DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN guitarist Jeff Tuttle, whose been smashing away at his axe for the better part of the last half-decade, is leaving the band.

He has quit New Jersey's noisiest band in favor of going back to school to pursue his film studies.

The band shared the news of Tuttle's exit on its Facebook page, thanking him for his contributions and his services over the years and wishing him the best, so it's apparent that there's no drama surrounding his exit. Just a desire to do new things.

Tuttle joined Dillinger in 2007 and played on the band's 2010 Option Paralysis album. He is also a member of Old Gods, but there's no word if he'll also be leaving that project.

A replacement has not yet been named, but the DEP are working on new material and writing, so perhaps the search for a new guitarist is on the backburner for the time being.

For his part, Tuttle revealed his plans to go back to school and to continue working on music in other projects. He also left the door wide open for a possible return to Dillinger in the future. Since, you know, there is more face-riffing to be done.