Echo & The Bunnymen Reschedule Show to Watch Soccer Game, Then Revert After Fan Backlash
Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Music News Echo & The Bunnymen
Liverpool rock legends Echo & The Bunnymen tried to reschedule one of their U.K. shows to watch their beloved Liverpool FC play in the Champions League Final, and fans weren’t too happy about the decision. After receiving a backlash online about the decision, the band decided to go ahead with the originally scheduled date. They’re still scheduled to perform at the Birmingham Symphony Hall on Saturday, May 26, but besides rescheduling the show, they apparently went to even greater lengths to figure out a way to see the game. According to a Facebook post, the band reached out to UEFA to try to reschedule the soccer match (which happens to be the biggest game of the year for European soccer fans).
The band announced their decision to move the Saturday show to Tuesday so they could watch the Reds take on Real Madrid, but it appears they quickly regretted that decision, posting on their Facebook page, “Both our fans and Liverpool FC are very close to our hearts and after much reflection we decided we couldn’t play a show during the Champions League Final. We asked UEFA to change the date of the match but they denied our request.”
After being flooded with negative comments, Echo and Co. announced on Facebook the next day that the show would go ahead as originally scheduled, but the announcement came after many fans had already canceled their travel plans. Frontman Ian McCulloch and guitarist Will Seargant expressed their frustration over the whole thing: “Mac and Will are deeply upset about the situation and are really sorry for any unnecessary disappointment caused.”
Echo & The Bunnymen are currently promoting their next release The Stars, The Oceans & The Moon, out on Oct. 5 via BMG, which will feature a mix of new material and “Bunnymen classics transformed … with strings and things attached.”
Find out where the band lands on Paste’s list of the 50 best post-punk albums of all-time and preorder their forthcoming release The Stars, The Oceans & The Moon here.