MONSTER MAGNET was forced to cut its fall 2024 35th-anniversary European tour short due to illness of band leader Dave Wyndorf.
On Monday, the 67-year-old musician, who has battled a number of health issues over the years, released the following statement: “It is with regret that I have to announce cutting this tour short by 10 shows.
“I started the tour off with a mild cold that worsened to the point of blowing my voice out more than a few times and continuing would not only seriously damage the vocal cords but sound like shit as well. So in the interest of both health and quality I’m pulling the plug.
“My sincere apologies go out to ticket holders of these canceled shows. We’ll surely make up for them when we return. Finally, many thanks for everybody who came out. You ROCK!”
In the Facebook group Bullgod Disciples – Monster Magnet Fan Group, which is the biggest MONSTER MAGNET fan group, the band’s tour manager Jens “Bobo” Bornhöft reportedly posted that the Munich show on October 11 would be the last of the tour because Dave was too sick to continue. This came just a day after a Vienna show was initially announced as being canceled, only to go ahead at the last minute, and a week after a Paris gig was cut short 20 minutes into the set. At the concerts that ended up being played, fans were concerned about the fact that Wyndorf was sitting on a high chair through the whole performance and the guitar effects pedalboard was lifted on a platform, so he could switch them with hands.
On October 12, Wyndorfshared the following statement regarding the tour cancelation: “Hey guys. Try as I have to push through this tour my health and voice have only gotten weaker. My hypothyroidism is shutting me down to the point where I’m dizzy and exhausted no matter HOW much sleep I get. As Bobo knows I can’t walk a flight of stairs without running out of breath. My voice is fucked as well. Any rest I can get is not enough to repair it properly. In short, we gotta get home ASAP because I’m just fucking this whole thing up. I’m sorry to put you though so much trouble…”
Led by Wyndorf, MONSTER MAGNET was formed in New Jersey in 1989 and is known for its signature heavy and spacy sound, a style which is heavily influenced by early metal bands of the 1970s.
Considered one of the most creative, diverse, and hard rocking of contemporary American bands, MONSTER MAGNET is credited with pioneering “stoner rock”. They’re noted for the uniqueness of their sound, their authenticity as a band, their ability to grow musically, and the intelligence and wit of their songs, fusing garage rock, progressive rock, heavy metal, punk, and psychedelia.
With more than a dozen studio releases across the last three decades, MONSTER MAGNET‘s fourth album, “Powertrip”, smashed its way into the charts in 1998 — going gold in just six months of release and was crowned the album of the year in Kerrang! and Metal Hammer, helping to launch the band into the top tier of rock.