I Couldn't Wait! ...MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE - "Foundations of Decay" (First Time Reaction & ANALYSIS)
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- Опубликовано: 19 окт 2024
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My Website: chrisliepe.com
The release of this song blindsided me... I had no idea it was out until I started seeing others react to it on my feed!! Of course, I wanted to listen/watch for myself, but I waited to do it with you :)
This is the first time me hearing this, but it doesn't stop me from picking some amazing things out of Gerard Way's vocal performance. Come along with me as I take inspiration from Gerard's incredible, emotionally charged studio performance and make some observations about how they missed some major opportunities with the mixing of this song!
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I liked the voice placement. It feels like being in a daze after something traumatic if that makes sense. Really adds to the feeling of the song for me. Glad they're back 🖤
YES oh my god that comparison is exactly what it is. and on another note i feel like it like, gerard's vocals are INCREDIBLE in this but it almost feels like he's just like, stepping back and really just giving everybody else's work a chance to really just sit with you. and like it being under everything especially in the chorus.. it feels like you're drowning in it and for what they're going for here it works so well. this reminds me of being on public transportation while listening to loud music. like it's so easy to just completely dissociate when you're just sitting there watching everything pass by but songs like this are just.. amazing for when that happens and your mind wanders a little too much. it's awesome
@@celebrityguest.9530 Yes, exactly! It really is like drowning or watching things around you while disassociating. I agree it allows the band to have their skills be the focal point for much of the song.
"You must fix your heart" this part gives me chills every time.
same to me
Same
It’s overwhelmingly beautiful at the most chaotic part of the song
Haha same..how u feel the same as me..
I find myself replaying over and over that part
the major third and layered “coward” vocal at the end are some of my favorite moments in this song and you’re the only person on RUclips I’ve seen point them out! Sick commentary
Those are such awesome moments... Glad you liked the commentary!
i think gerard is a fan of a big warm fuzzy sound where the instruments and vocals just seem to melt and fizzle together into one. it’s a very prominent feature in his solo work.
I feel like he’s almost singing under the decay I think he’s singing from that place buried under everything almost if that makes sense, favourite band forever and always, seeing them for the third time in 5 days 😭❤️
I see what you’re saying. There’s conceptual and then there’s just bad decisions. Like. You have one of the best frontmen and prolific lyricists of that generation, why would you not want him to be understandable? Love this song though.
For what i understand the song is about aging while doing nothing, and see the world around you and everything you've built succumb to time and decay. In the end he says "it comforts me much more to lay in the foundations of decay". As if he feels more comfortable doing nothing, avoiding his fears and anxiety. But then he yells at himself "get up, coward", inviting himself to fight it and do something.
i do feel like the mix "burying" gerard's vocals is VERY pointed, it's my favorite way to describe what's going on here and honestly i LOVE it. particularly in this song which is so heavily about death, it feels like he's being buried alive and has to power through with his voice and crawl out of his grave. i think if his vocals were too clear above the mix it wouldn't have that same "don't die yet, you can still come back" energy
ah man the 14 year old me is loving this... its like the first album... but 20 years later
YESS
i love how everyone thought it would just be a normal thursday then mcr was like “ hey guys”,i freaked out when i saw it i’m a massive mcr fan
have you heard gerards solo album hesitant alien? its well worth a listen if you haven't. the production on that is even wilder, his voice is mixed under the guitars so at some points it seems to blend into the instrumentals. its clearly a style hes fond of lol. i know a lot of people didnt like it on this song, but i loved it. it felt so atmospheric!!
I'll check it out!
Great example is No Shows. I think it's either track 2 or 3. I had to look up the lyrics just to hear what he's singing!
You are so right! It’s such a unique style choice that I admire even more since it’s not what most people expect. Hesitant Alien is always a good listen. Gerard’s ode to Brit Pop. I think Gerard used all of his guitar pedals in it lol. The last track ‘Maya the Psychic’ has really grown on me and it has a similar “buried” vocal quality in addition to No Shows.
That explanation of catching the break in the sigh and pushing into it just made something click for me. Gerard's scream is not really a scream, it's much more organic in the context of sung lyrics, and I think I know why now. Don't get me wrong, I love a good scream (drawing from the examples of the same era, think Jared Leto just turning into a different person at the ends of some lines in The Kill or Attack, or Bert McCracken being, well, Bert McCracken), but it's so refreshing when a scream feels like part of the melody which is more of the case with MCR
Yep, absolutely dead on right!
I think you just expressed why I LOVE MCR but very rarely like any of the other bands they get compared to. I don’t like screaming in music. Or that’s what I always said and I never could articulate why MCR was the exception to the rule except that I just knew I liked them 🤷♀️lol
Thank you for that realization! 🤍
Been a MCR fan since Three Cheers, and I’m loving the writing style on this track! It’s simultaneously different yet familiar.
I love how you reacted to this song, and all the expressions and the emotion you showed. I felt that, thank you!
You're so welcome!
do more gerard analysis plzz ur the man! gerard is such and unique and underrated singer
I love these first time listens, along with your expertise analysts. I definitely agree with your comment on the vocal production. You brought out so many gems in what you can do to engage with dynamic resonance.
Would love to get a hold of these stems and bring his voice out a bit... such great performances!
@@chrisliepe Yes! Your so right. I know if you were producing that album, what more you would be able to bring out of his voice would be magical.
My Chemical Romance was a music awakening for me when Black Parade dropped. My best friend and I literally watched Welcome to the Black Parade video on Time Warner Cables 'On Demand' Section CONSTANTLY. I was barely in middle school. I SCOURED music store, Barnes and Nobels, Walmart's and Targets to find all their albums. Three Cheers for Revenge was my High School jam, (Black Parade too, but mostly TCFSR), but their first album "I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love" is number one for me, and it probably will remain there. Demolition Lovers is top notch and Foundations of Decay gives me first album vibes with modern sound and its been the most AMAZING experience for me. I cannot describe the emotions that run through me when I listen to it. Give the first album if you haven't heard it already. You won't regret it.
You literally described my life lol I'm 30 and reprocessing trauma (weird tbh lol) I didn't expect my subconscious to "revert", I've been neck deep in MCR content for weeks and now as a more grown adult I'm a vocalist and been deep diving production and analysis, it's like reliving it all for the first time when I was 13. Wild ride
When I first heard Foundations I was like. Oh, oh. Oh that's a THROWBACK HERE WE GO 🥹😭😭😭😭
Yeh buddy this is my new favorite channel.. I appreciate that you invest genuinely in your vids bro.. there is so much great advice in every video and it's great to see you just enjoy what you do... without pitching some angle after every gem you drop.. thanks man for what you do...
i completely agree with them burying his voice. especially in this song. was the worst part of the song, i do like it just. had that problem
I also liked what you said "don't seek accuracy with your voice, seek engagement"
Ya, its a bummer... thats why we have to see them live! :)
the song live sounds way way way better, just for not having his voice so buried
For me, I also have the same nitpick of the mixing between the instruments and vocals being so skewed toward the instruments, but at the same time I know pretty much why they did. Stylistically it makes sense in the context of the song, after all, what is the foundation of decay? In some cases the answer is being buried, so thematically that just works. That buried sound they could totally still keep if they just brought him forward by no more than 15%, though, and still keep the same effect.
best reaction vid I've seen of this. Appreciate how we're able to see your raw reactions coupled with your expert analysis and advice at the same time :)
i think its very much a stylistic choice to have the vocals more buried in the mix, i imagine it will be different on the rest of the songs on the album
hope so
TBP was mixed too low too for my tastes, but not as bad as this one
What album, mate? I have zero expectations for a full album :'(
I hope I'm wrong
Ok yes I agree somewhat for the verses, but the chorus is meant to be explosive and having a more prominent vocal could have a really powerful effect.
@@lactate8008s blessed to have bands who do something else than what it meant to be, i literally have a hundred of bands doing it to choose.
You’re the best. You’ve helped my singing for my college band so so much. Props to the most inventive and entertaining RUclips musician I know
Thank you!!
Love your reaction and review! Would disagree with the vocal production comments though, I love that it sounds like he’s being heard from underneath some debris, like the atmosphere of the song is that of a decaying world, which makes sense with the lyrics and these past 2 and a half years that we’ve had in the world and they’ve been having to postpone their tours that people were so excited for… that being said I can see where people come from and the comments about wanting the voice higher in the mix are completely valid, I just happen to like the song the way it sounds
I just wish his voice wasn't buried....But that might've been what the guys wanted. The band had a huge part in production. Gerard Way also used the "buried vocals" effect in many of his own solo songs.
i started sobbing for no reason i just cant believe theyre back together and happy now
just saw in live in dublin! holyy what an amazing show! Gayle and Starcrawler opened for MyChem and fkin KILLED IT!! huge props to all of them!
Burying his vocals is for sure a stylistic choice he seems to like; if you listen to his solo stuff he definitely likes that kind of mixing. I don’t mind it, I think it’s pretty congruous with what you said about how his onstage performance is “withdrawn” at times. It’s like we need to listen for his voice underneath all of the distortion, which based on his style of storytelling (like not only music but his other writing too) maybe is a character thing.
I totally agree with what you said about the production and placement of Gerard’s voice that was my one gripe with this song. I feel like three cheers for sweet revenge really nailed his voice it’s at the forefront of every song.
HECK YEAH WAS WAITING FOR THIS!
Thanks for waiting and enjoying with me :) !!
This was our first time listening to this song too...it was cool to experience it with you. What really caught our attention was when you said " don't seek after accuracy or goodness with your voice, seek engagement and emotions ". We really thought the lyrics were really good... and super fun part was the instrumental and [ let's flip out!] ...we were hooked! Thank you that was fun
P.S. we pause your videos just as much as you pause songs lol 😆
"Maybe i'm just old" Hahaha that killed me!
100 percent agree on the not needing pitch accuracy.
Hey Chris! Hope you are having a fantastic day today. I have been watching your videos for 1 year now and it changed my voice drastically well than what l have learnt by myself! You truely are the man! So, here is a request for you, Can you do a video on Miljenko Matijević from Steelheart? He is a phenomenal vocalist till date and will really appreciate a video on his techniques and how to attempt his songs the right way. Hope you will read my comment soon, amd will consider my request.
Love from India❤
Thanks so much for engaging in my videos and for your support! Miljenko is amazing!! I'd love to do an analysis but in order to keep the momentum up on RUclips, I need to focus on the most searchable content possible. Its the unfortunate way RUclips works :( ... If it's not searchable, it doesn't get views and my channel loses steam and not enough new people discover my courses and other offerings. This is the perfect thing to cover in a private lesson setting though! I have lots of students bring me things that are less mainstream and we work on things face to face!
@@chrisliepe Oh l see. I can understand but, is there any typical thing Miljenko uses? I am stuck in the transition from chest to head voice in the song 'She's Gone'. No youtube video helped so far and it seems impossible to me to figure things out :(
I REALLLY want you to cover Beartooth songs, Chris! Caleb Shomo has such a cool vocal technique.
Check out their Black Bird studio session of the song Clever, or some old stuff like The Lines, I have a Problem, Beaten in Lips.
I would love to hear an isolated vocal track for that omg
me too!
I love the new track but had some of the same mild complaints about the mixing as you did. Great Analysis Chris!
Mild complaints ? It's a really bad mix, whoever mixed it buried the vocals for whatever reason. There's no defending it unless you are mixing "The Strokes".
@@TJ-vt6rt I call it a "mild complaint" because it's not THAT horrible of a mix, sure the vocals are drowned out and that's not great but that's really the only thing wrong with it. Everything else about the song is pretty great, I like it quite a bit
@@stanieldaniel5912 Agreed but the vocal should be on top of the mix with the drums. It's a bad mix, nothing against the song.
@@TJ-vt6rt Some have made the point that it was a stylistic choice to fit the narrative of the song, making his vocals sound like they're "decayed" which is cool but what I would have preferred is if they had kept what they did with the vocals in the verses and the breakdown, but opened and brightened up the vocal mix during the chorus. I think that would fix it with the best of both worlds
@@stanieldaniel5912 That's true and as for the stylistic choice, I do get that but any band/singer/whatever should really want their music to be listened to in the best possible way and to me this is not that.
Howard benson is definitely pulling his hair out over this one. I LOVE to hear the recent live recordings of it though because his voice is so much clearer and stronger than on the recording
Great analysis as always, Chris. 🙏
Only recently Gerard did some guest vocals on the Track 'Ronin' by Trivium frontman's project 'Ibaraki'. Check it out if you haven't! I knew Gerard could scream like a screeching demon but he layed down some solid black metal vocals. It totally blew me away!
By the way: in the video you were talking about Gerards phrasing Intuition and how he creates tension through his note choices. Would you mind making a tutorial on how to create our own expressive vocal melodies and phrases? Developing our own phrasing intuition for gripping vocal lines. That would be so cool!
🖤
Love your thoughts and commentary!
have you ever checked out rōnin by ibaraki? it’s the guitarist of triviums side project and it features gerard way doing some insane black metal screams, i didn’t even know it was him at first
THIS IS THE SHIT. THESE KINDS OF VIDEOS TEACH YOU STUFF DUDE. AMAZING
The lyric video he’s watching is very wrong I remember the fun hunt of everyone trying to find out the lyrics in the first week
Hey Chris, you should really check out this band called Turnstile. They’ve got great vocals and I always wonder how the singer pulls it off. Would love to see you make a video on them ! Cheers
Thanks for the video sir!
My pleasure!
Gerard's spoken in an interview [made before this song came out] where he mentioned that he loved making, as he puts it, "a wall of sound" in the song "Sleep" from Black Parade. He's also done this on Hesitant Alien, I believe. I was disappointed at first listen as well, but who am I to critique the artist on what he buries in the layers of his painting, right?
15:04 “OaOHhh.”
Have you thought about doing a vocal reaction/analysis or a "how to sing like" to Phil Labonte from All That Remains? He trained with Melissa Cross (Zen of Screaming). So I would be curious to see how you breakdown his technique!
Nice!
I knew it !
❤❤❤❤
My Chem, Metric and Coheed and Cambria have all released singles recently.
COHEED
I know what you mean about placing Gerard too far back on the mix sometimes. However, I think that is a very calculated move. I feel like they are trying to represent chaos in those moments. The listener becomes more involved in the music as they try to work their way through the chaos/music to find Gerard's voice.
At least that is my theory.
4:53 okay but that was a lowkey good impression
9:30 IM SORRY THIS SENT ME
Dare to make an analysis on Feathergun in the Garden of the Sun by Rishloo?
I love the Noah's Flood themes at the end. Biblical references are so extremely overdone in rock and metal, but they did it in a way that feels so cool
also i love how he pronounces "whore," it's so harsh
You really should make a Michael Scott analysis video....
People keep using this lyric video...that's riddled with errors.
The beginning sounds like another song I just can't put my finger on it and it's driving me crazy lol
sleep? to me this song has elements of so many other mcr songs
dream on by aerosmith?
The vocal production is a love/hate thing for me
RIP Doug McKean 😢
Love the video but I must say that there's quite a bit of errors in the lyrics, for example I'm pretty sure it's "You look stressed out" not "let's flip out"
Edit: just went through that whole part that follows, I know it's harder to decipher what he's saying but the subtitles got it completely wrong
When the song first came out these were what the lyrics were on Spotify too
Comment for da algorithm
Streak count: 212
:)
Next Till Lindemann please
I give the song a 9/10. I agree about burying Gerard’s voice. If they opened it up on the chorus this song would be a masterpiece
Love the guitars and drums. It seems to me they did it on Purpose…
You should do Amy Lee of Evanescence
Evanescence new album and within temptation new album did the same with the voices being buried in the music. The new evanescence the bitter truth is a good album buts it's editing is really bad. I was disappointed this song has the same problem. Great song tho but had subtitles so I could understand what's Gerard is saying. Glad to see MCR back!!
HOOOOHHNK
Chord progression is reminding me of High Hopes by Pink Floyd.
I also wish that the voice was more prominent in the mix. ESPECIALLY in the chorus! Still like the song, though, although I kinda hope they "fix" it and re-release it.
Gerard and Ray produced it along with one of their touring sound engineers, I believe. They're possibly not as experienced as whoever produced their other stuff.
Was not a huge fan of the Rob Cavallo productions either; the best I've heard it described as is "compressed", like the EQ is all close together so sometimes it's hard to discern individual layers. I think there's a time and place for that style, and it worked super well for some tracks, but sometimes I wish I could hear it done differently, with each instrument a little bit clearer and a wider EQ. I'm not an expert though so I might be totally off with some of this stuff (or maybe all of it).
That character youre talking about, sir. I first heard that from Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins
Love the song and performance but the mix is driving me nuts.
Yep!
This type of singing does not impress me much because the voice is so mixed with the song, the impact and intensity are blended making it hard to get the vocals alone, but, as always, you put things in terms of technique and more than just first impressions
I wanted to love this song because I friggin' LOVE MCR. However, the mastering annoyed the hell out of me because it buries Gerard's voice too much.
The way I heard it reminded me of trying to listen to a D5.1 live performance and forgetting to plug in the front speakers.
ALSO... Chris, can I get a sound clip of you honking a few times so I can mix it into a ringtone? :D
i agree...The mix isn't good. It sounds like mix engineer on their first 2 albums.