There was major disappointment for Kasabian fans last night when the band pulled their Custom House Square gig in Belfast just minutes before they were due on.
Having the previous day messaged: “Tokyo to Belfast, buzzing for tomorrow!” along with a rather curious photo, the band took to Twitter again shortly before 9pm to announce that: “It is with great regret, due to illness, we cannot perform at Custom House Belfast tonight.”
There’d been no hint of any problems beforehand with Blossoms ending their support set by saying, “Enjoy Kasabian!”
A statement from the promoters added: “We are working at this minute on scheduling a new date for Belfast. We will communicate with all ticket buyers via Ticketmaster and on the Custom House Square social media. Tickets will remain valid for the new date. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.”
Fans who’d spent three hours waiting in the rain to see their heroes were generally not happy.
“Ten minutes before?” vented Jesper Kihlberg. “We came here from Sweden. Are you paying flights and hotels for this piss poor insult of an excuse?”
“I’ve come over from London,” added Xander Rands. “I’d rather a genuinely specific reason for cancelling. Not ‘late illness’.”
“You owe us more than that statement,” insisted Simon Dove. “Flights, hotels, standing in the rain… Not good enough.”
There were a few fans sticking up for the band.
“Some people on here are ridiculous,” countered Dylan Kneeland. “I’m sure plenty of people have had a sick day at work before so grow up. Hope to see you back soon.”
“You're sick,” reasoned Geraldine McCormick. “I'm sure you tried your best. Feel better soon and catch you at the rescheduled date.”
Hot Press spent a very pleasant half-hour with Tom Meighan before their recent Dublin Olympia stormer, and hope all is well in the camp.