Guns N’ Roses have canceled their entire European tour, which was to kick off June 1 at the Rock Im Park festival in Nurnberg, Germany.
Guitarist Buckethead has suffered hemorrhaging and has missed rehearsals, according to Helter Skelter, the band’s European management agency. Doctors have been unable to determine the hemorrhaging’s cause, though the guitarist is going through extensive testing in California.
With the deadline looming to ship the band’s equipment overseas, and given the rehearsal time required for a band that’s only performed together twice, the situation was deemed unworkable, according to a source close to the band.
The revamped group – which in addition to singer Axl Rose includes former Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson, veteran GN’R keyboardist Dizzy Reed, former Primus drummer Brian “Brain” Mantia and guitarists Robin Finck and Paul Tobias (a.k.a. Paul Huge) – played its first show on New Year’s Eve in Las Vegas.
The tour was set to hit 14 cities and wrap at the end of June with an appearance at Denmark’s Roskilde Festival. The band is discussing whether or not the tour will be rescheduled, according to Helter Skelter.
During their January performance at Brazil’s Rock in Rio festival, Guns N’ Roses played new material from the long-awaited Chinese Democracy album, which the band’s management company announced late last year would come out in June. But anyone who’s followed the saga of this album, which Rose has been working on for years, knows better than to hold his or her breath.
