Less than a week before the start of their first U.S. tour in five years, Massive Attack have canceled the performances due to “unforeseen circumstances.” The group did not elaborate in a post on Instagram Stories beyond saying they “appreciate your understanding at this time.”
The beloved U.K. act was scheduled to perform Oct. 17 at Miami’s III Points Festival and then visit Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Boston and Forest Hills, N.Y. They had not played in North America since 2019.
Equally disappointing for stateside fans is the fact that the upcoming shows were to feature longtime guest vocalist Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins, who rarely performs live outside of a Massive Attack context. Horace Andy and Young Fathers will also a part of Massive Attack’s international dates earlier this year, which concluded Sept. 2 in Turin, Italy.
Those gigs drew heavily from Massive Attack’s iconic 1998 album Mezzanine, including the Fraser-sung “Teardrop,” “Black Milk” and “Group Four.” The group also performed covers of Avicii’s “Levels,” Ultravox’s “ROckwrok” and Tim Buckley’s “Song to the Siren.”
As of now, a one-off Nov. 29 show in Liverpool, England is still on the books and is part of Massive Attack’s long-in-the-works efforts to reduce carbon emissions related to the live music industry.