Steve Aoki is bringing back an emo classic with a fun electronic twist. The DJ was sought after by former rock band My Chemical Romance to remix one of their signature tracks, “Welcome to the Black Parade,” and the result is something much better than you’d expect.
Aoki essentially turns the epic pop-rock opera into dance party fodder, with synths, drops and drums galore. The song was pretty dark and somber to begin with, but this remix somehow makes it even more eerie as Gerard Way’s vocals linger beneath the frantic instrumentation.
Aoki and My Chemical Romance may initially sound like a strange combination, but he’s got a thing for rock music. After all, Fall Out Boy featured on his record, Neon Future I, and he also remixed Blink-182’s single, “Bored To Death,” last summer. The pairing with My Chemical Romance was a perfect match, and the remix shows it effortlessly.
The real reason for the remix was to commemorate the tenth anniversary of My Chemical Romance’s career highlight, The Black Parade, but what it really does is make the band’s absence that much harder. Broken up since 2013, rumors swirled of a possible reunion earlier this fall, but it was shot down rather quickly by the group themselves. Who knows if we’ll ever see them back in action again, but we wouldn’t mind more collaborations with Steve Aoki in the future.
