The music world was shook yesterday morning upon hearing the news of Chris Cornell’s untimely passing.

Cornell–along with his Soundgarden bandmates–were in the midst of a spring tour, having performed at Detroit’s Fox Theatre just hours before the musician’s death. The next stop on their itinerary was Rock on the Range, a wildly popular rock n’ roll festival held annually in Columbus, OH. The band was slated to headline the sold-out affair Friday night, with bands Līve and Bush taking the stage before them.

Upon hearing the news, Rock on the Range organizers released a statement on their website yesterday morning:

“We are devastated to hear about the sudden passing of Chris Cornell last night. He was a true hero to music, the voice of a generation. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and the entire music community. The voice of an angel, now watching down on us as we celebrate and honor him all weekend long.”

On the festival’s official Facebook page hours later they shared a bit more info surrounding Friday night schedule changes, telling attendees they appreciate their patience and understanding and “will have more to share in the near future.”

Now, with just 10 hours until the main event, it appears that fans will have to wait until this evening to find out exactly who or what will fill the large lineup gap.

The online reaction from festival-goers has been mixed: some are traveling far distances and angry with the statement’s ambiguity, or upset that they paid for a Friday headliner and now will no longer have one. Others are looking forward to coming together in celebration and mourning of the musician that they so admired.

It is unclear whether Rock on the Range will offer refunds to folks with single-day passes to Friday night. Soundgarden was also slated to perform at KPNT Pointfest on May 20 and Rocklahoma on May 27, in addition to shows in Denver, Houston and Dallas later this month.

(Image courtesy Andreas Eldh via Flickr.)