Spandau Ballet are looking for a new singer to fill the gap left by former band member Tony Hadley, Martin Kemp has confirmed.
Hadley announced he was quitting the new wave group in July but did not give a reason.
Bassist Kemp said the search has already begun to find someone to fill his shoes.
He said: “I will tell you the truth, we are in rehearsals in a couple of weeks trying out new singers.
“So, we’re moving it on, and it’s moving on pretty fast.
“For me, this is probably the most excited I’ve been about the band for such a long time that we’ve got all of this freedom, we don’t know what’s laying ahead and it’s exciting.”
Speaking after a screening of a new documentary about the remastering of the band’s album Through The Barricades, featuring extensive footage of the group at the time they made the 1986 record, saxophonist Steve Norman said: “He decided he didn’t want to be (a member of the band) any more, it’s as simple as that.
“There is no ulterior motive, there is nothing behind the scenes, he just didn’t want to be in the band any more and that’s it. We have to respect that and wish him luck and move on.”
Hadley announced his departure from the band on Twitter on July 3 but guitarist and songwriter Gary Kemp said they knew he wanted to leave two years earlier.
A statement from Tony Hadley :- I am no longer a member of the band Spandau Ballet & will not be performing with the band in the future. pic.twitter.com/KcuNGTtSFn
— Tony Hadley (@TheTonyHadley) July 3, 2017
He said: “Just for clarification, that tweet that came out a couple of months ago, we all knew that way before then.
“Tony told us pretty much in Hong Kong that he didn’t want to do it two years ago.”
However, he said the band still has a bright future without Hadley.
He added: “We’ve all been doing our own thing and then we spent some time doing this, and we like each other’s company. This is still the engine of Spandau Ballet.
“I think we still sound like Spandau Ballet when we play together. This is a band that started off with me and Steve, and then John, and we’ve grown and moved and we’ve been together for 40 years, and it seems a shame, I don’t think we are ready to give it up now.”
Spandau Ballet were formed in 1979 and through the 1980s they enjoyed huge success with classic hits like True, Gold and Only When You Leave.
The band split in 1990 but reformed nearly 20 years later in 2009, releasing a new album – Once More – and hitting the road again.
Norman continued: “It’s a new chapter and as frustrating as it was for us, and it’s sad, and it’s sad for a lot of people especially the fans, but it also is for us.
“Our hands have been tied as well because obviously Tony had other ideas and we had other plans, and it just didn’t match up.
“At least now he’s focused on what he wants to do and now we can focus on what we want to do, and we are not going to replace Tony, you can’t fill those particular boots, you just have to find someone that can manage.”
He added it will be difficult to find someone to match up to Hadley but would not be drawn on whether the new singer will be a familiar face.
He said: “It’s going to be a bit tricky anyway, Tony has got a massive vocal range but someone different, someone that is bringing their own personality to it, which can cover those things.”
Gary added: “We are still in the process of looking but we are actively looking because we don’t want to finish. Spandau Ballet are bigger than one member.”
The remastered and extended anniversary edition of Through The Barricades will be released on September 22.
