Then Comes Silence forced to cancel all Germany shows, festival in Belgium cancelled altogether

Author Stefanie Nysand - 18.9.2022

That rising energy costs and inflation overall are also affecting the world of rock’n’roll is no longer news. The Swedish post-punk quartet Then Comes Silence is the latest band to take measures by cancelling all of their upcoming shows in Germany:

“Dear friends, followers, fans, and others, This is an important announcement. We truly hope you will understand the situation that we and many other artists like us are going through in these post-pandemic times. The music scene is still upside-down and we haven’t gone back to ‘normal’ like most of us had hoped. Disruptions in normal touring patterns are forcing us to take action and pick only a few shows. We will not be able to fulfill all of the dates that we expected to play. What used to be a functioning structure for us is simply not working the same way at the moment. It’s simply a bad equation. Promoters need high numbers of pre-sales or they will likely be forced to cancel. They have to play it safe—and we can’t blame them. But if more than a couple of shows get cancelled, it completely breaks up a tour schedule. Expenses like gas, rent, flights, and car rentals have gone up considerably, so much so that even some major car rental companies in Sweden have stopped renting outside the Swedish borders. Unfortunately, most of the fees and ticket prices haven’t levelled up to help bridge the gap created by rising costs. This means that shows are now a big risk for both promoters and artists alike. It’s also a big risk for everyone involved from staff working at concerts to people in the audience. Who wants to buy a ticket to a show that might get cancelled? While most larger bands and classic acts may continue to sell out venues, the smaller ones are working under more difficult conditions than ever. We’re sorry. Yours, TCS”

– Then Comes Silence

Then Comes Silence conclude their statement by pointing out that two gigs of their “European Hunger Dates 2022” – one in Portugal and one in Belgium – are still going to take place. However, their appearance at the Into The Dark festival in Belgium is now history as well, as the festival was cancelled altogether. You can see the original statement of the festival below:

At the moment, the gig of Then Comes Silence at the Post Punk Strikes Back Again 4 festival in Portugal next weekend (24 September 2022 – 25 September 2022) seems to be going ahead as planned.