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The Foundations of Decay
"The Foundations of Decay" is a song by the American rock band My Chemical Romance. It was surprise-released as a single on May 12, 2022, by Reprise Records. It was written by all four band members with lyrics by lead singer Gerard Way, and produced by Doug McKean, Way, and guitarist Ray Toro. Alongside the band's main lineup, it features drummer Jarrod Alexander and keyboardist Jamie Muhoberac. It was the band's first release since the single "Fake Your Death" (2014).
The song has been described as progressive rock, gothic rock, and post-hardcore, with elements from several rock and heavy metal genres. Its lyrics focus on the band's history and legacy, as well as the September 11 attacks, which resulted in the band's creation. They also explore ideas such as incorruptibility, canonization, and misogyny.
"The Foundations of Decay" was well received by critics, who praised its composition and themes. Several publications considered it one of the best songs released in 2022. It charted in several countries, reaching number 1 on the Rock & Metal chart in the United Kingdom and number 132 on the Billboard Global 200. On May 16, the band debuted it live at the Eden Project, and Warner Records released the song onto mainstream rock radio a day later. It was used as the opening song for every show of the band's Reunion Tour afterwards.
Six years after their break-up, My Chemical Romance reunited for a reunion show on December 20, 2019. They subsequently scheduled more shows worldwide, including a run of summer festival shows in mainland Europe and a North American tour. In June 2021, the band's lead singer Gerard Way stated in an interview that he was working on music with Doug McKean, the engineer behind two of the band's past studio albums, The Black Parade (2006) and Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys (2010).
McKean produced "The Foundations of Decay" alongside Way and guitarist Ray Toro. McKean also engineered the song, Rich Costey and Jeff Citron mixed it and Mike Bozzi mastered it. Alongside the main band lineup of Gerard Way, guitarists Toro and Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way, it features Jarrod Alexander on drums and Jamie Muhoberac on keyboard. Gerard Way wrote the lyrics, and all four members are credited for songwriting. "The Foundations of Decay" was the last project McKean worked on before his death in July 2022.
"The Foundations of Decay" was surprise-released digitally on May 12, 2022, by Reprise Records. Warner Records released it to mainstream rock radio on May 17. It was the band's first single since "Fake Your Death" in 2014. The cover art and visualizer video on YouTube, the former of which was designed by Aaron Hymes, depict mounds of swarming flies. The song was used as the opening track for every show of the band's Reunion Tour; the first show of the tour at the Eden Project on May 16 marked the song's first live performance. They later performed it at 2022's Riot Fest and during their Long Live The Black Parade tour (2025).
"The Foundations of Decay" is a six-minute long song that has been described as progressive rock, gothic rock, and post-hardcore. It also incorporates elements of doom metal, basement punk, arena rock, post-metal, metalcore, and noise rock. Em Moore of Exclaim! described it as featuring several "acts" that individually showcase the "myriad ways the band have expanded their sound, bringing in more elements from noise rock, doom and prog". The New York Times characterized it as "prog-emo".
The song opens up with static noise before introducing a mellow electric guitar, piano, and a "laid-back drumbeat" paired with Gerard Way's distorted vocals. It then crescendos into the chorus, which Hannah Dailey of Billboard described as having "anthemic force" in a similar vein to the band's 2006 single "Welcome to the Black Parade". Ali Shutler of NME compared the opening guitar to the intro of Aerosmith's "Dream On" (1973). "The Foundations of Decay" goes between guitar breakdowns and slower-paced moments that highlight the lyrics, which were described by Dailey as "electric guitar-stamped rage fests" and "simmering moments of storytelling", respectively. Shutler opined that the composition combined elements from their past studio albums, viewing the guitar breakdown as similar to one from The Black Parade. Maria Sherman of NPR compared the song to ones found on the band's first album, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love (2002). Sherman and Moore compared it to that album's "Demolition Lovers", Moore likening their usage of multiple acts and Sherman viewing their opening guitar segments as similar.
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The Foundations of Decay
"The Foundations of Decay" is a song by the American rock band My Chemical Romance. It was surprise-released as a single on May 12, 2022, by Reprise Records. It was written by all four band members with lyrics by lead singer Gerard Way, and produced by Doug McKean, Way, and guitarist Ray Toro. Alongside the band's main lineup, it features drummer Jarrod Alexander and keyboardist Jamie Muhoberac. It was the band's first release since the single "Fake Your Death" (2014).
The song has been described as progressive rock, gothic rock, and post-hardcore, with elements from several rock and heavy metal genres. Its lyrics focus on the band's history and legacy, as well as the September 11 attacks, which resulted in the band's creation. They also explore ideas such as incorruptibility, canonization, and misogyny.
"The Foundations of Decay" was well received by critics, who praised its composition and themes. Several publications considered it one of the best songs released in 2022. It charted in several countries, reaching number 1 on the Rock & Metal chart in the United Kingdom and number 132 on the Billboard Global 200. On May 16, the band debuted it live at the Eden Project, and Warner Records released the song onto mainstream rock radio a day later. It was used as the opening song for every show of the band's Reunion Tour afterwards.
Six years after their break-up, My Chemical Romance reunited for a reunion show on December 20, 2019. They subsequently scheduled more shows worldwide, including a run of summer festival shows in mainland Europe and a North American tour. In June 2021, the band's lead singer Gerard Way stated in an interview that he was working on music with Doug McKean, the engineer behind two of the band's past studio albums, The Black Parade (2006) and Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys (2010).
McKean produced "The Foundations of Decay" alongside Way and guitarist Ray Toro. McKean also engineered the song, Rich Costey and Jeff Citron mixed it and Mike Bozzi mastered it. Alongside the main band lineup of Gerard Way, guitarists Toro and Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way, it features Jarrod Alexander on drums and Jamie Muhoberac on keyboard. Gerard Way wrote the lyrics, and all four members are credited for songwriting. "The Foundations of Decay" was the last project McKean worked on before his death in July 2022.
"The Foundations of Decay" was surprise-released digitally on May 12, 2022, by Reprise Records. Warner Records released it to mainstream rock radio on May 17. It was the band's first single since "Fake Your Death" in 2014. The cover art and visualizer video on YouTube, the former of which was designed by Aaron Hymes, depict mounds of swarming flies. The song was used as the opening track for every show of the band's Reunion Tour; the first show of the tour at the Eden Project on May 16 marked the song's first live performance. They later performed it at 2022's Riot Fest and during their Long Live The Black Parade tour (2025).
"The Foundations of Decay" is a six-minute long song that has been described as progressive rock, gothic rock, and post-hardcore. It also incorporates elements of doom metal, basement punk, arena rock, post-metal, metalcore, and noise rock. Em Moore of Exclaim! described it as featuring several "acts" that individually showcase the "myriad ways the band have expanded their sound, bringing in more elements from noise rock, doom and prog". The New York Times characterized it as "prog-emo".
The song opens up with static noise before introducing a mellow electric guitar, piano, and a "laid-back drumbeat" paired with Gerard Way's distorted vocals. It then crescendos into the chorus, which Hannah Dailey of Billboard described as having "anthemic force" in a similar vein to the band's 2006 single "Welcome to the Black Parade". Ali Shutler of NME compared the opening guitar to the intro of Aerosmith's "Dream On" (1973). "The Foundations of Decay" goes between guitar breakdowns and slower-paced moments that highlight the lyrics, which were described by Dailey as "electric guitar-stamped rage fests" and "simmering moments of storytelling", respectively. Shutler opined that the composition combined elements from their past studio albums, viewing the guitar breakdown as similar to one from The Black Parade. Maria Sherman of NPR compared the song to ones found on the band's first album, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love (2002). Sherman and Moore compared it to that album's "Demolition Lovers", Moore likening their usage of multiple acts and Sherman viewing their opening guitar segments as similar.