The Last Dinner Party have cancelled a number of European tour dates, citing “emotional, mental, physical burnout”.
READ MORE: “Pressure cooker” impact of touring on mental health “needs addressing” – but help is at hand
The announcement comes after the band took to social media last month to announce the last-minute postponement of their Cardiff concert after a member fell ill.
Just days later, they confirmed the cancellation of more concerts on their UK and Ireland tour for the same reason. Gigs in Birmingham, Nottingham, Bristol and Southampton were scrapped, with the band issuing refunds to fans.
Now, Abigail Morris and co. have taken to X/Twitter to tell fans that a number of dates on the European tour have been axed due to burnout.
“As we came to the end of the UK/Ireland tour, we put some time aside to discuss how to approach the upcoming European tour. The burnout we’re experiencing — emotionally, mentally, and physically— is something we’re taking very seriously,” the statement read.
“After much consideration, we have come to the difficult decision to finish the tour with the last show in Prague. This means that we are sadly cancelling our November headline shows in Vienna, Zurich, Parma, Luxembourg and Tilburg.”
— The Last Dinner Party (@lastdinnerparty) October 25, 2024
They continued: “This year has been incredible for us but undeniably exhausting and we have found that we need to take responsibility over the amount of shows that we can do. Pushing ourselves past breaking point is not a fair or wise decision for anyone. We hope that you can understand that our reason for cancelling these shows is to protect our well-being and give the very best performances you all deserve.
“Moving forward and armed with the knowledge of our limits, we are working with our team to make sure we only book tours that we are capable of fulfilling at the highest potential. We never want to find ourselves in this situation again.”
Elsewhere in the update, the members thanked fans for their support and said the announcement comes now so they can give ticketholders “as much advance notice as possible”.
“We are truly saddened to not be seeing you this time,” they concluded, advising those with tickets to the cancelled shows to go to the point of purchase to get their refunds.
The comments about prioritising well-being of the members in the post is something that the band have alluded to recently. Following the cancellation of several UK shows earlier this month, the band said: “TLDP is here today because of you and we want to keep touring and sharing our music with you for a long long time – but in order to do that we have to make serious decisions like these now so that our long term health doesn’t suffer.”
The Last Dinner Party. Credit: Matthew Baker/Getty Images
The physical and mental impact of touring on artists is a topic that has been addressed countless times. Last year, for instance, figures from the music industry spoke to NME about the “dangerous” impact that touring can have.
Research shared by mental health charity Mind showed that people working in the music industry are “more prone to mental health problems than the general population”, with “musicians being up to three times more likely to suffer from depression”. Financial pressures, isolation, lifestyle, hectic schedules and addiction are often named as factors.
Recent years have seen the likes of Lewis Capaldi, Sam Fender, Shawn Mendes and Wet Leg all cancel shows while citing mental health as the reason. Another to take themselves off the road was Editors guitarist Justin Lockey, who sat out of the band’s summer 2022 dates due to “struggles with anxiety”. Speaking to NME, Lockey detailed what led to his decision – and what he’s done since to improve his lifestyle.
More recently, Garbage frontwoman Shirely Manson highlighted a similar struggle following the band’s numerous tour dates across the summer.
In August, she confirmed Garbage would be axing the remaining 2024 shows and later underwent surgery. “I returned home from tour an absolute hot mess. So broken that my poor husband had to push me through Heathrow and LAX airports in a wheelchair,” she said.
Around the same time, Catfish And The Bottlemen were forced to cancel their first show in Ireland in five years just minutes before doors were set to open due to illness. They would later quietly cancel their tours in Australia and the United States.
The Last Dinner Party’s tour dates came in celebration of their BRIT Award-winning, Mercury Prize-nominated debut album ‘Prelude To Ecstasy’.
In a four-star review of their critically acclaimed first album, NME shared: “Some may choose to posit the band’s success as an antidote to the intense scrutiny – about their rise, appearance and decision to make music without a ‘serious’ intention – they’ve received in their early career. But take all of that away, and you’re still left with fantastic songs that are easy to embrace and return to. It’s hard to miss all the things they’re doing right.”
Speaking about the success of ‘the album on the Mercury Prize 2024 red carpet, bassist Georgia Davies told NME: “A lot of people seem to connect with the themes of the album. There are kids who were ostracised in school for their sexuality or the way that they presented [themselves] with their appearance or the music they were into. They now feel like they’ve found a sense of community in us. That’s always a very beautiful and very moving thing to experience when people tell you [that]. It’s very emotional.”
The Last Dinner Party recently released an album of covers but unfortunately, fans are still waiting on a polished version of ‘Nothing Matters’ in Simlish.
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