Mastodon has canceled a raft of international tour dates, citing a “personal family matter.” The Atlanta metal band has scrapped a run of 16 shows which was due to start Aug. 7 at the Heavy Montreal Fest in Montreal and roll across Europe before coming to a halt Sept. 3 at Gazi Hall Entertainment Stage in Athens, Greece.
Also, the outfit’s scheduled performance Sept. 5 in Iceland will now be slotted into Reykjavik’s Rokkjotnar Festival on Dec. 5.
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Mastodon’s Brent Hinds: ‘I F–ing Hate Heavy Metal’
Mastodon’s sixth and most recent studio set, 2014’s Once More ‘Round the Sun, opened at No. 1 on Top Rock Albums and nailed its highest rank on the Billboard 200 at No. 6.
Sun marked something of a change in musical direction for Mastodon, whose previous, and considerably heavier album, 2011’s The Hunter, peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard 200. Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds admitted in a recent interview that he “never really liked heavy metal in the first place.”
According to a statement, Mastodon will return to the road for Latin America dates beginning in late September.
Mastodon’s canceled tour dates:
Aug. 7 — Heavy Montreal Fest, Montreal, QC
Aug. 12 — Oya Festival, Oslo, Norway
Aug. 14 — Summer Breeze Fest, Dinkelsbuehl, Germany
Aug. 15 — Elb-Riot Festival, Hamburg, Germany
Aug. 16 — Bregenz Conrad Sohm, Dornbirn, Austria
Aug. 18 — Essigfabrik, Cologne, Germany
Aug. 19 — Kesselhaus, Berlin, Germany
Aug. 20 — Cabaret Vert, Charleville Mezieres, France
Aug. 21 — Pukkelpop Shelter Marquee, Hasselt, Belgium
Aug. 25 — SKK Arena (w/ Metallica), St. Petersburg, Russia
Aug. 27 — Olympysky (w/ Metallica), Moscow, Russia
Aug. 29 — Reading Festival (The Pit Stage), Reading, England
Aug. 30 — Leeds/Reading Festival (The Pit Stage), Leeds, England
Aug. 31 — 100% Metal Headbangers, Istanbul, Turkey
Sept. 2 — Principal Theater Club, Thessaloniki, Greece
Sept. 3 — Gazi Hall Entertainment Stage, Athens, Greece