"Steve's been suffering with an acute throat condition since before we kicked off the tour with Def Leppard," the members of Journey said in a prepared statement. "We were hoping he'd be in well condition to handle the rigors of the road but unfortunately it appears to be a chronic condition requiring total voice rest. We all wish Steve a speedy recovery."

The band is apparently leaving the door open for Augieri's return, as a press release from the group's publicist says that the singer's condition will be "closely monitored by his physician to determine when he may be able to rejoin the tour."

The move follows a controversy that recently erupted on various Journey websites and message boards after a Journey fan accused Augieri of using pre-recorded vocal tracks during the group's concerts, and launched a blog dedicated to exposing the singer's alleged lip-syncing. Dwyer & Michaels, a morning-radio duo in Davenport, IA, picked up on the story and posted at their website clips that they say prove the lip-syncing allegations.

Augieri replaced original Journey frontman Steve Perry back in the late '90s. Perry sang on the band's best-known songs, which include a string of late-'70s and early '80s hits such as "Don't Stop Believin'," "Wheel in the Sky," "Any Way You Want It" and "Open Arms." "Remember Me," a song that Journey contributed to the 1998 soundtrack for the film "Armageddon," was the band's first release to feature Augieri.

Soto, who got his start fronting guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen's band in the mid-'80s, previously worked with Journey guitarist Neal Schon in a side project dubbed Soul SirkUS. He has spent a number of years helming the group Talisman, and has also released several solo albums.

Journey fans in Bristow, VA, will see Soto make his Journey debut when the band hits the stage at Nissan Pavilion Friday night (7/7). The show is the next scheduled stop on the band's tour with Def Leppard, which is scheduled to run through late September. Details are shown below.

Journey's most recent studio set is last year's "Generations." Produced by Kevin Elson--who also produced Journey's multi-platinum "Escape," "Departure" and "Frontiers" albums, as well the double-platinum live set "Captured"--"Generations" is the band's first collection of all-new material since its 2002, four-song EP, "Red 13."

Original members Neal Schon (guitar) and Ross Valory (bass), along with longtime members Deen Castronovo (drums) and Jonathan Cain (keyboards), round out the lineup.