My Chemical Romance have spoken out about teenage gun crime in this week’s issue of NME, calling it “a really big problem”.

This week’s cover stars, who released new album ’The Black Parade’ on Monday (October 23), were discussing the album track ’Teenagers’ which tackles the issue head on.

Singer Gerard Way said: “That song almost didn’t fit on the record but it’s a topic that’s so important to our culture. It’s about a really big problem in America where kids are killing kids.The only think I learnt in high school is that people are very violent and territorial.”

Way talked about the relevance of The Smiths to the situation.

He said: “I heard ’The Headmaster Ritual’ by The Smiths and I think that song is as important to the social situation in America right now as it was to school in Britain in the ‘80s.”