Saint Vitus’ singer and iconic doom figure Wino was deported back to the U.S. by Norwegian authorities after he was arrested for possession of illegal substances. Saint Vitus will complete the tour with special guests to fill these big shoes.
The Godfathers of American Doom Metal, Saint Vitus, are a band that have celebrated the use of intoxicating substances throughout their career – after all, their latest (2012) album is called Lillie: F-65, a drug consisting of quinalbarbitone and amylobarbitone. “Sex drugs and rock n’ roll” cannot yet be used as a reason for acquittal, however, and on 9 November 2014, singer Wino was arrested for possession. Despite assurances that he would be out by 11 November, on the morning of 12 November Wino was deported back to the U.S, “with no hope to remain in Scandinavia or anywhere in the European Union” the band adds.
Saint Vitus have published the following, official statement via their facebook page (capitals as published, for emphasis):
“Our sincere apologies to all of our fans, the promoters, booking agents and especially our Norwegian fans and promoter for the cancelled show. We will still deliver the HEAVY sound to all of our friends in Europe and it is our hope that everyone will understand our position to go forward with the remaining dates without Wino. David Chandler and Henry Vasquez along with a few surprise guests will take over vocal duties and this will be a rare opportunity to see Vitus with main songwriter David Chandler vocalizing his tormented tales of pain, heartache and DOOM. We hope to still see all of you on our remaining dates. FUCK THAT WEAK SHIT!!!!”
Saint Vitus are currently touring in celebration of their 35th Anniversary as a band and they are performing their classic (among classics) album Born Too Late in its entirety. There are three more dates for the tour to be over:
13 November 2014 Osnabrück, Rosenhof
14 November 2014 Jena, F-Haus
15 November 2014 Würzburg, Hammer Of Doom
If you catch Saint Vitus on one of these dates in Germany, you’ll have a much more intricate story than the average gig-attendance to tell your grandchildren one day.
