Janine Schaults

Everyone wants to be the hero of their own story. For the members of My Chemical Romance, though, they are the heroes of their fans' stories... literally. As if keeping track of a band through Internet message boards and MySpace didn't keep the faithfully devoted busy, a large chunk of the stylish emo group's Hot Topic-clad followers have taken to writing fan fiction. These tales, spun by anyone able to type, feature My Chemical Romance as the main characters in ordinary settings--like school--as well as in some downright compromising positions.

"I think it's really weird. It's extremely creepy," drummer Bob Bryar says over the phone from Australia where the band is traveling as part of the Big Day Out festival on a particularly scorching afternoon. "I've only read the beginning of one, which somebody printed out at a meet-and-greet and brought to me and it was very weird stuff, like me and [guitarist] Frank [Iero] kissing. But, some of them are just people wanting to tell stories, which is cool, if that's fun for them, go for it. We just make it a point not to read that stuff because some of it is just too much to read."

Possessiveness of the band only increased since the release of its sophomore effort, "Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge," in 2004, and now with its concept-album extraordinaire, "The Black Parade," on the shelves since late last fall, platinum-coiffed frontman Gerard Way and his brethren experience pandemonium in public. "Kids will chase me down the street," says Bryar, the lone Chicago native among the group of Jersey boys.

While the tight-knit band members tend to isolate themselves from the stereotypical rock-star lifestyle, preferring to gather after a show to rehash the performance or work on something new instead of charming mostly female hanger-ons, the band takes the connection with their audience seriously.

"Everything is so honest and we kind of say things that a lot of those people feel. We're not people that put ourselves on huge pedestals because we sold some records, we really feel like we're just like them," Bryar says. "I think people really see that and we kind of bring them into our shows. If the people in the crowd aren't responsive to it, our shows are boring for us too."

Despite this intense relationship with fans, are the mob's affections too close for comfort for My Chemical Romance?

"It's never like we're gonna run and hide... when there's a huge group of people and they're pulling at you," Bryar says. But, once the crowd disperses until the next city stop, the band keeps close together. "We definitely put ourselves in a bubble. It feels isolating at times, but we're happy with just being with just us and we're fine with that."

My Chemical Romance plays March 1 at Allstate Arena, 6920 North Mannheim, Rosemont, (847)671-9800, at 7:30pm. $30.

(2007-02-27)

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