Swiss hard rock legends KROKUS have potponed their last-ever concerts in USA and Canada due to the coronavirus pandemic that is sweeping the globe. The 13-date trek was originally scheduled to kick off at Canton Hall in Dallas, Texas on September 18 and conclude at Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California on October 10.
Says the band: "Due to the current state of things going on, it was both nearly impossible to get all the needed pieces to fall in line to do the tour and with the uncertainty of the immediate future of live music in North America. We felt it was best to postpone the tour this fall and look for a more appropriate time to finally return to the USA/Canada to kick your ass on the farewell tour. We hope things change and we will work with our team to insure the next tour will be 100% safe and sound. We love you all."
Back in September 2018, KROKUS announced that it was going to be embarking on a farewell tour dubbed "Adios Amigos" before calling it a day. At the time, they said their final show would take place on December 7, 2019 at the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland. However, last June, KROKUS frontman Marc Storace posted a message on Facebook indicating that the band would play additional concerts beyond the Zurich date.
"We always said ZĂŒrich is the last show for Europe â but USA, Canada and Mexico want some 'Adios' too!" he wrote. "That's why we do an encore in 2020 there â we think our fans deserve that â they cannot all fly to Europe."
Storace later clarified that he and his bandmates are "not responsible for choosing the countries/cities/towns we play in, since we depend on your local promoters to book us. But you can help by calling your local radio/TV stations asking for more KROKUS," he wrote. "Hell yeah! We'd love to wake up your lazy town!"
When KROKUS first announced its decision to embark on a farewell tour, the band explained in a statement: "KROKUS shows have always been special and should stay that way. That's why we decided to stop when it's still really good. That's how the fans should remember us."
Since 1975, KROKUS has stood for high-quality, honest-to-goodness, hand-made power rock. No other Swiss rock band sells albums and its back catalogue worldwide like KROKUS. The band has sold over 15 million records, toured the world, and received gold and platinum discs in the USA and Canada. The milestones in their rock career are dotted around the world: from Australia and the USA to Mexico, Russia, Japan, and China. KROKUS was the first Swiss band to sell out the legendary Hallenstadion in Zurich and has received a Diamond Disc for selling one million albums in Switzerland alone.
1980 saw the band set out to conquer America, Canada, and England, quickly consolidating its reputation as a strong, no-nonsense live band. Soon they were part of unforgettable headline tours and on the same bill as incredible bands such as AC/DC, VAN HALEN, RUSH, TED NUGENT, JUDAS PRIEST, MOTĂRHEAD and many, many more. These were wild times, full of big adventures, which saw the band not only going gold and platinum in the U.S. and Canada, but also being made honorary citizens of Memphis, Tennessee.
But it hasn't all been one long high: death, sickness, and internal strife pushed the band to the brink of collapse. The story of KROKUS is like no other. It is full of highs and lows, sell-out stadium concerts and sweaty club gigs. These five musketeers of rock have outlasted trends and survived treacherous U.S. managers, tough splits, bad deals, shady lawyers, drugs, awful fast food, endless bus trips, disco, grunge, grotesque record companies, and double-dealing advisors.
In the course of its legendary career, KROKUS has rocked over 2,000 shows on five continents, countless cities, unique locations, crazy gigs, and loyal fans.
English rock journalist Malcolm Dome quite rightly said: "If you look at the long-term output of this band, KROKUS is clearly one of the best hard rock bands of the last 40 years."
