Fans awaiting Passion Pit’s imminent arrival to Australian as headliners for Parklife 2012 are understandably excited for the group’s first visit since 2010’s Splendour In The Grass, but they may be a little concerned to learn that frontman Michael Angelakos has been suffering from mental health issues.
Pitchfork reports that Angelakos released a candid statement on the band’s website, that announced the cancellation of several upcoming dates as part of their American tour. The statement reads:
“On behalf of the band and myself, I would like to greatly apologize for the show cancelations. In order for me to ensure that there will be no further disruptions, I am going to take the time to work on improving my mental health. For now, I’d like to thank all of our fans for their understanding. I hope to see all of you very soon in a much different light.”
Details of Angelakos’ mental health issues are unknown at this point, but its courageous of the singer to be frank about the reasons behind the cancellation. While many pop stars like Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Wyclef Jean have all pulled the plug on tours due to stress and touring exhaustion, there’s no denying the pressure that the touring lifestyle can have on a band and its performers.
Mental health is a serious issue (Brian Wilson comes to mind) and we here at Tone Deaf wish the Passion Pit frontman a swift recovery to performance standard again.
While its understandable that US fans will be upset at the cancellations, and so far the scrapped dates have only affected a few shows before resuming their summer tour with commitments to Lollapalooza and dates through the American fall.
Fans worried that Angelakos’ recovery could affect their Parklife appearance need not fear.
We contacted a representative from Fuzzy, the festival’s organisers who confirmed that Angelakos “is taking time off now so as to not impact further shows,” confirming that the electro-pop sensations are confirmed for their October appearance: “Passion Pit will definitely be performing at Parklife.”
In related news, Passion Pit’s second album, Gossamer is out in a matter of weeks and you can watch the video for first single ‘Take A Walk’ below:
