My Chemical Romance surprised fans at their recent Dodger Stadium performance by debuting a previously unreleased track from their vault of unfinished material.
The band premiered “War Beneath the Rain” during their Los Angeles concert, revealing the track originated from recording sessions that took place before their 2013 breakup.
Gerard Way explained the significance of the moment to the crowd, sharing that the track came from “a record that never came out” and represented “one of the songs we really loved from it.” The performance carried additional emotional weight as Way dedicated the song to the family of Doug McKean, the Grammy Award-winning engineer who had worked on the original recording.
McKean’s involvement with My Chemical Romance stretched back to their iconic 2006 album Welcome to the Black Parade, establishing a working relationship that continued throughout their career. The engineer and producer, who passed away in July 2022 at 54, had built an impressive portfolio including collaborations with Green Day, Paramore, and Simple Plan. His presence during the original “War Beneath the Rain” sessions represented the intimate creative process Way described as “just us in the studio with our friend.”
The unreleased material stems from what would have been My Chemical Romance’s fifth studio album, tentatively titled The Paper Kingdom. Work on this project was underway when the band announced their breakup in March 2013, leaving fans wondering about the music that might have been. The last full-length release from MCR remains 2010’s Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, marking a 15-year gap since their most recent album.
My Chemical Romance broke their extended silence in May 2022 with “The Foundations of Decay”, their first new song in nearly a decade. Way wrote and produced this song alongside McKean and Ray Toro, making it one of the final collaborations with the late engineer.
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At their Dodger Stadium concerts, MCR also introduced “Destroya” for its tour debut on July 26th. The following evening saw additional rarities including “Cemetery Drive”, “The Foundations of Decay”, “You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison”, and “S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W” making appearances.
The ‘Long Live The Black Parade Tour’ continues with upcoming dates across the US. The band return to the stage on August 2nd in Arlington, Texas, followed by performances in East Rutherford, Philadelphia, Toronto, Chicago, Boston, and Tampa through September.
