Triptykon have pulled out of a festival appearance in America so that frontman Tom G Warrior can attend the funeral of his “mentor” HR Giger.
The Swiss band were due to appear at Deathfest in Maryland this Thursday, May 22. But Warrior says he wants to play a full part in the preparation of Giger’s funeral and apologised to fans for cancelling the gig.
He says he toyed with the idea of having a friend fill in on vocals and guitar, but that the rest of the band rejected the plan.
Surrealist artist Giger – the creator of the monster from the Alien movies as well as countless iconic album artworks for various bands – died after a fall at his Zurich home on May 12. He was 74.
Former Hellhammer and Celtic Frost frontman Warrior says: “We are all still attempting to deal with the shock of this unexpected and extremely painful loss. For 30 years, HR Giger has been my mentor. As I wrote in my eulogy, a few days ago, at a time when almost everybody ridiculed, ignored, or even obstructed the music the then almost completely unknown Swiss underground band Hellhammer was creating, Giger listened to us, talked to us, and gave us a chance. The result was Celtic Frost’s To Mega Therion album which, in turn, was the basis for all subsequent collaborations between us.
“I simply cannot and do not wish to fail to attend HR Giger’s private funeral, and to take part in the subsequent public memorial service, to be held in one of Zurich’s largest churches.
“It is an extremely unfortunate coincidence that these unexpected and tragic proceedings collide with Triptykon’s planned appearance at Maryland Deathfest. Withdrawing was not an easy decision to take by any means. We are disappointing our audience and the promoter of the festival, it contradicts our sense of commitment, and the band’s reputation will suffer damage.”
Triptykon had already booked a US crew as well as travel and accommodation for the band.
Warrior adds: “I hope our audience will understand, and I apologise sincerely. And I am extremely grateful for the incredible understanding and goodwill extended to Triptykon by the promoter of Maryland Deathfest.”
Giger collaborated with Warrior on a number of album sleeves, as reported by TeamRock after the artist’s death.
