The musicians of the Swiss rock band Gotthard have decided to continue on despite the death of their leader Steve Lee (pictured below).

The group's management have already received applications that all members of Gotthard will study in the weeks to come.

The band says, "After the tragic accident of our friend and singer Steve Lee, who died October the 5th 2010 in the USA, we withdrew ourselves until after the New Year and took a break. Now we are back again with plans for the future and a difficult task to fulfil."

Guitarist Leo Leoni (small picture): "...after the very emotional days after Steve's death, it was important for us to first of all try and cope with the pain, give it a place to rest and find ourselves again. And so we sat down in the New Year and tried to look at the new situation 'soberly' ...it was obvious to all of us very quickly that we had to go on - GOTTHARD is not a job for us... GOTTHARD IS OUR LIFE!!"

Drummer Hena Habegger: "...of course it can only go on if we are lucky to find the right guy. We're not only searching for a voice which can bring our songs alive again... we are looking much more for a singer who also humanly fits with us - with the GOTTHARD Family!"

Guitarist Freddy Scherer: "...for all of us it's a big challenge and it will not be easy at all. But we have good faith and we do what we do best - make music!"

Bassist Marc Lynn: "...A big thank you to all the fans. Your concern, cards, e-mails and entries in the guestbook have given us the supporting power to deal with what has happened better and to gather new courage for the future."