Richey Edwards, guitarist for Welsh band Manic Street Preachers is officially presumed dead, 13 years after he went missing.
His parents Graham and Sherry Edwards have been granted a court order allowing him to be declared presumed dead.It has long been assumed that he took his own life, although there is no evidence for what happened to him.
Manic Street Preachers publicist Terri Hall told The Mail on Sunday, “This is the parents' choice and the band is happy to go with what the parents decide is best.
“We all dream Richey will come back one day. You hope he is still around somewhere, but it is no longer a realistic hope and if this offers some kind of closure then the band will be content with that.”
In the meantime, the Preachers are back in the studio with producer Steve Albini (Nirvana, The Pixies) recording an album from lyrics that Edwards had written before his disappearance.
A note on the band’s website say they’re “recording live - to tape - analogue - no digital hiss - no Pro Tools - no safety nets. Quite scary, daunting but invigorating.”
The band have a couple of working titles for the album, including ‘Journal For Plague Lovers’ and ‘I Know I Believe In Nothing, But It’s My Nothing’.
The album is expected to be released in April or May next year.
