METZ have announced they’ll be going on an indefinite hiatus and that their upcoming EU and UK tour will be their last.
On Instagram today (October 10), the band – comprised of guitarist and vocalist Alex Edkins, bassist Chris Slorach and drummer Hayden Menzies – shared that they had “collectively decided” to “close this chapter of METZ” to “focus on other endeavours and enjoy more time at home with our families.”
The statement read: “For the last 15+ years, we’ve dedicated our lives to this band and have had the immense privilege and pleasure of touring the globe and seeing the world. It has been nothing short of life-affirming. METZ has brought an immeasurable amount of joy to our lives and it’s our sincere hope it’s brought you some joy too. We are so grateful to all of you who’ve joined us along the way and have made this life a reality for the three of us.”
They went on to say: “Together, we’ve released 6 LPs, countless singles, played hundreds of shows across the globe, and have far exceeded any goals or ambitions we could’ve dreamt up as basement dwellers in 2009. It’s always been about the love of music and the beautiful mess that would seemingly manifest when we turned the amps up.”
“If you’ve ever attended a METZ show, you know it was more than a band to us. We gave every ounce of ourselves to METZ, and it will be very hard to let it go,” they continued. “The intangible feeling of connection, community, and inclusivity that music creates has always been at the heart of what we do and will inevitably be what we miss the most. We will miss singing, screaming, sweating, and dancing with all of you.”
METZ released their self-titled debut album in 2012. In a four-star review at the time, NME shared: “Metz deliver the same righteous anger that informed much of their favourite music in the early ’90s. The players might have changed but the problems remain the same: those affected by youth unemployment and conservative government can find salvation in hardcore. Metz are here to offer you redemption.”
The Toronto trio will wrap up their 12-year run with a UK and Europe tour in November. The band will kick off the farewell dates with a show in Rennes, France on November 2, before heading to Prague, Budapest, Berlin, Copenhagen and more. They’ll then head to the UK for a show in Birmingham on November 25, before playing in Leeds, Birkenhead and Bristol. The tour will wrap up in London with a show at Village Underground on November 29.
Find a full list of tour dates below, and get any remaining tickets here.
METZ’s final tour dates are:
NOVEMBER
2 – L’Antipode, Rennes, FR
3 – La Sirène, La Rochelle, FR
4 – La Maroquinerie, Paris, FR
5 – La Coopérative de Mai, Clermont-Ferrand, FR
6 – Le Transbordeur, Lyon, FR
7 – Bogen F, Zurich, CH
9 – Futurum, Prague, CZ
10 – Turbina, Budapest, HU
12 – Klub Zascianek, Krakow, PL
13 – Klub Hydrozagadka, Warsaw, PL
16 – Hole44, Berlin, DE
18 – Loppen, Copenhagen, DK
19 – Hafenklang, Hamburg, DE
20 – Paradiso, Amsterdam, NL
21 – Vera, Groningen, NL
22 – Trix, Antwerp, BE
23 – L’Aéronef, Lille, FR
25 – Hare & Hounds, Birmingham, UK
26 – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, UK
27 – Future Yard, Birkenhead, UK
28 – Strange Brew, Bristol, UK
29 – Village Underground, London, UK