The string-section trio for the iconic Chicago pop-punk band has gone digital, but Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, and Pete Wentz still arenāt afraid to get weirdāand sometimes, downright dangerous.
Back in March, Chicagoās Fall Out Boy blasted through Birmingham, Alabama, in the middle of a year-long tour supporting their 2023 release, So Much (for) Stardust. It was their first solo headline tour since 2018, and they brought along loads of new noisemakers for the occasion.
Frontman Patrick Stump has moved on from his trademark Gretsch electrics, guitarist Joe Trohman scored an Explorer that may or may not remind us of a certain purple McDonaldās character, and Pete Wentz packs some basses that bring both ice and fire to the gig. And while tube amps still reign supreme in the studio, including the recording of So Much (for) Stardust, the band goes digital and speaker-free on the road.
Brought to you by DāAddarioPaint It Red
After his love affair with Gretsch came to a close, the Guild S-60D has become Patrick Stumpās new muse. Given his intense vocal responsibilities during performances, heās aiming for function over form these days, and the S-60D and S-300 models are fitting the bill for playability and position in the mix. āI want something that stays in tune,ā he says. āI try to be as minimal as possible.ā
Stump bought this S-60D with its all-over bright-red paint job, then set about sourcing red components to make it almost entirely monochrome. He also dropped a DiMarzio Super Distortion humbucker in the bridge and a Seymour Duncan Little ā59 in the neck.
Multicolor Halo
Stump commissioned this Halo guitar, which turned out radically different from what he initially pitched. It was first envisioned to help Stump out with some metal playing he was recording for a TV project, so he called for some classic touches like scalloped frets, a Floyd Rose, and a Seymour Duncan Dimebucker in the bridge. But the color ended up anything but metal. Itās not totally applicable to most Fall Out Boy material, but Stump is giving it a shot at some live play time.
Horse With Name
For slower moments, Stump goes with this Martin X Series acoustic he picked up at Guitar Center around 15 years ago. Since he had a deal with Fender, he covered the headstock Martin logo with some black tape thatās remained there ever since.
Mighty Zemaitis
First up, Trohman shows off this Japanese-made Zemaitis The Portrait Hisashi Signature Model, a model built in honor of Glay guitarist Hisashi Tonomura. While not a genuine Tony Zemaitis build, Trohman likes this one for its stability and build quality.
The Grimace
Trohman was lusting after this ā80s Gibson Custom Shop plumburst Explorer when he saw it pop up on Reverb, and when it sold, he was heartbroken. A few days later, his wife surprised him with it. Itās named Sanders, in honor of her maiden name.
Smokin' a Sig
Trohman also brings out his signature Squier Joe Trohman Telecaster, a take on the Tele Deluxe that includes a 5-position rotary selector switch to navigate the triple-pickup configuration.
Catching Rays
Tech Christian Zayas shows off this stunning custom paint job Sterling by Music Man Pete Wentz StingRay, which is outfitted with passive (rather than the typical active) pickups and a Hipshot drop tuning system. Note the signature red-eyed-loon inlay art on the 12th fret.
Winter Wonderland
This brand new, heavy-as-hell signature StingRay is full of some type of liquid (Zayas believes its anti-freeze) plus white material that turns it into a bass-shaped snowglobe. Wentz pulls it out for a fantasy sequence in the show, and it doesnāt stick around long because of its weight and more mellow tone.
Don't Sink the 8 Ball
This Pete Wentz StingRay is also a new addition, and comes out for an 8-ball-related encore.
Pete Might've Started the Fire
The last Sterling in the stable is also Wentzās most deadly, doubling as a flamethrower during some of the showās pyrotechnic flourishes. A primer on the upper bout preps the rear-mounted flame system, and the red-covered switch controls ignition. The pyro team tests it before each show with local fire departments to ensure its safety. āSometimes we wanna be KISS, and we are,ā says Zayas.
Farewell To Tubes
Joe Tone
Joe Trohman's tech Ben Young helped the FOB lead guitarist creep in digital modelers and here he provides additional details for what's happening inside the Axe-Fx III:
"The Fractal is set up where we have a different patch for each song, and then use scenes for each section of the songs. I have a template with all our dialed in amps and effects for everything. All the amp sounds are based off a JCM800 for our mid gain ācrunchā sound, and a Dual Rectifier for our classic Fall Out Boy heavy sound. We also have a Friedman amp and a ābrown soundā amp for other higher gain options that weāve been using on newer songs and a Matchless for clean stuff."
Richie Faulkner, co-lead guitarist of Judas Priest, collaborates with Gibson on the Richie Faulkner Flying V.
āThis guitar has become a good friend of mine over the past couple of years and is the latest evolution of my main guitar with Priest for the past 12 years,ā says Richie Faulkner. āItās something that has evolved as I have both on stage and in the studio, in looks and in sound. Whenever I see that double-pick guard and Pelham blue, I know that that is my guitar. With the Floyd Rose, signature EMG pickups, and striking appearance I know that armed with my faithful Flying V, I will be able to deliver every night. Beautiful yet deadly, elegant yet sonically powerful it is the number one guitar in my Arsenal.ā
Photo by Gibson
A longtime player of the Gibson FlyingV, the Richie Faulkner Flying V Custom brings Richieās personal touches to the model, including a one-piece mahogany body with a full-face pick guard, multi-ply binding, a mahogany neck with a custom Richie Faulkner profile, and an ebony fretboard with a mother-of-pearl falcon inlay at the 12th fret. It also has a Floyd Rose vibrato and Richieās signature EMG pickup set. The electronics are stripped-down, with just a pickup selector switch and a single volume control, giving you everything you need with nothing to get in your way. Only 100 of these ultra-premium Flying V models will be crafted by the luthiers of the Gibson CustomShop as part of this very limited special limited run. The Gibson Richie Faulkner FlyingV Custom arrives in a Pelham Blue finish complete with a hardshell case, as well as case candy developed in collaboration with Richie.
Photo by Gibson
While performing onstage with Judas Priest at the Louder than Life festival (September 26, 2021), Richie suffered a rare aortic aneurysm and complete aortic dissection. Despite having zero history of heart issues, Richie was rushed into open-heart surgery at a nearby hospital, and luckily, he fully recovered and has decided to pay it forward. Richie will be spreading the proceeds from his Flying V Custom to the John Ritter Foundation and the American Heart Association.
For more information, please visit gibson.com.
Richie Faulkner Flying V Custom
The Nashville session and touring guitarist, whose credits include Stone Temple Pilots, Carrie Underwood, and David Crosby, takes PG through his versatile, heavyweight home rig.
Inspired to by play guitar by his 6-stringing father, Shawn Tubbs emerged from the Christian-music scene. By his late teens, he was doing club and session gigs, and became part of The Violet Burning. In 1992, he played with Stone Temple Pilots on an episode of MTV Unplugged, then got deeper in the high-profile Nashville session scene, and began touring with Carrie Underwood. Heās since stopped road-tripping in favor of the studio, where heās a first-call player and his credits include recent work with David Crosby. The 30-year-veteran guitaristās current album, Demolition, A Collection of Short Jams, can be heard on SoundCloud, and heās got a popular YouTube channel, but you can hear him demo is own gear in this Rig Rundown, filmed at his home studio.
Brought to you by DāAddario XPND Pedalboard.
Golden Tone
Shawn has an extensive collection of guitars, but we narrowed our focus to the 6-strings he reaches for most often. The first entry is a 2010 PRS DGT, one of the companyās vintage-inclined models thatās all stock. All of his guitars are strung with DāAddario NYXL sets, gauged .010ā.046.
Callie Killer
Hereās an S-style designed by elite California builder James Tylerāan SE HSS from 2021. The axe sports JT 2250 Single-Coils and a JT Super Bridge.
Special Topper
Hereās the ultra-distinctive headstock on the James Tyler SE HSS.
Evolved Paul
This Gibson Les Paul R9 has been heavily modded but still retains its classic looks. Itās had a complete refinish include a neck reshaping, non-potted Custom Shop pickups, and a ā58 tailpiece.
Grey Duse
This 2022 Duesenberg Starplayer TV is all-stock, which means itās a semihollow with a GrandVintage Humbucker and a Domino P-90, a 25 1/2" scale length, and the Dusenberg Diamond Deluxe Tremolo.
S for Shure
Made in 2011, this Suhr Classic Pro Antique HSS has a 2-piece alder body, Suhr ML Single-Coils, a Suhr SSV bridge pickup, a maple C-profile neck, and a Gotoh bridgeāall calculated for vintage feel.
Revvād Up
Although Tubbs has a lot of amps and cabinets in his studio, for this Rig Rundown he played through two amps run in stereo. On the left side thereās a Revv D20 (switchable between 20 and 4 watts) with a 6V6 Power Section. Tubbs ran an XLR out via the ampās embedded Two Notes reactive load box with virtual cab options.
In the Red
On the right side, thereās a RedPlate Blues Machine 40-watt head with 6L6 Power tubes atop a matched cab. Itās routed to a UA OX Amp Top Box.
Tubbs' Tone Zone
His other amps include a Revv Generator 120, a Friedman Dirty Shirley 40, a Suhr Bella sans reverb, a Friedman BE 100 Deluxe, a Revv G20, a Divided By 13 LDW 17/39 and FTR 37, and a Suhr Badger 30.
Shawn Tubbs' Pedalboard
Shawnās board was built and designed by XAct Tone Solutions in Nashville, whose Barry OāNeal is one of PGās āState of the Stompā columnists. Its residents are: a The GigRig G3 switching system, a BigSky and TimeLine by Strymon, an Eventide H9, a KingTone Octaland Fuzz, a Pro Co Rat V2, an XTS-modified Boss GE-7 equalizer, a Greer Lightspeed Organic Overdrive, a Suhr Koji Comp, a Revv Shawn Tubbs Tilt Overdrive, a Lehle Volume Pedal, two Dunlop X(8)s, Strymon Zuma and Ojai Power Supplies, and an XAct Tone custom interface. For a detailed rundown of Shawnās signal flow and the dozen loop scenes he employs, take careful notes as you watch the rundown!