MCR Way influenced by Guitar Hero

Former My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way says the console game Guitar Hero’s influence can be heard on the band’s later material.

Tracks by MCR, Green Day, Black Veil Brides and Fall Out Boy are among the first wave of songs to be announced for the game’s latest incarnation – Guitar Hero Live. The popular video game has been on hiatus for five years but will return on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Wii U via Activision and developer FreeStyle Games later this year.

Speaking at the game’s launch event , Way, pictured below, told Rolling Stone: “When we were making Black Parade, we had a TV set up in the big room and we had Guitar Hero there. We’d just pick it up at any time and play.

“It influenced me for the music that would come out after that album because I would constantly play Search And Destroy by Iggy Pop And The Stooges all the time. It rekindled something for me. It’s one of the reasons why Conventional Weapons has such a protopunk sound to it.”

My Chemical Romance split in 2013 and Way and guitarist Frank Iero have gone on to launch solo careers.

Guitar Hero Live will be released this autumn and retail for £89.99.

Guitar Hero Live tracklist

  1. My Chemical Romance – Na Na Na 2. Black Veil Brides – In The End 3. Pierce The Veil – King For A Day (feat. Kellin Quinn) 4. System Of A Down – Chop Suey 5. Fall Out Boy – My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light Em Up) 6. Green Day – Nuclear Family 7. Blitz Kids – Sometimes 8. Pantera – Cowboys From Hell 9. The Pretty Reckless – Going To Hell 10. Alter Bridge – Cry Of Achilles 11. Judas Priest – Breaking The Law 12. Rage Against The Machine – Guerilla Radio 13. Skrillex – Bangarang 14. Red Hot Chilli Peppers – Higher Ground 15. Broken Bells – Leave It Alone 16. Ed Sheeran – Sing 17. The Killers – When You Were Young 18. Sleigh Bells – Bitter Rivals 19. The Rolling Stones – Paint It Black 20. Alt-J – Left Hand Free 21. The War On Drugs – Under The Pressure 22. Gary Clark Jr. – Don’t Owe You A Thang 23. The Lumineers – Ho Hey 24. The Black Keys – Gold On The Ceiling

Scott Munro
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Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving to the e-commerce team in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.