My Chemical Romance performs at Oakland Arena in Oakland, Calif. on Oct. 5, 2022. Onome Uyovbievbo/STAFF.

OAKLAND — It may have been a long time coming, but Wednesday night’s oft-rescheduled concert by emo heroes My Chemical Romance was worth the wait for the thousands at Oakland Arena. Fans decked out in the style of their favorite era of the band were waving phone lights and chanting “M-C-R” well before the band even set foot on stage. Outside, meanwhile, the bootleg merchandise offerings stretched all the way back to Alameda.

When the house lights dimmed, pulse strobes illuminated the arena with a helicopter-like whirling sound that reached a crescendo with the band’s arrival on stage. On this tour, My Chemical Romance has been playing an entirely different set every night. The only real commonality gig to gig is heavy opening track “The Foundations of Decay.” A red curtain gave way to an urban ruin, destroyed skyscrapers and a lighting array flanking each side of the stage.

“Thank you for coming,” vocalist Gerard Way proclaimed. “Thank you for waiting.”

This show wasn’t about theatrics, but rather a connection between audience and band. Wielding the momentum from the opener, MCR jumped into the anthemic “Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)” (complete with just about everyone raising their “jazz hands” right on cue with the lyric) and “Give ‘Em Hell, Kid.” The was decidedly hardcore fan-centric, playing the absolute staples while emphasizing older songs from the band’s catalog.

My Chemical Romance performs at Oakland Arena in Oakland, Calif. on Oct. 5, 2022.

The capacity crowd wasn’t lost on Way.

“You guys are really packed in, I see lots of flesh,” Way said midway through the set. “It’s very fleshy out there.”

Donning a button-up shirt and black baseball cap, Way tore through the material with vigor, the band keeping up the energy even with a few extra years under its belt. Guitarists Frank Iero and Ray Toro adeptly traded riffs and backing vocals throughout. The band also kept things moving, especially early on in the set, with Way filling the space between with the similar bassy atmospheric synths that opened the show. He did take a quick moment to dedicate “The World is Ugly” to friends of his that recently lost their dog, Walter.

From there, the cuts seemed to get progressively deeper, from “It’s Not A Fashion Statement, It’s a Fucking Deathwish” to the relatively newer “Planetary (GO!).”

My Chemical Romance performs at Oakland Arena in Oakland, Calif. on Oct. 5, 2022.

The turning point came with the opening piano notes of seminal hit “Welcome to the Black Parade.” The track has such an anthemic quality that the Oakland crowd nearly Overpowered Way. That continued on Black Parade staple “Teenagers.”

Following older tracks “Cemetery Drive” and “Vampires Will Never Hurt You” and the newer “S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W,”  the band finished the main set with the crowdpleasers, including the stellar “Famous Last Words” and the anthemic “I’m Not Okay (I Promise).”

The encore included not only “Helena” and “The Kids From Yesterday,” but a birthday dedication to MCR’s security guard. NorCal fans missing MCR’s set will have another opportunity fairly quickly as the band headlines Aftershock in Sacramento on Saturday.

Taking Back Sunday performs at Oakland Arena in Oakland, Calif. on Oct. 5, 2022.

Taking Back Sunday preceded the headliners. Vocalist Adam Lazzara played the role of host and emcee through the course of the band’s Warped-Tour-centric 30-minute set. Packing eight songs, the band adeptly got the crowd warmed up, with Lazzara offering up added enthusiasm between just about every song, encouraging the audience to participate.

Opening with “What’s It Feel Like to Be A Ghost,” the band delivered a guitar-heavy attack that also included big melodies. The biggest cheers and singing came from “Cute Without the ‘E’ (Cut from the Team)” and the classic “MakeDamnSure.”

Brooklyn punk rockers Surfbort opened the show. Vocalist Dani Miller and her five bandmates attacked the stage as though the tens of the sounds in the building were packed into a small club. With songs like “Les Be in Love” and “Big Star,” the band rolled through its set with gusto, Miller often jumping into the crowd—even the pit—to get close and personal with attendees.

Surbort’s PA sound was cut during its final song, as someone decided it was two minutes over time. Even without amplification, the band powered through and finished the song, silently thanking fans on their way off the stage. All’s fair in love and garage punk, apparently.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald. Follow photographer Onome Uyovbievbo at Twitter.com/byonome and Instagram.com/by.onome.