KING DIAMOND has tapped Swedish musician Pontus Egberg (THE POODLES, LION'S SHARE, ZAN CLAN) to fill in on bass for the band's upcoming shows following the recent departure of Hal Patino. A photo of Egberg rehearsing with the rest of the KING DIAMOND band earlier today can be seen above. Patino released a statement yesterday calling KING DIAMOND's frontman and namesake "a tired, bitter, old man" and denying that he has a drug problem, despite the singer's implications to the contrary. After King announced Hal's exit from KING DIAMOND, Patino posted a message of his own claiming that he was offered a "totally ridiculous" salary for the band's five shows this summer, calling the move "disrespectful" and insisting that he quit the band in disgust two days before King announced Patino was "relieved of his duties" as the bassist for KING DIAMOND. King then responded with a lengthy posting on his Facebook page, accusing Patino of "putting out extreme lies" about King's character and slamming Hal for asking for more money at the last minute after the rest of the band and the crew already accepted the same salary as they had received for last year's European tour. KING DIAMOND's next live appearance is scheduled for July 25 at Gröna Lund in Stockholm, Sweden. KING DIAMOND in December 2012 signed a new three-album worldwide deal with Metal Blade Records. The band is expected to begin work on a new CD later in the year for a 2015 release.
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