The Exploited frontman Wattie Buchan collapsed onstage at a show on Saturday (December 10th) in Colombia and was rushed to the hospital after a suspected heart attack.
As seen in the video clips below, the legendary Scottish punk singer, who’s 65 years old and has a history of heart problems, began clutching his chest and fell to his knees as the band played “Army Life.” According to a statement from the band, the singer had been trying to play through it before eventually collapsing. Much of the audience stayed at the venue until learning that Buchan was OK.
A spokesperson for The Exploited issued the following statement to STV News:
“The last gig in Colombia, Wattie had another suspected heart attack. He tried playing on but had to actually stop a couple of songs until he eventually collapsed. He got taken away to hospital in an ambulance but over 900 people refused to leave the venue until he heard he was alright.”
Related Video
The band later posted its own statement on social media while announcing the cancellation of all remaining 2022 shows due to Wattie’s health:
“[On] December 10th, 2022 during the end of the set Wattie collapsed on stage in Bogota, COL and was rushed into hospital by ambulance. Thankfully Wattie is feeling better now and is resting in a hotel in Bogota. … Due to doctor’s orders all remaining shows for 2022 have been cancelled. We apologize to the fans, promoters and everyone affected by this situation. Thank you for understanding. Also our London show on the 16th December will also be cancelled once again we are sorry about this but Wattie is exhausted and told to cancel all up coming gigs for this year.”
Buchan had previously suffered a heart attack in 2014 while performing in Lisbon, Portugal. He underwent quadruple bypass heart surgery at that time.
“I thought I wouldn’t be able to do gigs anymore, so I’m just glad I can still do gigs,” Buchan later said (via “I Probably Hate Your Band”).
Here’s wishing Wattie Buchan a strong recovery and hopes to see him back onstage in 2023. Watch footage of the incident in the YouTube clips below.
[flexi-common-toolbar] [flexi-form class=”flexi_form_style” title=”Submit to Flexi” name=”my_form” ajax=”true”][flexi-form-tag type=”post_title” class=”fl-input” title=”Title” value=”” required=”true”][flexi-form-tag type=”category” title=”Select category”][flexi-form-tag type=”tag” title=”Insert tag”][flexi-form-tag type=”article” class=”fl-textarea” title=”Description” ][flexi-form-tag type=”file” title=”Select file” required=”true”][flexi-form-tag type=”submit” name=”submit” value=”Submit Now”] [/flexi-form]
Tagged: Alternative Music, Hardcore, Heavy Consequence, Heavy Music Concerts, Heavy Music News, music, music blog, NEWS, Punk Rock