GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA Cancels U.S. Tour Following BRENT HINDS's 'Motorcycle Incident'

GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA, the band featuring ALICE IN CHAINS singer William DuVall alongside members of MASTODON and THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, has canceled its previously announced U.S. tour.

The group said in a statement: "We deeply regret to inform everyone that GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA has to cancel our U.S. tour. [MASTODON and GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA guitarist] Brent Hinds broke his leg in a motorcycle incident. It requires surgery and traveling for him is both impractical and highly ill-advised.

"We can't do our debut tour without our guy. In our view, this is a 'go all-out or don't go at all' situation. So we had to make the very tough call to cancel. The venues should be providing refunds.

"No words can convey how sorry we are to everyone who was planning on attending these shows, just as no words can express how much we were looking forward to bringing the songs from the 'Broken Lines' album to you live.

"The important thing is that, aside from his broken leg, Brent is otherwise okay. He will hopefully make a full recovery soon and we'll all live to fight another day. And, with that, our goal becomes carving out our next opportunity to play. One thing is sure: We will let you know as soon as we know. Until then, keep jamming 'Broken Lines'."

GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA's lineup also includes William DuVall of ALICE IN CHAINS, Ben Weinman of THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, DETHKLOK bassist Pete Griffin and former THE MARS VOLTA drummer Thomas Prigden

GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA's debut album, "Broken Lines", was released on September 23 via Party Smasher Inc./ Cooking Vinyl.

DuVall told the Rock 98-9 radio station about the disc: "It's a serious, serious album, man. I could not be more proud of this thing. We just pushed each other to new heights all around, and it's amazing… It's such a dynamic record, and it's just so powerful. And these are some of the best lyrics that I've ever written, because I was pushed to write to this really cinematic soundtrack."

Regarding GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA's musical direction, DuVall said: "It has a lot of what people might expect in terms of heavy, progressive… a lot of riffing, a lot of stuff going on… A lot of beats per minute, a lot of beats per second. I mean, Thomas, he can scramble the eggs like nobody else. So there is a lot of that. There's a feast for the senses. For all the musicians and musos out there, we've got you covered. But as much of that heavy, progressive stuff is there, there are also more, shall I say, straightforward, for lack of a better way of putting it, there's more straightforward tunes, but they still have the drive and the attitude and the go-for-the-throat quality. But, you know, a couple of them you might even be able to dance to as much as headbang to. We all have eclectic tastes, and we wanted to represent all of that."

GIRAFFE TONGUE ORCHESTRA made its live debut at this year's Reading (August 27) and Leeds (August 28) festivals in the United Kingdom.