THE BEAST

Live music's premier hologram production company   Eyellusion   today revealed initial dates for   "Dio Returns: The World Tour" , featuring a hologram of   Ronnie James Dio   reunited with the late rock star's former bandmates from the   DIO   band. The tour will make more than eighty stops around the globe, kicking off in Helsinki, Finland on November 30. It marks the first tour of its kind, breaking new ground just as   Dio   did throughout an accomplished career as a lead singer and songwriter in defining bands such as   RAINBOW ,   BLACK SABBATH   and   DIO .

The   "Dio Returns"   tour will also make stops throughout Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Paraguay, United Kingdom, Venezuela and other countries, with dates to be announced. The tour is expected to come to the United States in spring 2018 and play festivals globally during the summer.

The   Ronnie James Dio   hologram will perform for the majority of the show, treating fans to an alternating set list that will feature songs such as   "Holy Diver" ,   "Rainbow In The Dark" ,   "We Rock" ,   "King Of Rock And Roll" ,   BLACK SABBATH 's   "Neon Knights"   and   "Heaven And Hell"   and   RAINBOW 's   "Man On The Silver Mountain"   and more.

In August 2016,   Eyellusion   surprised fans when it debuted the   Ronnie James Dio hologram at the   Wacken Open Air   heavy metal festival in Germany. The hologram was also tapped to open the 2017   Pollstar Awards , wowing bookers and promoters in attendance and creating excitement for the forthcoming tour. The   "Dio Returns"   tour will feature   Dio 's actual live vocals, backed by a live band consisting of former   DIO   members   Simon Wright   (drums),   Craig Goldy   (guitar) and   Scott Warren   (keyboards) alongside bassist   Bjorn Englen   ( YNGWIE MALMSTEEN ). Veteran metal vocalist   Tim "Ripper" Owens   ( JUDAS PRIEST ,   ICED EARTH ,   YNGWIE MALMSTEEN ) will also perform, with singer   Oni Logan   ( LYNCH MOB ) also joining on select dates.

"Working with   Eyellusion   over the past year and a half to turn our dream of this tour into a reality has been absolutely incredible," said   Wendy Dio , who managed   Ronnie James Dio   throughout his career and is overseeing every aspect of the   "Dio Returns"   tour. "No one has ever been able to put together a show and tour like this and we like to think of   Ronnie   smiling down as we continue to find new ways to share his music with all generations of fans. We cannot wait to be able to finally bring this incredible experience to   Ronnie 's fans around the world."

"We've really only given   DIO   fans a small taste of what they're going to see on this tour," said   Jeff Pezzuti , CEO and founder of   Eyellusion . "We are creating a completely new hologram of   Ronnie , designing an amazing light show and continuing to add more dates around the world to make sure that as many fans as possible get an opportunity to take part in this experience."

Eyellusion 's holograms and live productions are supported by a team of live music and special effects veterans, including   Wendy Dio , who leads industry relations, veteran rock manager   Todd Singerman , who supports artist relations, and   Kenny Aronoff , world renowned live and studio drummer, who supports business development and technical live production efforts.   Chad Finnerty   at   Digital Frontier FX   is   Eyellusion 's exclusive content creation partner, working directly with clients to bring every project vision to the live stage. Legendary Hollywood digital effects executive   Scott Ross   advises   Eyellusion   on overall content creation for all productions.

Eyellusion   is actively raising funding to secure additional artist rights and finance projects and tours in its growing pipeline.

"Dio Returns"   tour dates

Nov. 30 - Helsinki, Finland @ The Circus
Dec. 03 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Fryshuset
Dec. 04 - Oslo, Norway @ Rockefeller Music Hall
Dec. 06 - Warsaw, Poland @ Progresja
Dec. 13 - Barcelona, Spain @ Bikini
Dec. 15 - Santander, Spain @ Escenario Santander
Dec. 17 - Bucharest, Romania @ Arelene Romane
Dec. 20 - Antwerp, Belgium @ Trix
Dec. 21 - Tilburg, Netherlands @ 013

Via Blabbermouth