Rock Band Cancels Tour as Bassist Prepares for Major Surgery
Two Door Cinema Club was forced to cancel their tour of Europe in September and October as bassist Kevin Baird prepares for major surgery. Baird was diagnosed with an "incurable autoimmune disease" earlier this year. The "What You Know" trio is planning to start a North American tour in late October.
"I've loved every second of playing shows again this summer, especially after such a long time away but the harsh reality is that it's been really hard on my body," Baird's Sept. 5 note began. "I've been experiencing a lot of ups and downs in managing this b—d of a disease and after a lot of long chats with my doctor, we've decided that the next step is surgery to remove the affected organ after which it should be much more manageable."
The operation is scheduled within the next few weeks, which means Two Door Cinema Club had to cancel their European tour for September and October. He could not confirm if the group will be able to make the dates scheduled for later this year. It all depends on Baird's recovery. He promised to keep fans up to date if there are changes to the North American tour schedule. "I know this is far from ideal and we're so sad we won't be able to make these EU shows happen," Baird wrote. "We've been so looking forward to seeing you after so long!"
Baird concluded his message by thanking the National Health Service and his band mates, guitarists Alex Trimble and Sam Halliday, for their support. He also thanked their fans for "being the best fans in the world."
Two Door Cinema Club's North American tour is scheduled to start on Oct. 28 at The National in Richmond, Virginia. They also have stops planned for Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York, Washington D.C., Boston, Toronto, Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Diego. The tour was planned to support their newest album, Keep On Smiling, which includes the singles "Wonderful Life" and "Lucky."
Keep On Smiling is getting a unique release plan. The album is available to pre-order on vinyl at the band's website in four different colors, with only 1,250 copies being pressed of each color worldwide. They do not plan on releasing the album again on vinyl once the initial 5,000 copies are sold. The album was released digitally on Sept. 2 and the vinyl copies will be released on Nov. 4. They are not releasing a CD or cassette edition. In June, the group shared a video of themselves melting down the Keep On Smiling vinyl masters to prove they are serious about never re-releasing the album again.
Two Door Cinema Club was formed in Northern Ireland. Their debut album, Tourist History, was a big hit in 2010 and included the singles "Something Good Can Work," "I Can Talk," and "What You Know." Their other singles include "Sleep Alone," "Sun," "Changing of the Seasons," and "Are We Ready? (Wreck)."