“Look alive, sunshine.” Revolutionary words coming from a band whose lead singer, Gerard Way, made a name for himself with dark eyeliner and a pale, white face. Danger Days is a sonic revolution for My Chemical Romance and the lyrics really bring that idea home. Lyrically, these songs are filled with guns, bullets, bombs, explosions, the urge to flee and calls to action (and partying) despite certain death. Gerard Way's passionate vocals have been a staple of the band's sound since the beginning and Danger Days is no exception. On this new album, however, the passion no longer seems to come from a nihilistic and angst-ridden place. Gerard sounds ecstatic to be fighting “The Man,” blowing things up and, in the album's more tender moments, keeping a beautiful and unnamed love safe and sound.
The band insists that Danger Days is not a concept album. Considering this, the addition of Dr. Death Defying's radio interludes remind me of skits that were popular in rap albums in the early 2000s. They don't tell a story; rather, they set the scene for the universe and mindset that the songs are coming from. In the case of Danger Days, that universe and mindset seem to be a party at the end of the world and Dr. Death Defying is providing the soundtrack.
“This ain't about all the friends you made/But the graffiti they write on your grave.” Any successful revolution is a group effort and nowhere is this better shown than in the album's instrumentals. There are scorching guitar solos, fast-paced, pounding drum beats and stripped down rhythm guitars. The slower, and arguably cheesier, songs on the album have dense overdubs and beautiful effects on basically all the instruments (including the vocals on psychedelic pop song “S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W" ). Like on MCR's other albums, and in most popular rock music, the bass guitar is kept relatively low in the mix, acting as extra meat on the rhythm guitar's backbone. On their previous record, The Black Parade, keyboards played a subtle yet important role in the instrumentation and the band has carried that motif over to this record. The keyboards are for the most part felt rather than heard, giving the songs an airy and futuristic feel. Notable exceptions to this are the album's second single, “SING” (the sparse piano notes giving the song an unnerving sense of urgency) and “Planetary(GO!),” where the opening siren-synths act as a warning that the subdued New-Wave song you're listening to will inevitably explode into the album's grooviest party song.
Overall, Danger Days shows a band that has spent a long time focusing on the negative aspects of the human condition, having a great time despite the obstacles. The album leaves the listener excited to see what these musical chameleons are going to come up with next. The band has described this album as a high speed chase through the desert in a Trans AM. Whether the next album is going to crash and explode or get away safely, I'm excited to see. I only have one piece of advice for My Chemical Romance: make sure you floor it again next time.
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