Even before My Chemical Romance hit the stage at the House of Blues on Sunday night, the band’s dedicated fans were ready to go nuts. There was crowd-surfing during the break between acts, and cheers went up whenever roadies placed key elements of the stage setup. The anticipation paid off as soon as the band emerged, with the faithful singing along to every song (sometimes nearly eclipsing singer Gerard Way during quieter moments) and eagerly raising their arms up in a V shape (mimicking V-shaped lights behind the band) every time Way indicated they should. Compared to the sometimes grandiose tone of MCR’s music videos and sprawling concept albums, the show was simple and direct, but the audience did its best to make up for any lack of spectacle.

The Details

My Chemical Romance

May 29, House of Blues

And Way did his best to return the love that came from the crowd. He dedicated both “Welcome to the Black Parade” and “Teenagers” to specific people at the show, and assured a zealous fan with a homemade T-shirt that the band would indeed be coming to Arizona, as requested. Even his admonishment to moshers that they “fight nice” was delivered with affection.

With that kind of goodwill coming from the audience, all the band really had to do was show up. Drawing heavily on recent album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, MCR played fast and lean, and some songs that are crisp and layered on record sounded a bit muddy in the live setting. The catchiness of the band’s songwriting came through, though, and the audience sing-alongs helped in that department. Way and the whole crowd chanted “I’m not okay” during the band’s first big hit, “I’m Not Okay (I Promise),” but it was pretty clear that everyone in the place was doing just fine.