Vicious Rumors guitarist Geoff Thorpe has posted a message about late singer Carl Albert, who died 20 years ago today. Albert was the band’s vocalist from 1986-1995 and performed on the albums Digital Dictator, Vicious Rumors, Welcome To The Ball, and Word Of Mouth

“20 years ago on April 22nd 1995 the world lost one of the greatest singers and frontmen of all time! For Larry Howe, Tommy Sisco, Mark McGee, Steve Smyth and I we also lost our dear brother and the voice of VR !

“Carl Albert was truly a superstar! More than that: he was a kind, thoughtful and extremely funny man who was loved deeply from family, friends and fans worldwide!! Carl and I were writing songs for the next VR album Something Burning when he passed. We were both excited about taking VR to the next level!

“We talked about letting nothing stand in our way!! Never giving up!! We wanted to keep the VR sound harder, heavy and classic! With that spirit the band has carried on to great highs!! He would have been so proud to see us keep the mighty VR ball rolling and performing around the world!!

“I can only imagine how proud he would have been to see his son Keven perform at the Keep It True Festival in 2011 and again at the Bang Your Head festival in 2013 in front of thousands. Well Brother, we did it! There's still a long way to go!! VR is in pre-production for our 12th studio album and heads to Europe this summer.

“We talk about Carl every day and celebrate his life all the time! It was an honor to work with him but most of all, to have him as our dear brother. His music lives on and we will always miss him.

“Today, VR and Metal fans around the world pay tribute to a one of a kind...the great Carl Albert...rest in peace, brother.”