My Chemical Romance - Desolation Row (Bob Dylan Cover)

Band Members
Gerard Way - Vocals
Frank Iero - Guitar
Mikey Way - Bass
Ray Toro - Guitar
Bob Bryar - Drums

MyChemicalRomance.com
Myspace.com/mychemicalromance



CD Tracklisting
1. Desolation Row
2. Prison Fight (Various Artists)


My Chemical Romance may have been on a ‘break’ since The Black Parade tour but they are certainly back with a 1-2 punch of a tune; the boys are back in town. When it comes to cover versions I generally put them into two groups, those that don’t work and those that are different and unique and good in their own right. The biggest cover version of the past few months has been ‘Hallelujah’ by Alexandra from X Factor which went on to do battle with the Jeff Buckley version in a Xmas number 1 duel (personally I think the better song lost, GO TEAM JEFF!). My point is that if you’re going to do a cover song and release it, don’t do it for the money; do it for just reasons. Now arguably recording a Bob Dylan song for a comic book movie soundtrack may not be completely “just” reasoning in most people’s books but if you understand how they all intertwine, your faith begins to return slowly.

The song and Bob Dylan is referenced heavily in the original graphic novel and the band have often professed their adoration for the Watchmen series and everything comic related as influences in their upbringing and the band style as anti heroes. So credit to them for only doing it for the love of the actual subject matter and not just cause they can.

Now as for the end product, the song is very racing and raw, much like their roots and original sound of the Bullets era and more punk and hardcore than out and out rock but it’s just wonderful. They’ve taken the meaning and essence of the song and the theme of rage and grime from Watchmen and poured it into the record. Dylan’s original is an epic 11 minutes long and the MCR version is a condensed 3 minutes so it’s clear that it won’t be a direct word for word cover however, it’s in the selective editing that we find the heart of the Watchmen themes of superheroes, anti-heroes and anger and corruption.

Dylan sung from the observations of a man musing over the streets and world around him and My Chemical Romance sing about the anger on the streets and the people stuck there. It’s a great song either way and my only wish is they could have released it with the original version as it was the starting point for many of the Watchmen tales: ‘Now at midnight all the agents/And the superhuman crew/Come out and round up everyone/That knows more than they do’. So when you get your copy spare a few extra pennies or cents and download the original if you can, just to enjoy both. Oh and go see Watchmen because it looks as epic as this song!


Review by Laura Heath


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