Eddie Vedder, lead singer of the legendary band Pearl Jam, suffered throat damage that forced the band to cancel their Wednesday concert in Vienna.
“To all those who were anticipating a great Pearl Jam show tonight in Vienna, we were too. However, due to the extreme circumstances at the last outdoor site outside of Paris (heat, dust, and smoke from the fires) our singer Ed Vedder’s throat was left damaged,” the band said in a statement to their Instagram account. “He has seen doctors and had treatment but as of yet, his vocal cords have not recovered,” the band said.
Eddie Vedder cancels Pearl Jam concert due to throat damage from extreme weather https://t.co/IKmp1mS4nS
— The Guardian (@guardian) July 21, 2022
Wildfires in France have been raging for over a week, according to Yahoo.
“This is brutal news and horrible timing…for everyone involved,” the band said. They continued by recognizing how deeply the cancelation would affect the many people who had invested time, effort and money into the concert.
“Those who work so hard to put on the shows as well as those who give their precious time and energies to attend… As a band, we are deeply sorry and have tried to find options to still play. And Ed wants to play. There’s just no throat available at this time,” the band wrote in their Instagram post. (RELATED: REPORT: Rage Against The Machine Singer Injures Ankle Mid-Concert, But Refuses To Stop Performing)
Pearl Jam canceled its show in Vienna on Wednesday, saying that heat, dust and smoke from the wildfires across Europe had damaged the throat of its lead singer, Eddie Vedder, at an outdoor show in Paris. https://t.co/x6mJ0iBNg0
— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 20, 2022
“So very, very deeply sorry,” they wrote, before getting down to the business of how tickets would be handled.
“Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase. Thank you for understanding,” they wrote, before signing off.
Pearl Jam is scheduled to perform Friday in Prague, and the tour will continue in Amsterdam on July 24. The band’s North American tour begins Sept. 1 in Quebec, according to Yahoo.