Bob Bryar, the longtime My Chemical Romance drummer who performed on The Black Parade and Hazard Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, has died, the band confirmed on Instagram. “It’s with a heavy coronary heart that we are saying goodbye to Bob Bryar, our former bandmate and an essential a part of the historical past of My Chemical Romance,” their submit reads. “We ship our deepest condolences to his family and friends presently. Might he relaxation in peace.” He was 44.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, on December 30, 1979, Bryar fell in love with the drums after being gifted a toy drum set as a toddler. He quickly upgraded to an actual package, joined his highschool’s marching and jazz bands, and began enjoying reveals in golf equipment across the metropolis. After learning sound engineering on the College of Florida, he landed the in-house job at Chicago’s Home of Blues. He quickly transitioned to sound engineer roles for different bands on the highway like Thrice and the Used, throughout which he met My Chemical Romance in particular person for the primary time.
Whereas My Chemical Romance had been touring behind their sophomore album, 2004’s Three Cheers for Candy Revenge, they parted methods with their unique drummer, Matt Pelissier, and reached out to Bryar to see if he could be all for taking his place – all with out ever having heard Bryar play earlier than, in response to Billboard. On the time, Bryar would “always get bummed out” that he was mixing bands facet stage as an alternative of enjoying as a full-time drummer, so he jumped on the alternative.
Although Bryar seems in many of the music movies for Three Cheers for Candy Revenge’s singles and performs on its ensuing reside LPs, Life on the Homicide Scene and ¡Venganza!, he didn’t get his first formal co-writing credit till The Black Parade. My Chemical Romance’s large 2006 idea album was a breakthrough success and their best-selling file so far, climbing to No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart and turning into licensed 4x platinum. Bryar’s drumming fashion is a necessary a part of that album’s melodramatic sound, from the marching band drumrolls in “Welcome to the Black Parade” to the jaunty, hard-hitting fills in “Lifeless!” and past.