DIO DISCIPLES - "We are not attempting to replace Ronnie or to run off with his music"

The Gauntlet caught up with DIO DISCIPLES yesterday as they rehearsed for some upcoming European Summer festival dates. When asked about picking a singer to fill Ronnie James Dio's spot, keyboardist Scott Warren stated "We are not attempting to replace Ronnie [James Dio] or to run off with his music with a new singer as if we are trying to replace the legend of this band. It was a very difficult decision. We thought about a lot of big names and singers that have tried to emulate Ronnie. Ripper [Tim Owens] is his own singer and has his own style. We took a lot of care in not treading on sacred ground. Ronnie wrote these songs to be sung a certain way but then if you imitate Ronnie it becomes a tribute band and we are not a tribute band." You can watch the entire chat below. Photos of the band rehearsing can be viewed here. DIO DISCIPLES tour dates: June 08 - Moscow, Russia - A2 Club June 09 - St. Petersburg, Russia - Kosmonayt June 10 - Tampere, Finland - Sauna Open Air June 11 - East Midlands, UK - Download Festival June 12 - Newcastle, UK - Academy June 14 - Glasgow, Scotland - Garage June 15 - Wolverhampton, UK - Sleigh Rooms June 16 - Manchester, UK - Academy 2 June 17 - London, UK - Islington Academy June 19 - Uden, Netherlands - De Pul June 20 - Aschafensburg, Germany - Colos Saal June 21 - Hamburg, Germany - Markthalle June 22 - Berlin, Germany - C Club June 24 - Dessel, Belgium - Graspop Metal Meeting June 25 - Bochum, Germany - Matrix June 27 - Vienna, Austria - Szene Wien June 28 - Lucerne, Switzerland - Konzerthaus Schuur Dio Disciples is the new project featuring former Dio members Simon Wright (drums), Craig Goldy (guitar) and Scott Warren (keyboards) alongside bassist James Lomenzo (MEGADETH, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, WHITE LION) and singers Tim "Ripper" Owens (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, BEYOND FEAR, JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH) and Toby Jepson (LITTLE ANGELS, GUN).