The Secret History of My Chemical Romance

Where do you even start with My Chemical Romance? Perhaps more than anyone else to emerge this century, they are a band – more a tour de force – that have set trends, created controversy, inspired debate, offered countless “Were you there?” moments and, lest we forget, produced some of the most memorable music of recent years. Be it through their bold reinventions, eye catching regalia, culture-crafting mottos or generation-defining songs, they have come to mean so many different things to so many people – and, most importantly of all, they did every single second of it their way. These are just some of the many reasons why Metal Hammer were the first UK magazine to have them on the cover, and why we still feel a strong affinity with them to this day, almost 20 years since Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge blew a hole in rock’n’roll. In this special-edition magazine, you’ll find some of our earliest, most classic features with Gerard et al, as well as a retrospective look through their striking career: album by album, song by song, quote by quote, from their humble beginnings in New Jersey’s incredible early 00s scene to their reunion in 2019. It’s been a hell of a ride, and we feel privileged to have played some part in it. We hope you enjoy revisiting these memories as much as we did. Read more