Two years after saying "no more, no more," Aerosmith announced Wednesday that it will play a pair of comeback concerts at the Hollywood Bowl on October 29 and November 1, per Deadline.
The announcement comes with a guest list that reads like a Hall of Fame reunion: Heart, the Black Crowes, Run-D.M.C., Billy Idol, Sammy Hagar, Slash, Duff McKagan, members of Rage Against the Machine, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Alice in Chains, plus Eric Church, Jerry Cantrell, Tom Morello, Pat Monahan, and Sully Erna. For two shows. The band that retired from touring is back for a long weekend, and it has brought the entire rock pantheon as cover.
The real detail is in the omission. The press release doesn't name a single member of Aerosmith, which Deadline notes is key: Steven Tyler has battled vocal cord and larynx problems for years, and Joey Kramer sat out the last tour, which was billed as a farewell. The band cannot say who is going to sing. So the announcement includes a photo, and the photo shows all five classic members, and the photo is doing the work the copy won't. The words are hedged. The picture is the contract.
The timeline is the other document. May 2023: the "Peace Out" farewell tour. September 2023: halted mid-tour over Tyler's voice. August 2024: "no more, no more." Tuesday: a social teaser that reads "&… all will be revealed tomorrow. 7 am pt." Wednesday: two dates, presale opens Thursday, on sale Friday. The "permanent vacation from the concert stage" turns out to have been a sabbatical with a guest list.
YOUR TURN: When a farewell tour comes back as a two-date encore with a celebrity guest list, does "no more, no more" need an expiration date?
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