Headliners at Gloucestershire festival halt gig mid-song as boos ring out in crowd
Summary
Jeers turned to cheers at Gloucestershire’s 2000Trees festival last night as the headline act suddenly stopped mid-set. Last-minute fill-ins Don Broco halted their performance just as the song was about to drop, leaving the crowd frustrated for a few confused moments as boos rang out.
Details
Two people then arrived on stage holding ‘hydration break’ placards in an apparent jibe at the World Cup controversy, as the band huddled on stage like a football team. They quickly resumed as fans opened up a pit and enjoyed the rest of the set at Upcote Farm near Cheltenham .
Hydration breaks at this year’s World Cup, hosted in the USA, Mexico and Canada, have been a controversial mandated addition to the tournament with claims they are less about the health of players and more about the financial benefit of commercial breaks. Local critics have included Liberal Democrat Cheltenham MP Max Wilkinson.
Speaking in the Commons before England’s 2am clash with Mexico, he said refusing to grant pubs later licensing hours would be “the worst decision since the introduction of hydration breaks”. Don Broco’s stunt was hailed as “hilarious” and “legendary” by fans on the festival’s Instagram page.
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Organisers acknowledged: “Sometimes it has to be done.” The Bedford-formed band was only announced on the line-up last Friday, just hours after organisers found out that previous headliner Alkaline Trio had to pull out due to illness.
The American punk rockers told fans via social media: “We are immensely sorry but we must cancel our dates in England, including tonight’s show in Birmingham, due to medical issues Matt [Skiba, the band’s frontman] has been suffering from that have worsened. “He’s gonna be okay but needs to be treated stateside as soon as possible.
We will be back healthier and stronger!” Organisers said they were “gutted” but added: “Health comes first and we wish the band the best – we know this won’t be a decision they’ve taken lightly.” Temperatures on site have exceeded 30C already this week and that could climb further today with the Met Office predicting 33C, so even if the hydration break had not been a prank the band surely would have been forgiven.
When England play again tomorrow night (Saturday) festival-goers will be able to enjoy the second half on a big screen, with organisers confirming they will be showing the second half of the quarter-final against Norway after headliners Neck Deep bring the main stage music to a close.
Report source: Gloucestershire Live