Poland's DECAPITATED have issued the following update from guitarist Waclaw "Vogg" Kieltyka:

"It’s time to come back!

After a two-year break, Decapitated is coming back with new members. The official new lineup for Decapitated will be announced at the end of December.

As you all know, the decision to continue the band was really, really hard for me, but everything I do now is to keep Decapitated alive. [Vocalist] Covan’s situation has not improved much and he is still in bed and unable to function on his own. He still fights to recover as we speak and we are all still 100% behind him and hope for the best. It has been the hardest thing for me to move on without [brother and drummer] Vitek by my side, but he would have wanted me to continue with the band.

Finally, I have found some great musicians who can continue the work of Vitek and Covan. At the beginning of April, Decapitated will start to play our first reunion shows. We will visit the biggest cities in Australia and play some of the biggest summer festivals in Europe. Don’t worry, we won’t forget about the UK! After this, the band will concentrate on the making of a new album! I would like to thank all the people who have supported us all this time."

Maurizio Iacono of the artist management firm Hard Impact Music adds: "I feel very privileged to have been given the management duties of guiding this great band’s future. Decapitated was a band on the verge of greatness until tragedy hit them and the band’s world stopped suddenly. Today, we have a man on a quest to bring the glory back that was taken from them prematurely. Vogg, the band’s last remaining founding member, has had the gut-wrenching task of forming a new lineup for Decapitated. You can bet that the mission has been accomplished and in honor of the fallen, their legacies will be given the justice they deserve. Our job at Hard Impact is to make sure that Decapitated are guided the right way back to the top."

Gerardo Martínez, Nuclear Blast USA’s Label Manager comments: “I don’t think there’s anyone happier to know that the legacy of Decapitated will continue and the fact that Vogg has overcome the biggest obstacle of his life. We all at Nuclear Blast are extremely excited about the news and know that 2010 and beyond will bring a new chapter for Decapitated in the shape of live shows and the imminent new album. The masters of modern technical death metal are back!”

Decapitated’s Australian tour dates and Metalfest Open Air festival appearances are as follows:

2010 Australian Tour Dates:

April

1 - The Transmission Room - Auckland, New Zealand
2 - The Esplanade Hotel - Melbourne, Australia
3 - The Gaelic Club - Sydney, Australia
4 - The Hi Fi Bar - Brisbane, Australia
5 - Fowlers Live - Adelaide, Australia
6 - Black Betty’s - Perth, Australia

2010 European Festivals:

May

13 - Metalfest Open Air - Mining, Austria
14 - Metalfest Open Air - Pratteln, Switzerland
15 - Metalfest Open Air - Dessau, Germany
22 - Metalfest Open Air - Budapest, Hungary
23 - Metalfest Open Air - Pilsen, Czech Republic

A North American tour is on the horizon for the summer of 2010. More Decapitated tour dates to come.

More on Decapitated at www.decapitatedband.net, www.myspace.com/decapitated.