Zone 6: 2011

Sunday August 21th 2011 was the day my life changed forever!
It was the day I was finally able to see my favorite band of ALL time. You guessed it: My Chemical Romance. After days of pouting, begging, and pulling weeds I finally persuaded my mom to buy tickets to see MCR with Blink-182 at the Riverbend Music Center. She seemed very reluctant about it. Apparently that venue is known for the random drunk thirteen-year-olds who stagger on roads around the place. I think my mom actually respects My Chemical Romance and their message though, and that was enough to persuade her.

Me and my brother were dropped off at the venue. My brother is way older than me and a very smart person so I wasn't that worried. If anything, I was in shock that My Chemical Romance would be somewhat near me. Getting to our seats was pretty easy. The security there (by the way, there was a LOT of security) showed us our seats. Me and my bro were surrounded by Blink-182 fans. SURROUNDED. Which I guess is acceptable because they are the headlining band, and MCR was opening for them! Thankfully, I didn't feel really young and out of place. I sat next to some older lady who left halfway through the show and my brother was next to some very young kids. They were like 8 years old!

After waiting for about half an hour, Manchester Orchestra walked onstage and started playing. They were great! I kind of felt bad because there was only one fan who was there to see them. Not kidding. Just one guy at the front who was rocking out! Everyone else sat and watched, applauding when they finished a song. Personally, I really liked Manchester Orchestra. They played about four songs which had me bobbing my head and tapping my feet. It was loud though. The guitars were WAY too loud! My ears blew up every time someone struck a chord D: When they were finished, they thanked the crowd and walked off. Then there was more waiting.

I'd say that about a quarter of the people at the concert were there for My Chemical Romance. You could easily tell. People wore Killjoy shirts and bandannas. Then there was me and my lacrosse shirt -_- Way to show band spirit, Moo. We all waited in anticipation as the tech guys set up the stage. I was so excited I almost died.

After the longest 20 minutes of my life, a familiar Japanese woman appeared on the screen. She started talking in Japanese. If you don't follow the whole Killjoy-alter-ego thing, you would be weirded out. But all the MCR fans were overjoyed. Then, a familiar splotch of red hair appeared, followed by 5 other men.. My Chemical Romance filed out and went straight to their instruments. The screams from the crowd were so loud!

This is embarrassing, but when MCR got on stage, I didn't cheer or scream. I stood there with wide eyes and stared. Just stared at my heroes as they set up their instruments. Everybody stood up and I suddenly felt short. We were pretty close to the stage. Close enough that I could clearly see Mikey and Frank, and occasionally Gerard when he walked to our side of the stage. Wait, scratch that. The man doesn't just walk, he prances!

My Chem opened up with Na Na Na. I was totally rocking out the whole concert, throwing my fists in the air and singing along to every word. The Blink fans stood there the whole time, looking at me like I was some weirdo. A little rude, they could have at least clapped along! -_-

SING was amazing. Gerard's voice was flawless. Mikey actually moved around a little and looked relaxed (although he still had the awkward knees. lol), I couldn't see Ray, but I could hear his guitar. Very easily. His solos were brilliant! Ray is truly a guitar hero! Frank just spazzed the whole time (as usual). You could tell he loves his job! Frank never seems to be tired. James, the touring keyboardist, had dyed his hair bright blue. Gerard must have rubbed off on him! Mike smashed the drums throughout the setlist. I think Mike deserves more attention. Sure, we're all a little sore since Bob left, but we need to carry on. Mike's a great drummer as well!

There was a time ( I think during SING) where Gerard came over to our side of the stage and looked in my general direction. He totally saw me rocking out. He sang to our section for like 15 seconds then moved on. I melted into a little puddle of Moo on the floor! MCR has always been very good about connecting with their fans. They'll find a way to make people in the farthest away seats feel like they're right in front of the band. This is random, but every time Gerard said 'Cincinnati', I screamed like a fangirl. There's something about the hero of your lifetime and role model saying the name of your hometown that just gets you pumped. :)

They played a good mix of songs. I noticed that they performed a lot of songs from the Black Parade era, which I didn't mind. Sadly, they couldn't find time to play anything from Bullets :'( I was suprised from the lack of Danger Days songs. You'd think that they'd only play songs from their new album!

I took time to look around and spot various MCR fans. Everyone was wearing t-shirts and singing along. The elderly lady sitting next to me even sang along to certain songs! During Planetary (Go!), a bunch of confetti-filled balloons were thrown into the crowd to be bumped around. Once they reached the stage, the balloons met their untimely fate when Gerard popped them using a pin. Confetti spilled out and showered the crowd. Even the Blink fans were staring in wonder and smiling.

Me and my brother didn't stick around after My Chemical Romance finished. I had to get up early the next morning and we didn't want to be up too late. So I waited in line and got a MCR t-shirt and an amazing poster.

One thing that really made me smile was one of the MCR fans. My bro and I waited in line for a while, my brother loudly complaining the whole time. An MCR fan in front of us let me cut in front of her :) It was very sweet. I got my merch then got the hell outta there. Blink was coming on soon and the venue would soon become a total madhouse. My ears felt funny and I couldn't hear very well. Totally worth it!!!

Setlist with links and descriptions (you're welcome):

1.) Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na) - The first song. The energy was overwhelming and I actually started crying/laughing at how awesome the whole performance was.

2.) Helena - A tribute to Mikey and Gerard's late grandmother, Helena has always been an emotional song with lots of character. A lot of people sang along (including me)!

3.) SING (I think this was next) - This is a song with a lot of meaning and emotion. It's probably the most misunderstood MCR song (damn you Glenn Beck!). Even the Blink fans around me were clapping their hands along to the beat. I believe this was the song where Gerard came over and sang at me. Best moment of my life., hands down.

4.) Vampire Money - An upbeat song that makes fun of Twilight, with a Bowie reference. You don't get any better than this. Mikey even said, "F**king ready!" at the beginning! AND MIKEY DOESN'T TALK!! I was sooo happy that I just started laughing uncontrollably!

5.) Dead! - I'm totally guessing the order of the songs. Sorry about that :)
Dead! was great. It took me all my willpower not to run down the aisle, jump over people's heads, and run onstage and start dancing. I WAS TEMPTED! One of my favorite songs from the Black Parade. Even my brother recognized it. I couldn't really tell, though. He was working on math homework the whole time. Really? Maybe the reason Gerard looked at me was because my brother looked like a total kermudgen and he felt bad for me. lol

6.) Planetary (Go!) - The sirens from the song and the screams from the crowd were deafening. I was having such a good time screaming and staring at Mikey that it took me a while to notice giant balloons were attacking the crowd. Everybody seemed to really like this particular song. It took one of the balloons a really long time before it popped! Another great song!

7.) I'm Not Okay (I Promise) - A favorite of mine. When the album cover for Three Cheers showed up on the big screen, everybody screamed and started jumping. I'm Not Okay is an amazing song that has these freaking powers that make you feel like you're not alone. I needed that boost of confidence before my start at a new school. Thank you MCR for performing this!

8.) DESTROYA - A more recent song, DESTROYA is a song that really makes you get excited and want to jump around randomly. Gerard actually got on his knees and started crawling around the stage. Frank was literally hopping up and down with his guitar. I could see Ray headbanging. When everybody in the crowd started singing along at the end, it was freaking epic. The whole crowd was chanting, "Destroya, destroya, we're all waiting for ya!" along the intense, loud guitar. It was memorable!

9.) Mama - Gerard gave a message about how the band doesn't support mosh pits or something and then broke out into this song. It was great. I sang along and clapped when the big guitar bridge/solo kicked in. Mama is a kind of an intense song. Don't get me wrong, it's not screamo or Satan-worshipping or anything of that manner. It's just a very heavy, intense song. I think the Blink-192 fans were a little intimidated.

10.) Welcome to the Black Parade - When the first note of the piano struck I ALMOST DIED OF HAPPINESS. Then I cried. This song is life-changing! I had no idea they were going to play it. But I was so happy when they did!

11.) Famous Last Words - Okay, I'm positive that these songs are out of order. Oh well. The part that went 'I see you lying next to me. With words I thought I'd never speak..' was absolutely GORGEOUS live. All the fans sang that part. Which is unforgettable because those lines have changed so many lives for the better. I felt like the whole MCR crowd was a big family or something. ^_^

12.) Teenagers - A great anthem to end the setlist with. It took me a while to recognize it, for some reason. Gerard was literally jumping up and down, making the crowd clap along and fist pump. We were all screaming along to the chorus by the end.

The concert was amazing! I could totally do it again. Hopefully the next time I see My Chemical Romance live will be when they're headlining the tour. That would be fun. Gee, Mikey, Ray, Frank, Mike, and James: you guys are my heroes. Thanks for coming to Cincinnati!

My half brother had his wedding this weekend. It was supposed to be outside, but our plans were foiled because of the rain. Oh well. During the ceremony, a dog randomly walked up and started panting and wagging his tail. Dogs for the win.

Anyways, me and my mom were tearing up. And I don't even cry. I think everyone was sniffling during the wedding. The bride looked gorgeous, and she is one of the nicest women I know. The groom, my half brother, demanded that all the ushers and guys wear Carolina blue Converse with their tuxes >_< I wore a flowery dress. Blegh.

The whole wedding and reception ended up taking place in a tent. It was cold, rainy, and I think the tarp was leaking. But it was very fun nontheless! My mom had to play the part of the 'evil stepmother' LOL.