The Chemical Brothers have pulled out of Glastonbury as Tom Rowlands recovers from COVID-19.
The electronic music duo – completed by Ed Simons – were due to play under the Arcadia spider at Worthy Farm this evening (24.06.22), however, after Tom and members of their crew tested positive for the virus this week, it was anticipated that they may have to miss their set.
Now, the ‘Galvanize’ hitmakers have confirmed they have been forced to axe the performance much to their “frustration”.
In a social media statement, they said: “We are very sorry to announce that we won’t be DJing at Arcadia this evening at Glastonbury.
“We were so excited to be back in the fields and to celebrate the return of the festival, as we were to be playing in Cork on Thursday night. We were hoping that more days of rest would allow Tom to recover from Covid, this hasn’t so far been the case.”
They promised to update fans about their York concert on Sunday (26.06.22).
“We are hoping that Tom will recover in time to play the scheduled Castle Howard show in York on Sunday and will update with progress as soon as possible via our social channels.
“We share the disappointment and frustration at not being able to do what we do with all of you.’
“Love is all, Tom and Ed.”
They had already cancelled their Cork concert due to the COVID-19 cases, two days before their Glastonbury set.
They announced: “The Chemical Brothers are sorry to announce they have had to reschedule their show at Musgrave Park, Cork, Ireland on Thursday June 23rd, 2022, due to Covid in band and crew. The show will be rescheduled to 2023. A further announcement on rescheduled date will be made in due course.”
The Chemical Brothers previously insisted there’s nowhere more “exciting” to play than Glastonbury.
The ‘Hey Boy Hey Girl’ hitmakers had a “religious experience” when they saw Orbital perform at the festival in 1994, and after being booked for their 12th appearance in 2019, they insisted they enjoy the gig just as much as they did the first time around.
Ed said: “We both had a religious experience [seeing Orbital]. I still get tingly when I think about it. We wanted to do that.
“It’s still to be the most exciting concert you can play.”
The pair broke records in 2000 by performing in front of what was believed to be the largest crowd in the festival’s history but can barely remember the show, so try now to take in the moments much more.
Tom said: “Early on you think everything’s going to last forever, whereas now you think, realistically, how many more times are we going to get to do this amazing thing? You become more aware of it.”
The pair have a busy summer ahead and will headline London’s All Points East in August.