In early June, stacked post-hardcore supergroup L.S. Dunes shared a humorous, kaiju-styled video for their song "Grey Veins," in which the band do battle against a giant monster. But as the band's Frank Iero shares, it seems the LEGO Group doesn't find the visual very funny.
On Instagram, Iero (also a member of My Chemical Romance and Leathermouth) shared a post asking why the Danish toy company — whose coloured plastic blocks have proved foundational to the childhoods of people the world over — had its lawyers calling Fantasy Recordings in an effort to have the "Grey Veins" video pulled from the internet.
In the visual, directed and edited by David Brodsky, a collection of tiny plastic figurines work to rebuild a robot containing the members of L.S. Dunes — guitarist Travis Stever (Coheed and Cambria), vocalist Anthony Green (Circa Survive), bassist Tim Payne (Thursday), drummer Tucker Rule (Thursday/Yellowcard) and Iero — in hopes of the band defending their miniature plastic village from further destruction.
Where we imagine the LEGO Group takes issue is with the use of tiny plastic people, known colloquially as minifigures. The company website states that they "can't allow the use of LEGO copyright materials such as brand names, logos and trademarks like the 2x4 brick or the LEGO minifigure for commercial purposes such as promotional campaigns, marketing and PR."
In his Instagram post, Iero writes that he's been a dedicated blockhead all his life, sharing how he's "a card carrying Lego VIP and lifelong creator and builder" who is "hurt and wildly confused" by the calls to the record label.
"I have spent more hours than I can calculate, not to mention thousand upon thousands of dollars over the years, buying and building your sets as a child, a teenager, a semi-adult, and now as a dad who builds with his son," he writes. "My family and I have vacationed at Legoland and [My Chemical Romance] has been voted into your Lego Ideas program by 10k supporters as a potential future build set."
Iero's fandom is as real as the pain one experiences from accidentally stepping on LEGO pieces, his post including shots of his LEGO VIP card and the MCR-inspired set you can view below.
"I love your company because you gave us bricks and taught us we didn't have to accept the world as it was, we could see what was possible and build it ourselves. I have taken that inspiration and created a universe of my own and now you want to squash it, why? Let Creators Create. Have your people stop calling my people. Spread kindness, spread the creativity, spread the word. Leggo My Lego."
"Grey Veins" appears on L.S. Dunes' 2022 debut Past Lives, and you can watch the video below while you're still able.
On Instagram, Iero (also a member of My Chemical Romance and Leathermouth) shared a post asking why the Danish toy company — whose coloured plastic blocks have proved foundational to the childhoods of people the world over — had its lawyers calling Fantasy Recordings in an effort to have the "Grey Veins" video pulled from the internet.
In the visual, directed and edited by David Brodsky, a collection of tiny plastic figurines work to rebuild a robot containing the members of L.S. Dunes — guitarist Travis Stever (Coheed and Cambria), vocalist Anthony Green (Circa Survive), bassist Tim Payne (Thursday), drummer Tucker Rule (Thursday/Yellowcard) and Iero — in hopes of the band defending their miniature plastic village from further destruction.
Where we imagine the LEGO Group takes issue is with the use of tiny plastic people, known colloquially as minifigures. The company website states that they "can't allow the use of LEGO copyright materials such as brand names, logos and trademarks like the 2x4 brick or the LEGO minifigure for commercial purposes such as promotional campaigns, marketing and PR."
In his Instagram post, Iero writes that he's been a dedicated blockhead all his life, sharing how he's "a card carrying Lego VIP and lifelong creator and builder" who is "hurt and wildly confused" by the calls to the record label.
"I have spent more hours than I can calculate, not to mention thousand upon thousands of dollars over the years, buying and building your sets as a child, a teenager, a semi-adult, and now as a dad who builds with his son," he writes. "My family and I have vacationed at Legoland and [My Chemical Romance] has been voted into your Lego Ideas program by 10k supporters as a potential future build set."
Iero's fandom is as real as the pain one experiences from accidentally stepping on LEGO pieces, his post including shots of his LEGO VIP card and the MCR-inspired set you can view below.
"I love your company because you gave us bricks and taught us we didn't have to accept the world as it was, we could see what was possible and build it ourselves. I have taken that inspiration and created a universe of my own and now you want to squash it, why? Let Creators Create. Have your people stop calling my people. Spread kindness, spread the creativity, spread the word. Leggo My Lego."
"Grey Veins" appears on L.S. Dunes' 2022 debut Past Lives, and you can watch the video below while you're still able.