Pinkpop does well despite Foo Fighter cancellation

This year's Pinkpop was a success despite the fact that top act Foo Fighters had to cancel, the organizer said. The band's headliner slot was taken over by Pharrell Williams after Foo Fighter lead singer Dave Grohl broke his leg in Sweden.

Belgian rockers Triggerfinger were booked to fill the gap at the last moment.

"There were 70 thousand people on the site on Sunday," boss of the Landgraaf festival Jan Smeets told the Parool. "Those tickets were sold in advance and scanned at the door. Whether they were ultimately used by the people who initially bought them, I do not know. But everyone was there."

Smeets said that it was a huge shock when his closer cancelled at the last minute. "When I heard that Dave Grohl unfortunately fell off a stage on Friday, I first thought: this can not be true. But then I saw the video and found that it really was a terrible fall. The I had hope again when he finished the show in Sweden in a wheelchair," he said, referring to Grohl performing on stage while paramedics tended to his leg.

"But then it turned out that he had to be operated on Saturday morning and I knew it was done for us. I also know that no doctor would give permission to perform again the next day. A real nightmare."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j-NULBe4JY

The festival organization then did their best to find a replacement for the closing act of the 46th Pinkpop. "We knew who was currently on tour and really called everyone. From Paul McCartney to Bono. But there was no one available at the caliber of Foo Fighters."

Smeets said he is eternally grateful that Triggerfinger were was prepared to fill the spot at the last minuted. "It was a huge relief to see that people were happy with Triggerfinger on Sunday afternoon." he frankly admitted.

According to Smeets, the visitors understood the situation. "They all saw the videos of Dave's fall and understand that is not just the flu. But everyone was very happy with the choice of Triggerfinger. They rock just as hard."

Despite the "nightmare" scenario, Smeets thinks that Pinkpop was a success. "Everything went well. The people are happy."