LIMP BIZKIT frontman Fred Durst has elaborated on the reasons for the cancellation of the remaining August dates of the band’s U.S. tour.
Last Saturday (August 7), LIMP BIZKIT announced that it was scrapping more than half a dozen shows, explaining in a statement that it was doing so “out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety of the band, crew and most of all the fans.”
In a follow-up message to Billboard, Durst stated about the decision: “In short, the system is still very flawed. Even if the performers, crews, staff, and promoters do their best to ensure safety on and behind the stage, that doesn’t ensure the safety of the audience as a whole. We are all in this together, and we all — individually and as a whole — have to make our best efforts to be as responsible and proactive as possible moving forward to combat and stop spreading COVID.”
Durst also denied that there was a specific incident that prompted him and his bandmates to pull the plug on the trek, saying it was “just perception.”
LIMP BIZKIT‘s tour was called off a day after the band scrapped its concert at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, New Jersey about an hour before the show was scheduled to begin. No reason for the Stone Pony cancelation was given, but one fan who spoke to Durst outside the venue stated that guitarist Wes Borland — who is said to be fully vaccinated — apparently felt “really sick” after the band had already completed its soundcheck. Borland has since taken to his Instagram to shoot down rumors that he was feeling unwell and that he has COVID-19.
Durst made headlines last month when he debuted his new look at the band’s July 29 concert at Metro in Chicago, with the frontman now sporting wavy salt-and-pepper locks accompanied by a horseshoe-style mustache. LIMP BIZKIT also debuted a new song at the event, titled “Dad Vibes”.
After LIMP BIZKIT‘s Lollapalooza set, the band saw a huge spike in streams and sales, with its catalog recording a combined 1.9 million on-demand streams, according to Billboard. That was up 27% from the Sunday and Monday from a week earlier (July 25 and 26), when the band accounted for a combined 1.5 million on-demand streams.
LIMP BIZKIT has not released a new studio album since 2011’s “Gold Cobra”, although the band has spent a lot of time writing and recording music over the past decade.
