Morrissey almost refused to play last night because another band was in the next room

By Marah Eakin  |  May 9, 2014 | 6:27pm
Aux Features Music

Just one day after being almost crushed to death by hugs, Morrissey reportedly tried to get a We Are Scientists and PAWS show canceled last night, complaining that the sound of the band’s gig would bleed over into his show at Santa Ana’s The Observatory. The competing show was scheduled for another room in the same venue, and if a lengthy post on PAWS’ Facebook is to be believed, Morrissey’s management demanded that PAWS cancel its opening set entirely, and that We Are Scientists perform just an abbreviated set—and this only after Morrissey’s show was over. Though PAWS would reportedly have been paid double its rate to not play, the offer obviously didn’t sit well with the group, which posted (then deleted, then reposted) a long screed on its Facebook, with the original calling Morrissey a “rich, has-been, ego maniac acting like a baby throwing toys from a pram.”

Ultimately, all three acts ended up playing their shows, and PAWS posted a lengthy explanation of the night’s events on its Facebook once again. In this newest post, the Scottish group says it didn’t wish “to start a cheap fight,” but felt it was “essentially, very much literally, being silenced; being bought out.” The group adds that, while it could have used the money, it “would’ve felt dirty.”

PAWS says after its first Facebook post started getting passed around, the group received a call from the promoter of Morrissey’s show claiming that “if anyone from the Morrissey camp was to see [it], there was a very high chance that he could threaten to cancel.” The promoter also said he’d have to forfeit the “sizeable six figure sum” he’d already given Morrissey as a deposit—something that could cause the venue to “potentially go under.” Eventually, the situation was sorted out and PAWS were given a slot right after Morrissey’s set. Still, that didn’t stop Moz’s tour manager from allegedly cornering members of the band at the venue, “doling out blood-curdling screams to the effect of ‘I AM THE BOSS OF YOU!’” Despite all that, PAWS says it “jumped out and did our best to kill it for the 30 minutes” it had on stage, saying it now considers the matter over. “Fuck this shit,” the band concludes.

We Are Scientists also weighed in on the matter via Twitter, calling Morrissey a “dummy” and saying the former Smiths frontman put on the “laziest, most milquetoast piece of shit” show the band “ever had the misfortune of suffering through ten minutes of.”

Morrissey has not yet responded.

 
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