October 2022

After being pushed three years because of the pandemic, the punk-rock band, My Chemical Romance made their Reunion Tour date in Sun- rise, Florida on September 24, 2022. Florida Live Arena was a great venue to hold their show. The stadium, which is home to the Florida Panthers hockey team, can roughly hold over 22,000 peo- ple, and by end of the night, it was filled to the brim. Upon entering the stadium, you could find lines spanning around the concourse, with fans wait- ing to pick up merch. All around you could find fans brandishing band tees, black jean-jackets, MCR-inspired costumes, and/or combat boots. Black mascara, eyeliner, and various colors of hair dye were seen from fans from all ages. From the start, you could tell that this was an emo- punk show. People from all over Florida and the United States attended the momentous night. Ryan Hildebrandt and his friends Bri Tyska and Mat- thew Smith traveled across Florida, from Tampa, to attend the concert. Hildebrandt made note of how far he and other fans traveled to attend the show. “We traveled about 5 hours. The people next to me were from Tampa as well. I saw some plates from Wisconsin. They’re following them man.” Starting off the night was the political-, folk- punk band The Homeless Gospel Choir from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The band branded many of their songs as protest songs, such as their songs Ripoff, Don’t Compare, and Brainwash. The band felt a bit slow as the night’s opener, but they picked up the pace near the end of the set. They had some interesting aspects to their set, including implementing a saxophone and some over-the-top theatrics on stage. Frank Iero, the lead guitarist for My Chemical Romance came on stage to join the band in singing their hit Cra- zy, getting a powerful reaction from fans. The second opener, Midtown hyped up the crowd. The emo/pop-punk band from New Brunswick, New Jersey started off their set strong with their song Become What You Hate. The bands high energy was backed up with ef- fective fast-paced stage-lighting, getting the audience’s blood pumping and everyone hyped for the final act. Midtown performed a cover of When We Were Young by The Killers that was on par with Brandon Flowers’ own rendition of the song. Like MCR, this is Midtown’s reunion tour. The punk band broke up back in 2005 and came together after MCR’s bassist Mikey Way asked them to join the tour. To end their set, Midtown brought the MCR bassist on stage to help perform their 2004 hit, Give it Up. After Midtown finished up their performance, the crowd waited in angst for the night’s head- lining act to come on. My Chemical Romance used this to their advantage. After the roadies set up the stage; the lights dimmed, flashing red and white. Simultaneously, the speakers began pro- jecting an ominous white noise throughout the venue. They went on with this introduction for what seemed like an eternity, adding to already the built-up anticipation. When the band finally came on stage, the crowd went wild. MCR’s front man, Gerard Way came out dawned in a ghost costume, more than likely inspired by their song, The Ghost of You. The lead singer has been al- tering his outfits for each show on the tour, wearing anything from a fake blood-splattered white suit to a cheerleading outfit, leaving many fans to delve deeper into the meaning of each costume he wears on stage. To start off the night, they played their most recent hit, Foundations of Decay, followed by Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na), and I Never Told You What I Do for a Living. Matthew Smith, a fan from MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE | 9/24/22 | SUNRISE, FL Review & Photos by Xavier Martin 16