Athens gig cancelled at the last minute

Depeche Mode were forced to cancel tonight’s show in Athens, as Dave fell ill and was taken to hospital for “a check up”. Read a Reuters write up on it after the jump, and please join us in wishing Dave a full and speedy recovery.

ATHENS (Reuters) – British music band Depeche Mode canceled an Athens concert Tuesday after lead singer David Gahan fell ill and was taken to hospital in the Greek capital, event organizers said.

“We regret today’s performance has to be canceled … David Gahan fell ill in his dressing room,” a concert organizer told an audience of about 20,000 waiting for the concert to start.

Depeche Mode is one of the longest-lived bands to have emerged from the early 1980s, with 45 songs in the British singles chart. The band plays post-punk, new wave music and has sold more than 75 million albums worldwide.

Gahan has been lead vocalist since the band’s start-up in Basildon, Essex in 1980.

(Reporting by Barney Spender; Writing by George Georgiopoulos)