Pearl Jam have postponed the start of their Gigaton world tour, due to “this global health crisis [that] is now beginning to affect all of our lives.” The band announced the news on March 9, noting, “we have and will always keep the safety and well-being of our supporters as top priority.” The North American concerts were to have taken place between March 18 and April 19. They’ll be re-scheduled at a later date.
PJ’s tour is one of many that have been affected by the Coronavirus outbreak. The timing is particularly tough for the promotion of the band’s new studio album, Gigaton, which arrives March 27.
In a post on the group’s Facebook page, Eddie Vedder wrote, “As residents of the city of Seattle, we’ve been hit hard and have witnessed firsthand how quickly these disastrous situations can escalate. Our kids’ schools have closed along with universities and businesses. It’s been brutal and it’s gonna get worse before it gets better.
“Large gatherings [are] high on the list of things to avoid.
“Communing in large groups is a huge part of what we do as a band and the tour we’ve been busy planning for months is now in jeopardy.
“We look forward to our next concerts and the ability to gather together and play loud songs as energized as ever.”
The posted noted, “Ticketmaster will be in touch shortly, but current tickets will be honored for the new dates.”
Unaffected – for now, are the band’s European concerts, scheduled to take place in June and July 23, as well as an appearance in late September at the Ohana Festival in California, which Vedder founded. Tickets for those performances are available at Ticketmaster.
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Watch the video for “Superblood Wolfman” from Gigaton
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