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Canadian rock band Sum 41 cancelled a show in the French capital on Saturday night (18 January) after an “explosive device” was detonated outside the venue they were to appear in.
Saturday night’s show, which was to be held at Les Etoiles (500-cap.) nightclub, formed part of the band’s ‘No Personal Space’ performances, “special shows in tiny clubs”.The band, currently on their Order in Decline world tour, played an arena date in Paris at the 6,800-capacity Zénith on Friday.
According to reports, the band posted the following statement on social media, which was later deleted: “During load in for tonight’s performance in Paris, an explosive device was detonated just outside of the venue door. Band, crew, the fans in line are all safe, there were no injuries.
“Due to the intimate nature of our ‘Personal Space’ performances, we are unable to guarantee the safety of the fans in attendance. We are deeply saddened to announce that tonight’s show has been canceled [sic]. More information to follow.”
“Unfortunately, the Sum 41 show at Les Etoiles is cancelled tonight”
The band later posted a new statement on the Twitter, saying “Unfortunately, the Sum 41 show at Les Etoiles is cancelled tonight. All tickets will be refundable with your tickets, Further details will be posted ASAP.”
The manager of the venue, Vincent Le Gall, told Franceinfo that the explosion was caused by a firecracker thrown by gilets jaunes (yellow vests) protesters. Thousands across France took to the streets last week for a new wave of the protests, which began in November 2018 in response to rising fuel prices.
Sum 41 are playing a second sold-out ‘No Personal Space’ show at the Dome (500-cap.) in North London, before heading to Amsterdam’s Afas Live (6,000-cap.), Dusseldorf’s Mitsubishi Electric Halle (7,500-cap.) and Zenith in Munich (6,000-cap.). Details of dates and ticket prices can be found here.
Photo: Stefan Brending/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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