THE KINGS OF EMO?? (My Chemical Romance "The Foundations Of Decay" reaction) 

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“I don’t really want dark MCR” is an insane statement

To me, the target audience of this track is their fans. As someone who loves the old MCR, this brings a lot of nostalgia and feelings. If they wanted to appeal younger audiences, they would colaborare with gen z artists, like Billie Eilish. I'm glad they're doing their own thing and keep their essence as a band.

It’s MCR, it’s their sound. It’s Demolition Lovers vibes. There is no focus on any one band member and that’s the beauty of them. Danger Days is good but super poppy. Gerard just did some death metal vocals on another song. They aren’t gonna come back that. Also Gerard watched the towers fall on his way to work.

The inspiration for starting MCR was when Gerard seen the twin towers fall. This song is the story of Gerard.

Looks like an unpopular opinion in this comments section, but I love this song and the mix. Never been a big MCR fan, so I don’t feel blinded by my fandom.

I give them credit for not jumping on the Pop-Punk Nostalgia bandwagon.

Whatever MCR does is gold. It’s about the band being themselves and not conforming to what people want. That’s what always made MCR great.

If you like "singles" mcr fan, this isn't for you. If you're an MCR album listener, this is for you. That's it.

This song feels like like a throwback to their very first album and reminded me most of their Demolition Lovers track. The gritty, grimy basement mixing felt like it matched the theme of decay and corrosion present in the song. I personally liked that they used a more understated song as their opener - it feels like a teaser and something to keep audiences guessing until they release their new album.

“I’d rather hear Danger Days than this.” 😂 Listen, I like Danger Days, but when I think of MCR, this is exactly what I would want to hear after they’d been gone for nearly a decade, not Party Poison lmao.

The thing with mcr is that they've always been an "album" band, a lot of their big singles are outliers on their albums ("I'm not okay" and "teenagers" are probably the most obvious examples, at least aesthetically and narratively). I feel like I won't be able to form a full opinion on this song until I hear the rest of the album. That said, I think the absolute worst thing they could have done is try to come back with some bombastic pop punk anthem and have it fall flat. They're not the band they were in 2005, they've not put a real album out in 12 years. I don't think they'll ever reach the peak they got to in the 2000s and I think they know that. I'm actually really glad that they decided to go for a track that's a little darker and weirder, it feels more like a conscious artistic decision than them trying to relive their glory days or cash in on their legacy. Personally I hope the rest of the album is even weirder and less accessible (although I'd also prefer something a bit more energetic), they are such tight musicians and storytellers and are already so well loved that they could get away with pretty much anything. I'd be excited to see what they can come up with.

Been a big MCR fan since 2005 and I dig this song. This was the sound they really needed to come back with; if they had picked up stylistically right where Danger Days left off I don't know if it would feel quite right in the current climate. I am all for them recapturing the darker grittier elements of their first two albums, and I think this song has that plus some of the grandiose style of the Black Parade era. I totally understand Finn's less than enthusiastic reaction though, MCR is such a diverse band that everyone has something in their sound that speaks to them, and I think that's part of their beauty that they can do so many styles, from stuff like Demolition Lovers to something like Planetary. Not everyone is gonna like all of them. I'm super stoked on their comeback either way.

Say what you will but this contrast is needed with most of the pop punk today being very produced, bubbly, and upbeat. What is good is subjective but it's time something more theatrical and genuine came out.

You have to look at the lyrics, the song title, the visualizer, and the context in which they're releasing the single. The visualizer is flies crawling in darkness. They're releasing this track in the midst of not only an MCR revival but in the middle of an entire emo revival as much of the scene enters into having their midlife crisis. The title is the foundations of decay. The lyrics tie it all together with lines like: "It's much too late, you're in the race, so we'll press and press til you can't take it anymore." "And so time with age, He turns the page, Let the flesh, Submit itself to gravity" "And as you stumble through your last crusade Will you welcome your extinction in the morning rays?" "Yes, it comforts me much more, To lay in the foundations of decay, Get! Up! Coward!" Even the mix (although controversial) is on theme, as the signal quality of the vocals is intentionally degraded and decayed (which is why it sounds blended with the rest of the track). This IS an anthem. It's MCR showing acceptance of the passage of time, acknowledging they're happier living in this comfortable decline, AND yet STILL leading the charge into a revival of the emo scene for one last crusade because the fight isn't entirely over. This track is a message and sets the tone for the rest of their return. It's a strong opener after a decade of crickets.

This is a perfect example of trashing something before they even hear the whole thing. The song is great. 😂😂😂

Everything about this track blew me away. Honestly. I see what they’re doing here and I couldn’t be more excited for the new album. Great takes, Finn!

They found a way to incorporate the older sounds of their other albums but also sound current... I'm so excited to hear more...

Mcr was always the edgy Beatles!! Y'all thought their black parade outfits referenced sgt peppers by accident? 😂

I can't agree with you at all. I was very happy with this song. An anthem is exactly what I did not want from them. I'm not a huge fan of "I'm not Okay" or "The Black parade" at all. This sounds more like them. It sounds more raw and full of emotion. Anthems are for the masses. Songs like this are for the real fans.

I actually like this style of MCR much more than the "I'm not okay" angsty teen pop punk. This sounds more artistic, has more texture and mature feeling. I'm also a huge fan of noise rock so this hit the spot for me. Though I do would like to hear Gerard's voice better.

I love how everything that isn't bouncy pop punk is edgy to you. Dark != Edgy

The song “skylines and turnstiles” by MCR was about Gerards experience during 9/11 cause he was an intern at Cartoon Network in ‘01 and he was only a couple blocks away from the attacks

It feels like a reincarnation of Bullets. We’re back in 2002 at MCR’s first album. May seem weird with what they’re doing with this song but it’s MCR, it’s all deliberate. If they wanted a shiny pristine mix they would’ve done it. They’re planning something and we’re all just here for the ride.

This is good in context of the band. Not all of their songs are anthem bangers, they are story tellers, and their core fan base loves that. To me this is dope, it reminds me of old MCR, it has an Anthem feel to it, and the song definitely as a whole says, “just wait for what’s about to come.” The album is going to be SOLID

Everything sucks if you pause it every 3 seconds 😒

For me it's sounds almost as they're buried so deep we almost can't hear ("we lay in the foundations of decay"). And the last line being "Get up, coward!" looks like an wake up call to a new something. So, knowing My Chem other albuns we all know they're storytellers and that's what I'm expecting. Also, this song gave me massive Bullets vibe.

"Edgy Coldplay" really? This was a great throwback to their early bullets-era stuff, dark & heavy 🖤

The lyric about the towers falling is a reference to their foundation, as well as 9-11, Gerard had to pitch a show to cartoon network, and as he was on his way, he saw the towers fall, he wanted to inspire people, so he created MCR.

I find it strange how people expect bands or artist to always have the same sound. The musicians they are versatile people. If you want to repeat the same thing everyday until your dead then how are you living? Most metal heads have been know to be fluent in classical music there versatile musicians. It’s what makes them amazing musicians and people.

The first MCR album is my favorite out of their entire discography. I like the rough quality and raw sound. I like the cheesy emotional lyrics. That's why I really love this new single as well. It sounds like that first album that I fell in love with so many years ago.

On behalf of hardcore mcr fans, We absolutely ate that up. No questions asked. Just because it's different from their other stuff doesn't mean it's not good or doesn't hold up to our expectations.

I agree with most of what fin said. But I think a point he missed was the songs title. The foundation of decay. Artistically speaking, I think the title fits the music perfectly and Im left feeling a sense of dread

As a huge MCR fan, I enjoyed this on first listen, but it grew on me even more with each listen. I agree with you in a lot you're saying, especially with the vocals and things sounding so compressed. No hate coming from this fan. Love your content, Finn.

Alot of people are bringing up their first album bullets and yeah I mean not everybody really gets into the post-hardcore side of mcr but it's their roots and I think THAT is the reason this was the first comeback song

I'm probably in the minority that actually likes everything about the song.

This dude listening for a few seconds goes, "I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna like it", before listening to it "I don't want dark MCR", "it's too long" bro wtf are you talking about 🤣 1.5mins "not what I was expecting" this guys something else fr

i believe this is a warm up to what we will get later. I think this song was smart putting gerards voice in the background so we can get more of it later as well as the infamous guitar solos

Hi Finn! Just wanna say thank you for your videos! I’m 15 and have learned a lot about these amazing bands I’m listening and playing today! Thank you!🙏🏻

I like the compression and muddy mix. It gives a certain feeling I really fw, personal preference though.

I could be wrong but 911 had a lot to do with the bands beginning

The song gave me a strong bullets vibe. I don’t know why, but I think that some of the emo rappers doing pop punk will jump on top of this. Everything from the semi-shitty but amazing mix, to the dark Melodies and the energy reminds me of bullets era. Also, I have a feeling that this is a live song. The ones that kinda song where it just completely pops live. BTW, nice ibanez (?) in the back.

The mix was rough but I liked it a lot. I had to turn up the volume also. It seemed like the volume was low and it felt like it needed to be louder. But it's so well written, and composed.

Kinda sounds like something the Smashing Pumpkins would put out to me

This is the best music they have put out since TBP

This song sounds like you're hearing a local band play at the bar next door and you can only kind of hear it through the paper thin walls

30 year old man, father of 1, I give this a solid 8 outta 10 i think the quality of the audio could be better & the intro was meh but everything else was wonderful and what we didnt know we needed🖤 super happy/satisfied after listening to it multiple times and i hope everyone else that reads this is also feelin some type of positive

MCR has literally always been Goth Beatles, I think that's what we love about them 😅 I agree the mix is a little off, the vocals should be more prominent, but overall the song is good though and it has me excited to see what else they will come out with.

I'm getting Bullets vibes and I'm so here for it

some people “who would want to listen to a 6 minute song” me: * listens to 7empest by Tool on repeat because they make a 15 minute song sound like a 4 minute song * 🤘🏻🤘🏻😁

Thank god they didn't come back bubbly and upbeat. I'd really hate the "pop punk" revival to be like that, a bunch of blink 182 wannabees... That's why the genre died in the first place, cause nobody brought something knew or creative. MCR are remembered because of the "dark style" plus emotional lyrics, music, videos, etc.

I was 19, about to turn 20 when 9/11 hit I think that line alludes to Gerard. I heard him say that he was commuting into Manhattan as the towers were falling, turned around and went back home

Gerard was working for Cartoon Network on 9/11, and he was riding the ferry to work and watched the planes hit the towers from across the water. I'm guessing that this will probably be the first in a series of songs where each one has the vibe of a different one of their albums.

I think they knew they could come back with literally anything and their fans would eat it up. Personally I dig it as it reminds me of their older stuff but I can understand how its not the most accessible song for general listeners (and yes Finn, I bought the song on iTunes lol)

I think the bad mix is intentional. I'm hearing this a lot lately and I can't figure out why bands are doing it -- even the newest Def Leppard song has a terrible mix for some reason (don't ask). The only reason I can conjure it that it must be some kind of anti-piracy thing (and I can't make that one make sense either). It'll probably sound better on the final mix of the album. Avenged Sevenfold did the same thing a few years back for the song "Mad Hatter" on their Black Reign EP. It was so bad and people complained so much that they had to re-release it a week later with the finished mix.

Became an MCR fan when Three Cheers came out (was 13), tuned out during the Black Parade for whatever reason. Really dig that album now. Really like this song, it sounds like a matured version of those albums to me and makes me feel nostalgic, feels like an old friend coming back into my life who still has features in their personality I can recognize. This feels like a preview though of whats to come. Either an opener or a closer. I just hope we get some good stuff. Definitely won't be mad to hear Way's vocals go into a Ronin route. My music taste is much heavier and darker then when I was a teenager. Will also appreciate a Three Cheers Part 2 but, no doubt the bands tastes have also changed in the last 20 years so I'm just all around excited to see whats next.

Great video, it told me a lot of things that i secretly thought but didnt wanted to say out loud

Big MCR fan and I LOVE this .... It's very much like the Bullets era ... I'm just happy MCR is back and making new music again!

I’m a big fan of MCRs first 2 albums, didn’t enjoy the poppy direction they took thereafter. For me, this is a really welcome return to what I loved about them. I love the dark vibe and the visuals personally

I think this is a new iteration of “The End.” into “Dead!” Two songs meant to go together with opposite vibes. This time, it’s the mix and muddy feeling into something else. The next song will be a clearer mix.

I feel like this is a tribute to their first album, since it is 20 years since released. Also Gerard was there when the towers fell, he was working in NYC and that’s why the first album happened.

Dude, just listen to the song🤦‍♂️ Pauses it for 5 minutes at a time, and pauses it to talk every 10 seconds

MCR have always been dark.

I lovee this mix 🖤 so raw, so honest, definitely an approach that lets me wanting more

so you want something that’s made in mass today? as well as something that’s “how they use to be” i honestly enjoy the contrast but to each their own

Foundations of Decay kind of describes the whole vibe of the visuals and the song itself. I think this is an out of left field comeback and I feel it’s intentional.

These guys are smart. They teased their comeback show/tour very well. If anything, this is the validation that they are indeed creating new music. And regardless of if this song is the anthem everyone wanted, one things for certain, they’re making music. So for the die hard mcr fan this is the best news and for the normie… I think they’ll get what they’re looking for soon.

I’m just hopping a lot of fallen bands follow in MCRs lead, especially for the summer time, would be a great time to come back out

Meanwhile, all the legacy fans are extremely pleased by this song. And the target demographic loved it. To me it kinda seems like you kinda went in to it with a negative mindset. It's not a carbon copy sound of their most popular album. It is still really good.

They did the Sunny-Day Real Estate thing and came back with a slow rock song, or whatever you wanna call this. I would have enjoyed another anthem or pop banger myself.

Honestly, I kinda love this song, I think they intentionally went for something less poppy and more drawn out, and i think they achieved it pretty dang well. I have my issues with the mixing, but that chorus is beautiful, that catchy but kinda tense and sad chord progression is classic mcr and it always makes me tear up. Heavy part was pretty great too (aside from that weird crappy hihat on that count-in lol). I can definitely feel they still got it, lets see if they can knock it out the park.

Sleep, mama, and the whole first album are like this. This isn’t the darkest song they have wrote

Shoegaze-y. Also big Pixie "Surfer Rosa" vibes.

Have you ever heard their first album? Maybe have a full understanding of the band and their albums…

My first thought was how odd the mix was. Everything sounded so static from the distortion.

All these old emo things hes talking about is so unrelatable cuz I'm 17 but I looooove this cuz I just started to get into their first album alot and this is like a callback

MCR is my favorite band in the world, old emo girl over here. I'm happy because they released a new song after so many years, and i Iike it, buuuut yeah, I expected so much more for a come back song. And about the dark sounds and that conversation, I have this theory: I think most of their fans are millenials, and a lot of us are still really dark people, even if we are grown ups who "got their shit together". We are still pretty dark and depress, so we keep feeling identify with this kind of music and lyrics

This would be more of an anthem if the production wasn't piss poor. It sounds like everything was recorded with a phone from 2008

you obviously havnt listened to mcr enough to realize how much this song feels like mcr, it feels like they are defiantly going back to their roots, for a guy whose entire channel is about punk rock its kinda embarrassing that you havnt listened to any of mcr's albums all the way through xD

Finn's intro: "☝️☝️☝️👇👇👇👉👉☝️☝️👆👆"

the mix sounds like every other rock song thats come out in the past 5 years, i will never understand this trend of overproducing everything so much its hard to tell which instrument is which

My favorite album is their Bullets album and thats why i absolutely adore this song but its definitely not what i expected

I’m not even a massive MCR fan and I really like this song personally, I kind of dig the mix too.

“Edgy Coldplay “ Ouchhh My man, that cut deep 😭

When I was a teeny, I ran into Gerard Way at West Edmonton Mall. It was awkward, and he complimented my KSE shirt. Times.

I'm a huge MCR fan...like I'm tattooed with one of Gerard's drawings and I had them sign my arm so I could have it tattooed. That being said, I just think this song is okay. I agree with most of what you said about this song and visualizer. I really want to hear Gerard's vocals because they are way too buried.

Gerard started the band after seeing the twin towers fall, it's the event that inspired him to stay a band

8:52 Haha I found out about this track 30 minutes before I was about to start my commute from work.

Nice review/reaction! Respect!

I'm not an mcr fan, but ive watched some video essays talking about the band. When they made an album, each song is like a chapter of a comic book and the whole book would be the album. About their song choice for this comeback, I think theres more to wait. Something bigger is coming, and this song is just the flamestarter. Whats the point of making a banger opening if the rest of whats coming is inferior than the starter

Agree to disagree Finn , beautiful track not everything has to be a straight up quick banger lol

This sounds like Gerard's solo project.

We don’t want Anthems we want masterpieces with different layers.

The single sounds like it could have been a track on ‘I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love’. Big fans of that debut album (which includes me) probably are the ones who love this song. Those who dislike the song probably aren’t a huge fan of the original album either, due to the distortion and it sounding like it was recorded in a tunnel.

I hope we finally get The Paper Kingdom. It kind of seems that they are heading that direction since the album was described to be similar to Radiohead's works but who knows if that will be what happens.

Love this! As someone who loves old MRC this is great!!

I can appreciate the way you phrase your reviews. I really liked this, and I knew you wouldn't fit the reasons you last out in the video. But "that's why I didn't like it, but their fans seem to like it so who gives a shit" is a totally respectable approach. Get your opinion out there, but don't take it too seriously. More music reviewers should look at songs that way

I think the song is ok to good, but the way it was released is so crazy. For newer bands at least you get social media posts on we’re going to the studio, we’re in the studio, here’s a tease of a song, the song is out next week, the song is out! And almost everything comes out on Friday, and usually not nearly this long. It feels like a big fuck you to everything bands are told to do, and I have to admire that: we are MCR and we can get more than a million RU-vid listens in a day with no promotion

Idk I think it's a cool move to return with a track that has your iconic vocalist buried in the mix. Also very fitting with the song title and lyrics.

the kings of rock and roll are back!