The best comeback video ever had a lot of work put into it.
After what felt like months of teasing, My Chemical Romance announced their full comeback in some style with ‘A Summoning’.
The 13 minute epic video was packed full of easter eggs and nods to the band’s past, all culminating in the revealing of a full US headline tour.
Well in a new interview with Variety, director Kristian Mercado and producers Joanna Shaw and Audrey Ellis Fox have revealed how the ambitious vision came to life.
First off, it appears that Kristian met Gerard backstage at the band’s comeback show at The Shine in Los Angeles.
He explains:
“Seeing him backstage I was like, ‘Woah! Alright, Gerard, you roll in a really interesting way and it’s kind of cool.’ And I think him being so multi-faceted, I clicked with him quickly on that. I respect that he has so many talents — being able to be the rock star, but also a writer, an illustrator, toy designer. He has so much creativity that cross pollinates.”
Though the assembled team brought this insanely detailed world to life, it was the band who had the original storyboard and narrative all laid out. It was just up to them to make it a reality.
“They were involved in every aspect,” Audrey says. “Approving a production designer; with casting and approving the lead; location; all the Easter eggs that the fans went crazy over, those were all placed by the band. And then Kris and I were able to do our own spin on things. Usually with music videos you sort of talk to the band through a label. But this was direct.”
Kristian continues by detailing the three day shoot that took place and what it was like seeing a decade’s worth of music come to life before their eyes.
“For them, music as a visual landscape was a really important thing.
“So I could see, at least from a top-line perspective, how we built this story. It was essentially a young man’s journey through the catalog of music and kind of in a visual sense. We were able to pull imagery from what felt like a decade of their music history. … so it becomes a cool journey through nostalgia. You’re able to revisit that iconic imagery and iconic themes, but through a new lens.”
And we think you will agree that the result is absolutely astonishing.
Revisit ‘A Summoning’ right here:
Saying that, we found no less than 50 seperate MCR references in the video, which we’ve then stuffed into one bitesize video for you:
My Chemical Romance’s current 2020 calendar looks a little bit like this:
MARCH
20 – MELBOURNE Download Festival
21 – SYDNEY Download Festival
25 – AUCKLAND Western Springs
28 – OSAKA Intex
29 – TOKYO Download Festival
JUNE
16 – CORNWALL Eden Sessions
18 – MILTON KEYNES Stadium MK
20 – MILTON KEYNES Stadium MK
21 – MILTON KEYNES Stadium MK
23 – DUBLIN Royal Hospital Kilmainham
JULY
01 – HUNGARY Volt Festival
03 – PRAGUE Prague Rocks
04 – BOLOGNA Arena Parco Nord
06 – BONN KUNST!RASEN
07 – BONN KUNST!RASEN
11 – MOSCOW Park Live
SEPTEMBER
09 – DETROIT Little Caesars Arena
11 – ST PAUL Xcel Energy Center
12 – CHICAGO Riot Fest
14 – TORONTO Scotiabank Arena
15 – BOSTON TD Garden
17 – NEW YORK Barclays Center
18 – PHILADELPHIA Wells Fargo Center
20 – ATLANTA Music Midtown Festival
22 – NEWARK Prudential Center
23 – NEWARK Prudential Center
26 – SUNRISE BB&T Center
29 – HOUSTON Toyota Center
30 – DALLAS American Airline Center
OCTOBER
02 – DENVER Pepsi Center
04 – TACOMA Dome
06 – OAKLAND Arena
08 – LOS ANGELES Forum
10 – SACRAMENTO Aftershock Festival
11 – LAS VEGAS T-Mobile Arena
13 – LOS ANGELES Forum
14 – LOS ANGELES Forum
16 – LOS ANGELES Forum