I don't quite think I would categorize myself as a "fan" of My Chemical Romance. Not because I don't like them - they released several singles I'm quite fond of - but because their true fans have a connection the group far more serious than I ever did. This became evident when they released their 2006 masterpiece, The Black Parade, and I read about kids my age - or perhaps a bit younger - who claimed to owe their lives to the bands lyrics, which often discussed themes such as suicide, alienation, and just general depression.
I can't say I cared about the band that much - The Black Parade is the only album of theirs I've ever bought - but I did like them quite a bit, and I was sad to see them go next week. Whether or not the "emo" tag is truly appropriate for this band can be debated endlessly, but during my high school years, that's always what I assumed they were. The thing is, at the time, I made it a point to be underwhelmed by every band that fit this description. In retrospect, some of it was a bit hypocritical - I claimed to hate how the singers always seemed to mope about girls, but I loved hearing Elvis Costello do just that. I claimed to hate their nasally voices, but Michael Stipe was one of my favorite vocalists. Anyway, the point is, I wanted to whole world to know that the concept of "emo" was something I had no interest in being a part of.
And yet, I was still really fond of My Chemical Romance. I likely justified it by classifying them as the exception to the rule - the one emo band that gave the genre a reason to exist. Plus, once The Black Parade came out, I could shrug it off by saying (somewhat accurately), that they were closer to prog-rock at that point, anyway.
While I didn't need the bands lyrics to keep from suicide, I did need them to ease the pain of other things. Not rejection from the opposite sex like you might expect (although that was definitely happening), but usually disappointments of the academic. As I approach 23 years of age, it seems ridiculous that I cared so much about getting into National Honor Society during my junior year of high school, but I did, and when they rejected me, I was pretty bummed. I distinctly remember "Welcome To the Black Parade" easing some of my pain at the time, even as I prided myself on listening to "cooler" stuff like The Smiths or Echo And The Bunnymen.
I never had the connection with this band that the diehard fans did, where they became an inseparable part of my life and my identity, but I did enjoy their music a lot, and I'm quite sad we won't be hearing any more from them (well, not for awhile at least - I struggle to view any break up as permanent when the band members are this young). They released a lot great songs (seriously, "I'm Not Okay [I Promise]" is basically a perfect single), and evidently, made a lot of miserable kids feel like maybe things weren't so bad. If this really is the last we've heard of My Chemical Romance, they've certainly carved a nice legacy for themselves.
Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge blows The Black Parade out of the water