I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love

I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love
Studio album by My Chemical Romance
Released	July 23, 2002
Recorded	May 15–25, 2002
Length	41:12
Label	Eyeball
Producer	Geoff Rickly Alex Saavedra (tracks 3 and 8)
My Chemical Romance chronology
I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love (2002) Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge (2004)
Singles from I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love
"Vampires Will Never Hurt You" Released: May 27, 2002 "Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us" Released: December 15, 2003 "Headfirst for Halos" Released: April 5, 2004

I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love is the debut album by My Chemical Romance, released on July 23, 2002. The album was produced by Thursday's singer, Geoff Rickly, at Nada Recording Studio in New Windsor, New York.

Background

The album earned the band a large underground following, but they were not able to emerge into the mainstream until their second album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, which was released two years later. During the recording of this album, singer Gerard Way had to sing vocals while suffering from a tooth abscess, making vocal work very difficult. Text on the disc reads, "Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws and will result in Gerard coming to your house and sucking your blood." The album was re-released on vinyl on February 3, 2009, with a clear as well as white and red edition. It has sold over 300,000 copies in the USA as of February 2009, also achieving a Gold sales status certification for sales of over 100,000 copies in the UK.

Re-releases of the album contain a bonus Eyeball Records sampler CD. There are several different versions of the sampler, and each one contains different tracks.

Style and lyrical themes

This album had a raw sound that had guitar riffs, very energetic vocals and even sometimes screaming. It was considered an emo album with strong influences from punk rock, emo, hardcore punk and some influences from heavy metal.

I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love is often regarded as a concept album. It is believed to involve two Bonnie and Clyde-esque characters who are eventually gunned down in the desert. On My Chemical Romance's next album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, the unnamed man supposedly then finds himself in purgatory, where he makes a deal with Satan: his hellbound lover for the souls of a thousand evil men. He is then resurrected and sent on his gruesome task. Though it is generally accepted by the group's core fanbase, this has led some to attribute its supposed existence to over-analysis on the part of hardcore fans. The alleged storyline is not confirmed by the band, but some evidence includes:

• The following album's cover, named "Demolition Lovers" (As is the final song on I Brought You My Bullets...) and its interior artwork (including the text that reads "The story of a man, a woman, and the corpses of a thousand evil men.")

• The lyrical themes of the final songs on both of the band's first two albums, which are "Demolition Lovers" and "I Never Told You What I Do for a Living". The lyrics of the latter include "They gave us two shots to the back of the head and we're all dead now" suggesting that the character (if it is linked to the storyline) has been killed and has failed in saving his lover from Hell.

• The song "It's Not a Fashion Statement, It's a Fucking Deathwish" from Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge also includes themes of a man rising from his grave, who suggests that his purpose in doing so is to commit a murder.

Another theme apparent on the album is the nature of vampires, as in both the undead creatures and, metaphorically speaking, those who seek to corrupt and exploit others. The song "Skylines and Turnstiles" was written shortly after the September 11 attacks and expressed feelings of sorrow and loss, and "Early Sunsets over Monroeville" was inspired by the George A. Romero film Dawn of the Dead. Gerard himself describes it as "a sweet song about Dawn of the Dead", with the lyrics using references from the film. Before the September 11 attacks, Gerard was working as a comic book writer and animator. He was working on a vampire comic (which he never completed), and has also said that is the reason for the vampires in the lyrics.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Drowned in Sound
IGN	(7.9/10)
Rolling Stone
The Guardian

Track listing

All songs written and composed by My Chemical Romance, except for "Romance". 

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Romance"	1:02
2.	"Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us"	3:51
3.	"Vampires Will Never Hurt You"	5:26
4.	"Drowning Lessons"	4:23
5.	"Our Lady of Sorrows"	2:05
6.	"Headfirst for Halos"	3:28
7.	"Skylines and Turnstiles"	3:23
8.	"Early Sunsets Over Monroeville"	5:04
9.	"This Is the Best Day Ever"	2:13
10.	"Cubicles"	3:51
11.	"Demolition Lovers"	6:06
Total length:		41:12

Re-release/iTunes deluxe edition bonus videos
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us" (video)	3:53
2.	"Vampires Will Never Hurt You" (video)	5:37
Total length:		50:42

Charts

Chart (2007)	Peak position
UK Albums Chart	129
Chart (2009)	Peak position
Japanese Albums Chart	250

Certifications

Region	Certification	Sales/shipments
United Kingdom (BPI)	Gold	100,000^
United States (RIAA)	N/A	300,000^

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalogue
Japan	March 25, 2009	Warner	CD	WPCR13347
United Kingdom	April 12, 2004	Eyeball, 20:20		9866233
United States	July 23, 2002	Eyeball		EYE20022
	June 21, 2005			7200222
	February 3, 2009		12" vinyl	EYE20059

Credits

My Chemical Romance

• Gerard Way — lead vocals
• Mikey Way — bass guitar
• Ray Toro — lead guitar, rhythm guitar (on tracks 3-7, 9 & 10), backing vocals
• Matt Pelissier — drums, percussion
• Frank Iero — rhythm guitar (on tracks 2 & 8), backing vocals

Production

• Produced by Geoff Rickly
• Tracks 3 and 8 Produced by Geoff Rickly and Alex Saavedra
• Recorded and mixed by John Naclerio 5/15/02 - 5/25/02 at Nada Studios, New Windsor, NY
• Mastered by Ryan Ball at Checkmate Sound & Recording, Suffern, NY
• Original artwork, layout, and design by Marc Debiak and Gerard Way
• Photos by Alex Saavedra

References

• My Chemical Romance interview, Life in a Bungalow, 2008-03-16 
• "Bullets" My Chemical Romance Film, Andy DeAngelo, 2010-06-22