Fans visiting Robert Plant’s website over the past couple of days have been confronted with an all-black page showing three words in white, placed in the center: Any time now…
Clicking on the words—or anywhere on the page—reveals … nothing. There is no longer any front door entrance to Plant’s site (though we did find our way in). The obvious takeaway is that the website is simply down, undergoing maintenance or perhaps a complete overhaul.
But, what if it means something else? What if Plant is suggesting that “Any time now…” there will be a huge announcement, say, a Led Zeppelin reunion?
There’s no real reason to think that a Zep reunion of any sort is in the cards—nothing any of the band members have said recently would give fans hope. But on the other hand, there is Desert Trip.
Related: Robert Plant interviewed by legendary DJ Dennis Elsas
As you’ll recall, last October, the first Desert Trip festival in California featured Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, the Who, Bob Dylan, Roger Waters and Neil Young over a three-day period. The festival was a huge financial success and generally got good reviews for the way it was presented. How could the promoters possibly equal—or even top that—in 2017?
Two words: Led Zeppelin.
While there are plenty of other major rock acts that could draw many thousands of fans to the desert, none would come even close to generating the kind of buzz that a genuine Zeppelin reunion—with Jason Bonham replacing his late father on drums—would. The band reportedly turned down a massive offer to reunite for the first Desert Trip, but now, perhaps, they have finally agreed that it’s time.
On the other hand, maybe that’s not it at all—wishful thinking isn’t going to make the magic happen. Plant, who has always been the holdout, is known to be working on a new album, and “Any time now…” could simply be a reference to the fact that he’s about to break the news that it’s been completed.
It’s been 10 years since the three surviving original members of the band—Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones—performed together. Since then they’ve received Kennedy Center Honors recognition and their place as one of classic rock’s all-time most revered bands has not diminished one bit.
With the band’s 50th anniversary approaching in 2018, a high-profile reunion would certainly be a great way to celebrate. Will they give their fans a whole lotta love or is this just some kind of communication breakdown?
We will see…any time now.
Watch Led Zeppelin perform “Since I’ve Been Loving You” in 2007
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