Electric Century, formed in 2014, is a pop-rock band with close to 12,000 monthly Spotify listeners. The band is composed of Mikey Way, the bassist of the former punk band My Chemical Romance, and David Debiak of Sleep Station.
In 2014, Electric Century released their first single titled “I Lied.” “I Lied” is their most streamed song, with almost 2.4 million streams. The song is about bassist Mikey Way’s struggle with addiction, an issue that was covered in songs such as “Sleep” by his former band My Chemical Romance. In 2015, the band released three more singles: “Let You Get Away,” “Hail the Saints” and “Right There.”
Then, in 2017, Electric Century released their first album titled “For the Night to Control.” All of their singles released in 2014 and 2015 were featured on this album, in addition to six other tracks. While classified as a pop-rock album, the album has a much more somber tone. Additionally, the album strays from the heavier metal sounds of both artists’ previous bands and takes on a sound that features more electric and synthesized sounds.
In 2021, the band released their newest album, self-titled “Electric Century.” This album is an accompaniment to the band’s comic book, which is also titled with the same name. The album and comic book follow a character, Johnny, who sees a hypnotherapist to deal with their addiction.
“Johnny’s addiction shifts from alcohol to his hypnotic trips to the boardwalk and the Electric Century casino, which satisfies his desire for fame,” said the band in an interview with the Alternative Press in 2020
In this way, the album mirrors Way’s own experiences with addiction and a desire to escape fame and embrace it. This album has 11 tracks including “Till We’re Gone,” which is their second most streamed song on Spotify with a little over 423,000 streams. This album has a similar sound to their previous album, “For the Night to Control,” but has a more uplifting undertone. Additionally, for fans of Way’s former band, My Chemical Romance, this album was produced by Ray Toro, another former member of MCR.
While different from previous music these artists have made, Electric Century brings a new sound to the pop-rock world. Each of their songs covers heavy topics such as addiction and dealing with fame that resonate with listeners. With each song, listeners are taken into their past to reflect on the decisions they’ve made and the questions they left unanswered. Over the past year, Mikey Way has been touring with his former band My Chemical Romance on their reunion tour. As a result, there have been no updates from Electric Century, so it is uncertain whether the band will release new music in the future.