Members of Iron Cross pose for a photo. The band has announced a Myanmar tour that will take in 30 venues.

FOLLOWING the passionate welcome of his fans at the fund raising concert held in August last year, rock singer Lay Phyu has revealed that he will be returning to the stage in 2009.

Lay Phyu and his band Iron Cross have promised to perform an Alpine Music Tour 2009, which is being sponsored by Loi Hein Co., Ltd. The tour will travel to more than 30 venues within Myanmar and will even touch down in the delta and border regions.

News of the tour has come as a surprise to many since the singer’s declaration four years ago that he would stop performing live when he turned 40. That was on May 19 in 2005. Lay Phyu will turn 44 this coming May.

“Though I decided not to perform live in these years, my soul was always joined with each performance of the band. What persuaded me were the fans. When I performed at the fund raising concert, I felt close to my fans again and really was heartened to see their encouragement,” said Lay Phyu.

Fellow singer Myo Gyi has also welcomed the return of his senior and remarked that the band had become ‘perfect’ because of him.

“IC band is like a travelling bus. We are travelling on this bus but without him we are trying to drive it without a battery. Now, we can continue our journey with full energy,” Myo Gyi said.

In addition to Lay Phyu, the band’s permanent singers: A Nge, Myo Gyi and Y Wine will accompany the band during the tour. Famous singers such as R Zarni, Nor Naw, Htun Eindra Bo, Chit Thu Wai and Khin Phone will also perform occasionally as guests.

Surprisingly, the tour will be a first for the band, who plan on performing in several towns throughout the country such as Mandalay, Taunggyi, Pathein, Hpa-an and Myintkyina.

“Over the years, we expected to go on tour and wanted to perform… but we have had to wait for over a decade to get this chance. Now we have it,” said Lay Phyu.

The tour will kick-off with performances at the Sedona Hotel in Mandalay on January 24 -25. The tickets are K30,000, K20,000 and K12,000.

Loi Hein Co., Ltd, which produces Alpine purified drinking water, will provide sponsorship of K5 million per concert.