My ears are still ringing from Gerard Way (and The Hormones’) show Tuesday night at Bogart’s. The high-pitched screams were not only for the former My Chemical Romance front man, but also for the solid opening band, whose name I unfortunately could not hear due to the said screams, and horrible Google search skills.
Before stepping into the venue, I spoke with a fan that compared seeing Gerard Way for the first time with seeing your favorite uncle’s solo gymnastics routine. It’s obvious that the routine will blow minds as it has before, but one still goes into the event with a bit of hesitation. In this case, Gerard Way is the talented and flexible uncle and My Chemical Romance is the uncle’s old team members. My Chemical Romance is most notably known for tracks such as “Helena” and “I’m Not Okay (I Promise)” and will remain the soundtrack to mine and so many others junior and high school experiences. Way says, “Me and my brother fantasized about starting a rock band, so we started one and we got to see the world”. With My Chemical Romance fans of my generation, their younger brothers and sisters, and as seen at last night’s show, the parents of my generation, Way attracted a large amount of people with a large age range, making it extremely easy for me to make it to the bar. At 8:37, the crowd somehow, as if there was a memo sent prior to the show that I apparently missed, attendees condensed and moved closer to the stage. This phenomenon occurred again at 9:04.
At 9:06, Gerard Way, wearing a black suit and blood red tie, and his backing band, The Hormones, who wore white button downs and black ties, performed with zeal and brightness to the ones with X’s on their hands. In between songs, Way talked about his battles with depression, his commitment towards the continuing progression of the transgender community, and the life-saving steps he took when the voices in his head became too much. Hearing Way speak so honestly about his struggled with mental illness was genuine and vital for members of the audience living with similar tribulations.
Way’s rebellion still lies within, but sounds as if My Chemical Romance grew up, and that’s a good thing. Every blown kiss or hip shake caused a frenzy of screams in the audience. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a show where an audience was so loud. “Juarez”, one of my favorite tracks from Way’s album, “Hesitant Alien” was a crowd favorite as well as “Millions”.
“Alright Cincinnati, these are The Hormones, and this is “Zero Zero”.
Way mentioned that after their tour in Russia, there are plans to go back into the studio to record the follow-up to “Hesitant Alien”, but only said that the album is “going to be different”.
Although I was not a fan of the screaming (seriously, is there a remedy for ringing ears?), Gerard Way is worth checking out, especially if, like me, you missed out on his My Chemical Romance years.
