MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE - MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE GUITARIST QUITS TOUR

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE guitarist FRANK LERO has been forced to pull out of their U.K. tour due to a family member's sudden illness. The Welcome To The Black Parade hitmakers - in the midst of a major world tour - were devastated to learn that Lero will have to abandon the remaining U.K. dates. Lero will be temporarily replaced by guitar technician Matt Cortez, who stood in for bassist Mikey Way when he took a six month hiatus from the band earlier this year (07). The departure follows a series of setbacks for the band, including drummer Bob Bryar's recent wrist injury which forced him to sit out of several dates. But frontman Gerard Way is confident the show must go on. He says, "We've been through a lot of stuff on this record, dealt with life situations and stuff. Ultimately it's gonna be a little different and look a little different, but we're ready for this." My Chemical Romance's sold-out British tour saw them play London's O2 Arena on Wednesday (15Nov07) before moving on to Belfast, Ireland.