(LOS ANGELES, CA) -- Multi-hyphenate musician, songwriter, and record producer Frank Iero has announced he will release a deluxe 10-year anniversary edition of his debut studio album, Stomachaches, titled XNauseousX on Friday, August 30, 2024.
Widely recognized as the lead guitarist in My Chemical Romance and L.S. Dunes, Frank Iero launched his solo career with the debut album Stomachaches in 2014. It received rave reviews from Alternative Press, New Noise Magazine, and NME, with Louder calling it “an emotional listen and more of a window into Iero’s mind than any of the mainstream releases he has been involved in before.”
To commemorate the announcement, he has released a new single “This Song Is A Curse…” out now via BMG. The new album is available to pre-order on limited vinyl exclusively on his website and to pre-save.
Over the past twenty plus years, the guitarist and vocalist has created entire worlds through the scuzzy punk of Pencey Prep, the fiery hardcore of Leathermouth and the ever-growing ambition of a constantly shifting solo project. There’s also been the lightning-in-a-bottle global success of My Chemical Romance and “emo supergroup” LS Dunes. Despite the sonic differences, every project Iero has been involved in has been driven by sincerity and heart.
“I want to make art that makes people feel something, because when I make it…I feel everything,” he explains. “I know the sacrifices that my family and I make in order for me to be a creator, so I owe it to them to make the best record I possibly can, every single time.”
Frank Iero started his first band aged 11 and played his first gig two years later at a high school dance. “I got up on that stage and I didn’t want to ever leave it,” he explains. “That’s all I ever wanted to do, write songs that made people want to point their fingers and sing along,” and he’s been chasing that ever since. “I don't think in my wildest dreams I ever fathomed I would be able to play a large venue, let alone an arena or stadium” Iero explains. “But somehow I got lucky enough to do all of that,” he adds with a grin.
2024 will see him reunite with My Chemical Romance as they return to headline When We Were Young Festival in October while LS Dunes continue to tour and work and release new music.
“Every time I set out to do a new record, my only rule is that it needs to be something different than I’ve done before,” he continues. “I can’t repeat myself. I have to move forward.” Throughout his career, Iero has refused to take requests or play it safe. “I’m making pieces of art that mean something to me and I’m sharing them with the world the best way I know how…because I need to in order to survive. It’s the same as breathing for me, I just have to.”
But that resilience to follow his own gut, to chase what feels exciting in the moment, to be fearlessly honest means there’s an entire community that exists around Iero’s musical world. You might not know what the next record might sound like, but fans know it comes from the heart.
“When I'm done with a record and I put it out there, my quote unquote work, is done. But the fact that it continues to live on inspiring others to maybe pick up a guitar, write songs, or make art of their own as they see fit, that’s incredible. That is what’s so important to me. It feels like a legacy os sorts. It inspires me to continue to go on and make more art, because that exchange is so incredible real and the cycle feels infinite”
This record's deluxe edition will boast 12 tracks, including some brand-new songs, live recordings, and covers for fans to enjoy.
XNauseousX Track List:
1. This Song Is A Curse…
2. Be My Baby (Ronettes Cover)
3. Walk The Line (Johnny Cash Cover)
4. B.F.F. (original version)
5. 2.5mg Just Ain’t Enough For Me
6. Give Me Liberty, But Give Me Depth
7. Getting Into Heaven Can Be Hell
8. .tragician. (Live at BBC Maida Vale Studios)
9. .smoke rings. (Live at BBC Maida Vale Studios)
10. Joyriding (Live at BBC Maida Vale Studios)
11. She’s the Prettiest Girl at the Party, and She Can Prove It with a Solid Right Hook (Live at BBC Maida Vale Studios)
12. Extraordinary Girl (Green Day Cover)
Frank Iero shared his thoughts on this milestone record. "It’s pretty wild having to sit down and think about putting together a 10-year anniversary edition of a record that you originally had zero intentions of releasing. First off, I can’t believe it’s been 10 years, damn time really does fly by. And second, I’m still shocked anyone cares… but I suppose if my original plan was to make a time capsule for my kids to discover, funnily enough, it all kind of worked out. I’ve had a fun time digging through old hard drives, finding recordings, photos, and videos of that time and place. I suppose, in a lot of ways, I'm still that person, but in many cases, I am not. I truly believe that everything we have gone through and experienced gets us to the place where we currently reside, and I honestly wouldn’t change one second of it. XNauseousX compiles everything put to tape from the Stomachaches era. From the first song I released as a solo artist, 'This Song Is A Curse…,' as well as the first 7 inch release, ‘For Jamia.’ All the way through home-recorded and mixed B-sides and the Cellabration’s entire BBC Maida Vale session. You even get my homemade interpretation of Green Day’s 'Extraordinary Girl', which was panned by almost all of the internet but remains one of my favorite things I ever made. (Thank you James and Kerrang! for asking me to do this one. I still think the internet was wrong and I was right.) For better or worse this is a time capsule, now fully complete and unearthed. I hope it finds you well, and makes you smile more than it makes you frown.”
Since his debut album was released, Frank Iero has released two additional albums, including Parachutes in 2017 and Barriers in 2019, which Loudwire named one of the 50 Best Rock Albums of that year.
