My Chemical Romance is mourning the loss of one of their own. After the group’s former drummer Bob Bryar was found dead at his Tennessee home, the American emo-punk band – comprised of Gerard Way, Frank Iero, Mikey Way, and Ray Toro — broke their silence on their former bandmate’s passing.
“The band asks for your patience and understanding as they process the news of Bob’s passing,” a spokesperson for the rock group said in a Sunday, Dec. 1 statement to numerous outlets, including CNN and NBC News.
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TMZ was the first to report the news of Bryar’s death at the age of 44. In a Nov. 29 report, the outlet stated that the drummer was found dead at his home in Tennessee on Tuesday, Nov. 26. It’s unclear when exactly Bryar passed away. He had last been seen alive on Nov. 4, law enforcement sources told the outlet, and the remains were “badly decomposed” at the time of discovery. A medical examiner is investigating the cause and manner of Bryar’s death, but foul play is not expected.
Born in Chicago in 1979, Bryar joined My Chemical Romance in 2004 after meeting the group while they were on tour and he was working as a sound engineer for The Used. He ultimately left the tour with The Used and replaced Matt Pelissier as drummer just after My Chemical Romance released their second album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, per Billboard.
“I left a very good touring gig where I was tour managing and doing sound. I left that job to join a band that was filthy, had s– gear, a smashed-up, smoking, death-trap van and was poor,. They smelled bad, Bryar told the Alternative Press in 2016. “I was so happy to receive the offer… Long before we recorded ‘Welcome to the Black Parade,’ I knew that [MCR] were special and I wanted in. I wanted to help evolve the band and be able to shred with them every night.”
Bryar went on to become My Chemical Romance’s longest-serving drummer, playing on the album The Black Parade, the compilation Conventional Weapons, and the live album The Black Parade Is Dead!, as well as some of the group’s most beloved songs, including “Welcome to the Black Parade,” “Teenagers” and “I Don’t Love You.
Bryar left the group in 2010, with rhythm guitarist Frank Iero writing on the band’s blog at the time, per NME, “As of four weeks ago, My Chemical Romance and Bob Bryar parted ways. This was a painful decision for all of us to make and was not taken lightly. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavours, and expect you all to do the same.”
My Chemical Romacne split up in 2013, but later reunited in 2019 for a show in Los Angeles. The group is set to embark on their Long Live the Black Parade North America tour next year.
