Here’s Fall Out Boy’s Plan to Fill Guitarist Joe Trohman’s Slot During His Break: Exclusive

As Fall Out Boy gear up to promote their upcoming eighth studio album, So Much (For) Stardust (March 24), the veteran emo rockers are down one crucial member. Following this week’s announcement that co-founding guitarist Joe Trohman is taking an indefinite hiatus due to mental health issues, the group performed as a power trio.

During Wednesday night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! appearance to play the album’s first single, the supercharged “Love From the Other Side,” singer Patrick Stump played electric guitar alongside bassist Pete Wentz and drummer Andy Hurley, with Trohman’s bouncy, high-energy presence noticeably missing; the band has played without Trohman on stage before when the guitarist suffered a back injury. Though no tour dates have been announced yet for the band’s Stardust era, a source close FOB tells Billboard that there is tentative plan to deal with Trohman’s absence.

As of now, the source says that Trohman’s longtime guitar tech will be “filling in and providing support” for any promotional appearances and any yet-to-be-determined future tour dates. In fact, the tech has already appeared with FOB whether you realized it or not, playing some of Trohman’s parts offstage during recent promo gigs.

Trohman plays on the new album but will not participate in promotion around the project. The guitarist has been with the band since its early 2000s formation in the suburbs of Chicago, alongside singer Stump, Wentz and Hurley. In an Instagram post on Wednesday he said, “Without divulging all the details, I must disclose that my mental health has rapidly deteriorated over the past several years. So, to avoid fading away and never returning, I will be taking a break from work which regrettably includes stepping away from Fall Out Boy for a spell.” 

As for whether he plans to return, the 38-year-old guitarist said, “Absolutely, one-hundred percent. In the meantime, I must recover which means putting myself and my mental health first.”