Kings of Leon, a band once called the“authentic, hairy rebels the Rolling Stones longed to be” were recently forced to leave a gig this past Friday in St. Louis after a number of pigeons were said to have defecated on band members. The band fled the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in St. Louis after a bird allegedly managed to hit bassist Jared Followill in the cheek with excrement. Apparently that was the final straw, and after only three songs the band left the stage.
As explained by band manager Amy Mendelsohn “Jared (was hit several times during the first two songs. On the third song, when he was hit in the cheek and some of it landed near his mouth, they couldn’t deal [with it] any longer”. Once again proving why they must be the toughest band in rock music, Mendelsohn continues of the incident that, “It’s not only disgusting – it’s a toxic hazard. (Kings of Leon) really tried to hang in there.” Jared Followill, in his tough take no prisoners rock-n-roll attitude, explained his concern “I was hit by pigeons on each of the first three songs,” he said. “We had 20 songs on the set list. By the end of the show, I would have been covered from head to toe.” As CNN reports, Followill’s mother called him when she heard from friends at the show that it had been abruptly ended and his explanation to her was, “I was attacked, Mom, but not by humans.”
The crowd was very disapointed by the early departure of the bands and began several chants including a harmonious chant of “Bullshit” (easily could have been “BirdShit”) when they realized the quartet was not returning. The band (through the promotion company Live Nation) did offer full refunds to all in attendance and Drummer Nathan Followill did later apologize to fans via Twitter, saying “it was too unsanitary to continue”.
According to reports, Kings of Leon were warned prior to scheduling the event of the issue that the venue was having with the pigeons, but venue management claimed they were doing all they could to address the issue. Opening acts The Postelles and The Stills also left the stage early, reportedly covered in fecal matter. Each of these bands played much longer sets than Kings of Leon, but did warn the headliners of the issue.
In the days after the event, tour opener The Stills, have expressed their sympathy for KOL and made public some of the issues that large touring acts are having with birds in outdoor venues (in my mind just another reason to avoid large shows such as these and stay to smaller independent venues). Head over here to read more on The Stills “offer their side of Kings of Leon Pigeon-gate” as well as explanations of this issue and what venues are doing to combat the bird problem.
What seems to be a problem that one would assume must have a simple solutions, appears to be bothering both bands and venue managers as pigeons have built large infestations in outdoor amphitheaters nationwide.
Check out this fan video of the third and final song from this past Friday, the song during which Followill was hit in the cheek by the pigeon droppings, resulting in the sudden ending of the show.
