Cancellations & Stuff

Josh Ain’t Joshing

You can blame that ol’ concert biz nemesis commonly known as a “scheduling conflict” for Groban canceling next Tuesday’s performance at San Diego’s Viejas Arena. A message posted on the venue’s website says the tour’s routing doesn’t allow for the Aug. 16 gig to be rescheduled. Refunds are available at points of purchase.

Megadeth Absent From Last Night’s Mayhem

A band member’s illness forced Megadeth to cancel last night’s performance in Oklahoma City where the band was to appear as part of the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival tour. Although fans got plenty of Mayhem last night in the form of Disturbed, Godsmack, Machine Head, Trivium and other bands on the bill, Megadeth posted a message on its website apologizing for missing the show. The message also said it hopes to play Oklahoma City ASAP.

An announcement regarding whether Megadeth will perform at tonight’s Mayhem gig in Dallas is expected shortly.

Festival Cancellation Affects M. Ward’s Plans

The cancellation of the Music To Know festival scheduled to take place this weekend on Long Island has resulted in M. Ward canceling a few dates of his own.

The singer/songwriter took to his MySpace page saying MTK’s abrupt cancellation forced him to drop a few dates scheduled around the festival, specifically Aug. 11 in Montclair, N.J., and Aug. 12 in North Adams, Mass.

“I’m extremely disappointed that Music To Know has been canceled,” Ward wrote. “Without the funding we can’t make the trip out there. We sincerely apologize to everyone who had already bought tickets. We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

Protesting Pablo

Some folks down Florida way are objecting to a planned performance in Miami by Cuban artist Pablo Milanes. U.S. Rep. David Rivera as well as a coalition of exile groups in the area are asking for Milanes’ Aug. 27 performance at the AmericanAirlines Arena to be canceled.

The Associated Press reports that various groups have increased efforts calling for President Obama to stop cultural changes between the U.S. and the island nation. The latest round of objections to Cuban artists performing in the U.S. comes after a Cuban appellate court upheld a 15-year prison sentence for a U.S. government subcontractor for illegally bringing satellite and communication equipment into the country.