Earlier this week, we began speculating whether Ozzfest was going to happen again this Summer or not. Well, it didn’t take too long to know for sure, because according to a new posting on Ozzfest’s website and Facebook page, Ozzy himself has said that the touring festival isn’t happening this Summer.
In regards to news that at this point isn’t too shocking to hear, Ozzy reportedly said the following:
“No, not this year. I just finished a lengthy arena tour of the U.S., so I’ve decided to tour Europe this summer instead.”
Like we said before, it isn’t too surprising to hear that Ozzfest is not happening this Summer. Months had gone by without even hearing murmurs about possible lineups or tour dates. It would’ve been near impossible for Ozzfest to be able to compete against tours like Mayhem Fest, Summer Slaughter Tour, the soon to be announced Uproar Tour, and others with such last minute planning. They would’ve even had to compete with The Big 4 U.S. shows (sure, the West Coast show already happened and the East Coast one isn’t until September, but imagine the hole that was left in fans’ wallets after they purchased tickets for either show). More so than previous Summers, competition was stacked high and the economy is hurting many concert goers. Ozzfest’s late entry would’ve proven to be a huge disadvantage.
However, this still leaves the question as to what this all means in regards to Ozzfest’s future. Is this the final nail in the coffin for Ozzfest? Of course there is the possibility of Ozzfest simply returning next year, but it’s a bit hard for the festival to return after another year off when they spent so much time bringing back Ozzfest in 2010. Not only did they launch a six date tour with Ozzy and Motley Crue co-headlining in the States, but they also marked Ozzfest’s “big return” from a long hiatus with dates in the U.K. and Israel. So to spend a whole Summer rebuilding the touring festival only to take another year off would be somewhat embarrassing for Ozzfest.
There is always the chance that Ozzfest could become a destination festival once again, as they did in 2008 with Ozzy and Metallica headlining. But it seems pretty likely that Ozzfest may not return as a touring festival for quite some time…again. While that may just be us speculating, it’s definitely a sure thing that Ozzfest WILL NOT be happening this Summer. And though Ozzy says they simply wanted to shift focus towards Europe this Summer, it’s unquestionable that he and Sharon will be saving themselves a lot of financial costs by not bringing out Ozzfest again as a tour. We’ll keep you posted when more is revealed.
[picture via]
