Epica singer to be replaced for tour

Dutch symphonic metallers Epica - whose lead singer, Simone Simons, was recently infected with the difficult-to-treat Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria (MRSA) - have issued the following update on their Web site :

"The extra weeks of rest, as a result of the cancellation of most of this month's shows, have helped Simone a lot in recovering from her MRSA infection. Three out of the four aspects in her latest test already showed negative, which is a major step forward! Unfortunately, this also means that one of these still showed positive. As optimistic as we may be about these final test results, we just cannot risk her health by having her go on tour this soon already.


Simone

"We have come a great way already and we must continue this way to overcome this. Therefore we have decided to ask our good friend Amanda Somerville to substitute for Simone on our upcoming USA tour. As you all know, Amanda has been involved with Epica from the beginning as a vocal coach, and can also be heard on every album as a backing vocalist, as well as part of our choir.

"We are very happy that Amanda is willing to help us out on this and we are most positive that these extra weeks of rest will give Simone enough time to fully recover from this infection so that she can join us on stage again during our Dutch club shows."


Amanda

Originally from Michigan, Amanda has resided and worked mainly in Germany and the Netherlands since 1999. She's worked with several bands in the metal scene, including Edguy, After Forever, Epica, and Kamelot. Her solo work is of the pop-rock variety.

Amanda commented about the news on her MySpace: "Simone and the guys of Epica are very good friends of mine. I have worked with them since their first album and on every album/DVD since their beginnings as the band we know and love that is Epica today. It is for that reason that Simone and the rest of the band have asked me to accompany Epica on the tour while Simone is ill. We all realize that this is a delicate matter and that Epica fans will be disappointed not to be able to see their beloved Simone, however I hope that you can understand the special circumstances and recognize that this is the only alternative to canceling the tour completely.

"It's important to me that you know that is in no way the band's nor my intention to replace Simone. She is one-of-a-kind, invaluable to Epica and indeed their front woman and the face of the band. I assure you that I will do my very best to do justice to the performance you have come to expect from Epica and give it my all. Since I co-wrote many of the songs and was Simone's vocal coach during the recordings of the albums, I feel as comfortable performing the songs as if they were my own."

Hopefully fans will accept Amanda as a replacement for Simone. Her voice is equally enchanting, and she's not bad to look at either. If anyone can live up to the standards Simone has set, it is her.

Here are Epica's North American tour dates with Symphony X and Into Eternity:

4.4 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
4.5 - New York, NY @ Nokia Theater Times Square
4.6 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Trocadero
4.8 - Quebec City, QC @ Imperial de Quebec
4.9 - Montreal, QC @ Medley
4.10 - London, ON @ Embassy
4.11 - Toronto, ON @ The Opera House
4.12 - Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's
4.13 - Mokena, IL @ The Pearl Room
4.16 - Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
4.17 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
4.18 - San Francisco, CA @ Slim's
4.19 - West Hollywood, CA @ House of Blues
4.20 - San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
4.22 - Santa Ana, CA @ Galaxy Theatre
4.23 - Tempe, AZ @ The Clubhouse
4.25 - San Antonio, TX @ White Rabbit
4.26 - Houston, TX @ Meridian
4.27 - Ft. Worth, TX @ Ridglea Theater
4.29 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room
4.30 - St. Petersburg, FL @ The State Theatre
5.1 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
5.2 - Charlotte, NC @ Tremont Music Hall
5.3 - West Springfield, VA @ Jaxx

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