The band said Nic Maeder had the courage needed to follow in Steve Lee's footsteps
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Hard rock band Gotthard have found a new singer to replace former frontman Steve Lee who died in a road accident last year.
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swissinfo.ch and agencies
Gotthard, one of Switzerland’s most successful bands, said they were overwhelmed by the “huge” number of singers who applied from all over the world to join the line-up.
The band members unanimously opted for Lausanne-born Nic Maeder, a “great singer and fantastic musician” who grew up in Australia and Switzerland.
In a message to fans on their website, bassist Marc Lynn said: “A lot of courage is needed to step into the footsteps of such a great singer. For that, Nic has earned our respect. Let’s never forget this and make Nic welcome in the family.”
The band are offering a free download of a new song with Maeder on vocals and are in the studio working on a new album that will be released in 2012.
Lee died on a motorcycle tour of the United States in October 2010. In the freak accident, a truck lost control on a wet motorway and drove into a group of parked motorcycles, one of which hit the singer who had stopped to put on rain gear.
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