<Tr> <Th> Past members </Th> <Td> <Ul> <Li> Gerard Way </Li> <Li> Matt Pelissier </Li> <Li> Ray Toro </Li> <Li> Mikey Way </Li> <Li> Frank Iero </Li> <Li> Bob Bryar </Li> <Li> James Dewees </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> Gerard Way </Li> <Li> Matt Pelissier </Li> <Li> Ray Toro </Li> <Li> Mikey Way </Li> <Li> Frank Iero </Li> <Li> Bob Bryar </Li> <Li> James Dewees </Li> </Ul> <P> My Chemical Romance (often abbreviated as MCR) was an American rock band from Newark, New Jersey, active from 2001 to 2013 . The band's best - known lineup consisted of lead vocalist Gerard Way, guitarists Ray Toro and Frank Iero, bassist Mikey Way, and drummer Bob Bryar, accompanied on tour by keyboardist James Dewees since 2007 . Founded by Gerard, Mikey, Toro, Matt Pelissier, and later joined by Iero, the band signed to Eyeball Records and released their debut album I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love in 2002 . They signed with Reprise Records the next year and released their major label debut Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge in 2004 . Shortly after the album's release, Pelissier was replaced by Bob Bryar . A commercial success, the album was awarded platinum status over a year later . </P> <P> The band eclipsed their previous success with their 2006 concept album, The Black Parade, which gained generally favorable reviews among music critics and was certified double platinum in the United States and the United Kingdom, the band's first and only double platinum . After the departure of long - time drummer Bob Bryar in March 2010, the band released their fourth studio album, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, in November that same year, to positive reviews . After the addition of touring keyboardist James Dewees in 2012 and the release of Conventional Weapons, a series of singles recorded in 2009, released over the course of five months, the band announced its break - up on March 22, 2013, one month after the final release in the Conventional Weapons series . After the band's split, a greatest hits album entitled May Death Never Stop You was released in March 2014 . A tenth anniversary reissue of The Black Parade was released in September 2016 titled The Black Parade / Living with Ghosts . </P>

When did my chemical romance become a band