Interview: Frank Iero of ‘FrnkIero andthe Cellabration’ on the painful birthing process of his debut solo LP, ‘Stomachaches’

Frank Iero never wanted to make a solo record. The former My Chemical Romance guitarist has a history of intense digestive issues, and when that band officially dissolved in 2013, he began retreating into his home studio to churn out the raw, angst-ridden tracks that make up the aptly-named Stomaches LP (Staple Records), his debut as FrnkIero andthe Cellabration. Named after Iero’s admitted tendency towards typos, as well as a homage to the great backing band names of the past (The Heartbreakers and The Blackhearts), FrnkIero andthe Cellabration channels the low-fi energy of Iero’s New Jersey punk and hardcore past, coupled with the monster hooks that My Chemical Romance trafficked in so well.

I caught up with Iero by e-mail to discuss the difficult writing and recording process behind Stomachaches, his thoughts on solo acts, and the lost art of the mix-tape. FrnkIero andthe Cellabration are on tour now, which includes a Montreal stop at Bar le Ritz PDB on February 24th. Tickets for that show are available here.

Was it always your intention to release a solo record following the break-up of My Chemical Romance? 

No, most definitely not. To be honest, I tend to hate when people come from a band and then go ‘solo’. It seems so cliché and douchey. Like, you couldn’t wait to see your name in lights type thing ha. Maybe subconsciously that’s why I misspell my name. Anyway, I found myself in a situation where I wrote a bunch music by myself and I wanted to play it live and put out a record. So I had 3 options:

1. Put a bunch of people together and pretend we were a band from the start
2. Come up with a pseudonym for myself, which is strange because if I was going to do that I should have done it years ago, or
3. Just cut the shit and go ‘solo’.

I went with #3.

What is the significance of the band name? Were you wary of the “solo punk” tag?

I don’t really know what the ‘solo punk’ tag is, but I suppose I was wary of any kind of solo comparisons. Like I said, I’ve always thought of that as a dumb move, so I guess that’s why I made it so difficult for myself with the name. Maybe I was just making fun of the whole thing. Also, I have a hard time typing for some reason, and sometimes letters get left out. Calling the band the CELLABRATION though, that was very calculated. I really wanted to name the band, something like the greats did. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, etc. etc. CELLABRATION, because the definition of celebration just spoke to me. I also thought it sounded non genre-specific, and that really appealed to me.

What was the recording process like for the record? 

It was quite lonely at times, but really fulfilling. I did most of it in my basement at my own pace. Live drums and some bass tracking were done at Northend studios with my good friend Ed Auletta engineering. And then we did my brother Evan’s vocals at Backroom studios with a very talented engineer, Kevin Antreassian. But for the most part, it was just me locked in a room fleshing out songs in my pyjamas.

Was this the first time you channeled your stomach pain into something creative? 

I’d say it’s probably the biggest piece of work that came out of it. This record was definitely not supposed to be a record for public consumption though. This record was just my own personal treatment that ended up getting released.

Were you surprised at how much you accomplished while being in such physical pain? 

There was an element of shock when I looked back one day and realized there was an album’s worth of material. It’s like running as fast as you can for as long as you can, and finally taking a rest to catch your breath and you can hardly see your starting point anymore. It’s nice to surprise yourself like that sometimes.

You posted the lyrics to the album on your website before its release, was it important for you for fans to know what to expect from the album? 

Yes. When I finally did decide to release the record, I wanted people to know what I was saying. It was the most important part. There’s no feeling quite like having people sing your lyrics with you, especially when they sing from their hearts.

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There is a real sense of yearning and pain in the lyrics, were you apprehensive about being so revealing? 

Yea, but also there are a lot of stories on the record that are not my personal experiences or view points. They come from situations that I have observed. And those were the hardest to let go of I think. I felt a bit strange putting other people’s situations out there… but I believe I left it general enough to not ruin their privacy.

Musically, the album is pretty raw, but there are some monster hooks on these tracks, was that always the goal? 

I’m a huge fan of simple melodies. I also love the human element of things. My favorite parts of music are the mistakes. So I wanted something broken yet beautiful. Strong yet fragile.

Your first solo song was released on the soundtrack to Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, how did that come about? 

Yes, that was really fun. Basically, Disney asked a few different artists if they were interested in coming to see the film in its early stages and possibly writing some music for it. At the time, My Chemical Romance was just too busy to do it, so I went and saw the film and kinda fell in love with it, and the next day while I was feeding my kids breakfast, wrote the song.

The mixtape playlists you’ve been posting on your site are great (ending a Valentine’s Day playlist with Pantera is always a good choice), is that something you plan on continuing? 

Haha thanks. I feel like mixtapes are a lost art. I’ve always loved making them for people and I thought that would be a fun way to communicate with kids and turn them on to different music. I’d like to keep it up. I’ve been slacking on the Internet a bit lately though. Real life has been so busy. I’m going to try my best though to get back to it.

What’s up next for the band? Anything else lined up that you can let us in on? 

Well, lots of touring basically. We finish the US headliner April 2 and then start the UK/EU on April 16. And then there’s a lot more in the works, but unfortunately I can’t say just yet. I’d also really like to get into the studio again in the not too distant future.

FrnkIero And The Cellabration with The Homeless Gospel Choir and Modern Chemistry play Bar le Ritz PDB (179 Rue Jean-Talon-Ouest) on February 24th at 8:00pm. Tickets are $18/$20, available here.