Depeche Mode - Dave Gahan has tumor (Rumor)

The Seeker of Good Songs

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Pinkpop boss Jan Smeets has been quoted yesterday evening by the Belgian press agency Belga saying that Depeche Mode will most probably not be perfoming at this year's Pinkpop festival in Holland. Smeets says he's trying to book Oasis or The Prodigy as a replacement act. The Prodigy however announced on their Twitter account that they won't come to Pinkpop.

According to various reports more shows are off including London, Hamburg and the 2 Dusseldorf shows. An official announcement is about to be made today by the band's management. This news article will be updated the moment we get more news.

Update: In a response to Limburger.nl Smeets would have said that Dave Gahan has undergone surgery in New York during which a tumor was dicovered. Doctors would have said that it would be irresponsible to keep on touring in these conditions. It's unclear why the band does not just cancel the complete first part of the tour so that Gahan can recover at ease.

As we reported before, the lack of communication starts backfiring to the band. More and more fans are complaining about the complete lack of news. Here are just a few of many negative reactions pulled from the official Depeche Mode forum:

  • "Please make an announcement and stop wasting our time, people have tickets, flights, hotels etc booked. I understand and appreciate that Mr. Gahan has been unwell and if that is still the case then there is nothing any of us can do. But what we can do is save our money just in time if the 02 in London is cancelled."

    "I couldn't agree more. Total silence from week to week, then a bunch of cancellations is no way to manage a major tour, or treat fans. Personally I feel very let down by the DM organisation as it feels like we are being treated with contempt. This is how false rumours start. Best wishes to Dave and hope you are well soon."

    "Mmm yes a bit of a PR disaster really. It must be difficult for all concerned but they (the management) seem to have shot themselves in the foot somewhat. Any kind of update would be better than being left in limbo like this. No wonder rumours abound - the only way to stop them is to issue some kind of message about how Dave is doing. We don't want to see his medical chart for crying out loud."

    "We will only get our tax minus a hefty cancellation fee back from our flights. We aint getting any statement tonight Paul. Like football fans, the paying fan is way down the list of priorities!"

    "I posted a thread about the lack of information and was told i'm not allowed!!! WTF is going on here? Oh and god forbid if you ask how dave is!! They can scrap the whole tour now....i just hope daves ok. Oh and we're not allowed to care."

    "Just because we've spent money, tons of money, to buy tix, to book train and hotel. Because even if we are fans, we have a life, a job, children... Because of that, we need to know what we'll be able to do /or not to do the next 4-5 days !!!!"
And the list goes on and on. Unlike what some webmasters seem to spread around, Side-Line is not anti-Depeche Mode. But, we did point out from the early beginning that the lack of communication is and would be a serious problem. Apparently telling what one really thinks is not really appreciated in some circles...

Do you think that the matter has been properly handled or do you think that you have not been well informed? Let us know in the comment field below.

from: http://www.side-line.com/news_comments.php?id=42653_0_2_0_C
 
f***ing hell, I hope Dave is going to be okay. DM are my next favourite band after Morrissey and I'm going the Manchester show in December. This is just awful for everyone concerned. Get well soon Dave.
 
Jeeez this was a bit of a shocker to see as soon as I came on here! Hope Dave is ok DM are probably second to Moz/Smiths for me and I'm supposed to be seeing them in Manchester in December just like FRL, hope he's ok, terrible news.
 
I was supposed to see DM this Saturday in London, lots of unofficial cancellation reports just not an official statement yet. :tears:
This rumour was already reported in the Dutch and Polish press last week, they just picked up on it today.
I feel so bad for Dave and his family, should this be true.
I guess where there's smoke, there's fire. :(
 
  • "Please make an announcement and stop wasting our time, people have tickets, flights, hotels etc booked. I understand and appreciate that Mr. Gahan has been unwell and if that is still the case then there is nothing any of us can do. But what we can do is save our money just in time if the 02 in London is cancelled."

    "I couldn't agree more. Total silence from week to week, then a bunch of cancellations is no way to manage a major tour, or treat fans. Personally I feel very let down by the DM organisation as it feels like we are being treated with contempt. This is how false rumours start. Best wishes to Dave and hope you are well soon."

    "Mmm yes a bit of a PR disaster really. It must be difficult for all concerned but they (the management) seem to have shot themselves in the foot somewhat. Any kind of update would be better than being left in limbo like this. No wonder rumours abound - the only way to stop them is to issue some kind of message about how Dave is doing. We don't want to see his medical chart for crying out loud."

    "We will only get our tax minus a hefty cancellation fee back from our flights. We aint getting any statement tonight Paul. Like football fans, the paying fan is way down the list of priorities!"

    "I posted a thread about the lack of information and was told i'm not allowed!!! WTF is going on here? Oh and god forbid if you ask how dave is!! They can scrap the whole tour now....i just hope daves ok. Oh and we're not allowed to care."

    "Just because we've spent money, tons of money, to buy tix, to book train and hotel. Because even if we are fans, we have a life, a job, children... Because of that, we need to know what we'll be able to do /or not to do the next 4-5 days !!!!"

Jeez, these could've been taken almost word for word from this site. :rolleyes:

If they're like some Morrissey fans, I'd give it about, oh, four seconds before some dimwit responded to the announcement with "So...the grabbing hands grabbed all they can, I see! All about money I guess! Try walking in my shoes, Dave. Screw you, DM!"
 
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Jeez, these could've been taken almost word for word from this site. :rolleyes:

If they're like some Morrissey fans, I'd give it about, oh, four seconds before some dimwit responded to the announcement with "So...the grabbing hands grabbed all they can, I see! All about money I guess! Try walking in my shoes, Dave. Screw you, DM!"

Well, striking parallel, no doubt.

Re: the DM song quotes :lbf:

I know a lot of Smiths/Moz fans from the 80s were also fans of DM, but I don't think the most hardcore DM fans are like the most hardcore Moz fans. That is I don't think the DM fans would be as bitter and hateful. Some of the main page Solo posters (the mainpage does attract a lot of vile posting from both anonymous and logged-in) appear to think Moz went out of his way to personally affront them with his cancellations. Highly unlikely, though the way the overpacked, on-again-off-again tour has been handled could've been handled better.

I loved DM in the 80s, but the songs stopped speaking to me starting with Songs of Faith & Devotion. I sold that CD back because it was so boring. I'm slightly curious to see if they ever recovered from making lacklustre music.

I wonder if losing my faith & devotion in DM was like a lot of people who went off Morrissey because of Kill Uncle or Southpaw Grammar. The thing is, Morrissey's extraordinary touring and the hype in the early 90s overcame the weak album that KU was. DM's shows are hardly as physical and messianic with them up onstage behind synthesizers and miles away from the audience.
 
Well, striking parallel, no doubt.

Re: the DM song quotes :lbf:

I know a lot of Smiths/Moz fans from the 80s were also fans of DM, but I don't think the most hardcore DM fans are like the most hardcore Moz fans. That is I don't think the DM fans would be as bitter and hateful. Some of the main page Solo posters (the mainpage does attract a lot of vile posting from both anonymous and logged-in) appear to think Moz went out of his way to personally affront them with his cancellations. Highly unlikely, though the way the overpacked, on-again-off-again tour has been handled could've been handled better.

I loved DM in the 80s, but the songs stopped speaking to me starting with Songs of Faith & Devotion. I sold that CD back because it was so boring. I'm slightly curious to see if they ever recovered from making lacklustre music.

I wonder if losing my faith & devotion in DM was like a lot of people who went off Morrissey because of Kill Uncle or Southpaw Grammar. The thing is, Morrissey's extraordinary touring and the hype in the early 90s overcame the weak album that KU was. DM's shows are hardly as physical and messianic with them up onstage behind synthesizers and miles away from the audience.

Agree entirely with your assessment. I had pretty much the same experience, though I never even bothered to buy "Songs of Faith and Devotion".

For those who remember the endless debates about synths v. guitars in the Eighties...

Premise, circa 1980/1981: In an indie scene choked with the same-old, same-old guitar sounds, it is worth incurring the wrath of rock purists to use the far more interesting array of synthesizers and samplers available to the genuinely creative musician.

Field Test:

EARLY DEPECHE MODE (1981-1985):

"We don't bother with guitars. What we do with these machines is far more interesting".

Guitar Presence: None
Resulting Music: Very good.

MIDDLE DEPECHE MODE (1986-1990):

"Guitars are just a color on the palette. We use them here and there, but only when they really add to the track".

Guitar Presence: Minimal but effective
Resulting Music: Excellent-- their peak.

LATER DEPECHE MODE (1993-Present):

"We feel we can do a lot more with guitars and conventional drums. Why not?"

Guitar Presence: Along with other live instruments, higher though not dominant
Resulting Music: Sub-standard, weak, re-heated outtakes of their peak years.

CONCLUSION: Go with your first instincts! (Vince Clarke is laughing. Though considerably poorer. :) )
 
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This rumor freaked me out so I decided to go to the dreaded depechemode.com forum and as soon as I was there I was reminded why I hate it.

First of all, you can no longer view if you are not logged in. Come on, please, this isn't a government site. Brat ( the admin) is just so ridiculous.
I had to reset my password only to find nazi rules again saying you will be booted off if discussing any rumors or anything at all about their private lives. Great. What the hell am I going to post about.
The threads are so ridiculous.
*omg what's your fave song
*omg hot dave pics
*omg omg what's your favorite album.

Does anyone know of another (unofficial DM board ) I can join. Or have they all been shut down by Brat?
 
Official news just out:
Dave Gahan had a bladder tumor removed.
All shows until June 8th have either been postponed or cancelled.
So, there it is - no show for me this Saturday. :tears:
I hope I'll still be able to see Moz tomorrow at Brixton Academy. :(
 
While I think any tumor is bad news, I'm glad that it's something like this, and not a more severe/life threatening tumor? god knows Dave doesn't need something like that, after all he's been through.
 
This rumor freaked me out so I decided to go to the dreaded depechemode.com forum and as soon as I was there I was reminded why I hate it.

First of all, you can no longer view if you are not logged in. Come on, please, this isn't a government site. Brat ( the admin) is just so ridiculous.
I had to reset my password only to find nazi rules again saying you will be booted off if discussing any rumors or anything at all about their private lives. Great. What the hell am I going to post about.
The threads are so ridiculous.
*omg what's your fave song
*omg hot dave pics
*omg omg what's your favorite album.

Does anyone know of another (unofficial DM board ) I can join. Or have they all been shut down by Brat?

I'd love to k now of another DM board too. I gave up on dm.com a long time ago. Brat always seemed to be on a power high, and the limitations of what you could discuss on threads were unbelievable. (although I'm never averse to viewing hot Dave pics. :D )

I'm thrilled that Dave has had treatment and hope his recovery goes smoothly.
 
Does anyone know of another (unofficial DM board ) I can join. Or have they all been shut down by Brat?

Try depeche-mode.com. You do have to register before you can even view it though, like the official site.

Good news that it seems Dave will make a full recovery. Looking forward to Manchester!
 
This rumor freaked me out so I decided to go to the dreaded depechemode.com forum and as soon as I was there I was reminded why I hate it.

First of all, you can no longer view if you are not logged in. Come on, please, this isn't a government site. Brat ( the admin) is just so ridiculous.
I had to reset my password only to find nazi rules again saying you will be booted off if discussing any rumors or anything at all about their private lives. Great. What the hell am I going to post about.
The threads are so ridiculous.
*omg what's your fave song
*omg hot dave pics
*omg omg what's your favorite album.

Does anyone know of another (unofficial DM board ) I can join. Or have they all been shut down by Brat?

lmfao that board is SO RIDICULOUS. The rules they have there are like "are you f***ing SERIOUS??" :sick::sick::sick: Not to mention they ONLY approve new accounts on Fridays? How stupid.
 
Try depeche-mode.com. You do have to register before you can even view it though, like the official site.

Good news that it seems Dave will make a full recovery. Looking forward to Manchester!

Just joined it. So far so good.
The actual registration was EASIER then signing on to the official forum which I've been a member of since god knows when and it's set up it much more aesthetically pleasing.

Plus, I found this video posted on the first thread I opened up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0wZmzSKZJM

...so...fingers crossed....

I just wish they and all other boards I belong to was set up the way solo is where when you put the cursor over the thread, it gives you a snippet of what its about instead of actually having to click it and load it.
 
Yeah, depeche-mode.com ( aka HOME ) is a much better, mature forum with much less of THOSE kind of posts !
And because it's not 'official' it's a lot more informative ( how mad's that ?).

I'm gutted about not seeing DM on Saturday, but given the reasons I have no problem at all with it. In fact I'm surprised they're continuing so soon (June 8th), I'd understand them cancelling the whole summer leg and starting afresh with the winter dates. It's been a bad start all round, what with Fletch losing his Father too.

As it stands, I still have Paris in June and Seville in July to look forward to. But we'll wait and see..................
 
I feel really sorry for Dave after all he's been through in recent years. I count myself among the diehard DM fans who wish him all the very best and a speedy recovery. Fortunately, I am not one of those bitter, so-called DM fans, who saw this in a slightly less charitable light, and saw fit to criticise purely because DM have cancelled a concert.
Latest reports indicate that doctors remove a malignant tumour from Dave's bladder (note the word "malignant" and have advised him to rest accordingly.
Good luck Dave, my thoughts are with You and your family (that includes Martin and Andy, too!):tears:
 
Yeah, I don't bother with the official DM website's forum. Specifically because of the webmaster (BRAT). He strikes me as one of those types who considers making a snide remark and getting the last word in (on an online forum no less) the highlight of an otherwise nondescript day. Rude and power-drunk. And... he's not that great of a web designer :blushing: Okay, I'm done being mean. I'm sure he's an alright guy in real life. And I can't say I wouldn't kill to have his job.

Sad to hear about Dave, though (if we can believe the scraps of news the DM camp has been feeding us) at least he's out of the woods. And while I think some fans are always going to go over the top when things like this happen, it's hard not to sympathize when someone's been planning and investing money in seeing a band like this. As I said elsewhere though, I'm sure the band isn't taking any of this lightly, and at least they're trying to reschedule as many of the dates as is feasible.
 
Not to defend the DM board, but the admins there have been told that they have really strict rules set forth by management and the band as to what is allowed to be posted and what isn't.

However-- I've been chastised for making a comment in a thread that was slightly off-topic, which seems ridiculous. Why make someone feel bad that they said something conversationally? I knew it was off-topic, but I was responding to someone else's comment (and they did NOT get chastised).

That is where they seem over-zealous. They are monitoring the board and being over-controlling over silly things, to the point of making people feel weird about posting anything. :crazy:
 
laughing_anne: Understandable- I would be too. Do you mean that DM is rescheduling over one of their already established tour dates, or that the new date conflicts with another band you were seeing? Either way, that's a drag.

Jessikers: I had a similar experience quite a while back. That confirms what I suspected (that is, DM's management wanting things under fairly heavy control on their site/forum). Still, I think they could be a little nicer about how they go about it.

Still not as bad as within the NIN fan community, though. I can't speak for the official forums (they became a cesspool within a few weeks of opening and I haven't been back) but the unofficial sites are seemingly governed by mean-spirited, in-joke hoarding tools who think because Trent is cognitively aware of their sites' existence that they're somehow endowed with super powers. At least BRAT's getting paid to be an awesome band's sycophant.

Me, bitter? Nahhhh. :)
 
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