sense of identity is a big reason fans still connect with them. My Chemical Romance never treated music, fashion, and performance as separate things. They made them part of the same experience, and fans have carried that idea forward for years.
