The English hip-hop duo Massive Attack was invited to perform at the U.S.’s coveted Coachella Valley Music & Arts festival, however, the pair has declined, citing environmental concerns.
During an appearance in Liverpool, the duo spoke to NME about their concerns with Coachella, noting, “we said no to Coachella for next year because again, we’ve been there once, and once was enough.”
“It’s in Palm Springs,” Member Robert “3D” Del Naja said. “It’s a golf resort built on a desert, run on a sprinkler system, using public water supplies. Mental. If you want to see something that’s the most ludicrous bit of human behavior — it’s right there.”
He also took a jab at the Las Vegas Sphere, calling the Sin City an “aviation destination” that is “a brilliant bit of infrastructure in the worst possible place it could be — in the worst setting in the world.”
Massive Attack last performed at Coachella in 2006 ahead of their most recent record, 2010’s Heliogland.
Del Naja and Grant “Daddy G” Marshall have spent almost four decades promoting their activism and political ideals, with environmentalism in the forefront. A few years ago, the duo even commissioned a study via the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, where they launched their own plan to reduce carbon emissions across the industry. They’ve also performed shows as a part of their Act 1.5 series, which aims to be low-carbon events.
Massive Attack is not alone; several artists across the industry have voiced their concerns of concerts’ environmental impact. The 1975 headlined the world’s first carbon-removed event with two headlining shows at London’s O2. Additionally, The 1975 previously planted trees for every ticket sold via the One Tree Planted initiative, and even featured Thunberg on a track from Notes on a Conditional Form, urging the world to “wake up.”
Additionally, Coldplay managed to reduce their carbon footprint of touring by 59% during the first two years of their eco-friendly “Music of the Spheres” world tour.
“As a band, and as an industry, we’re a long way from where we need to be on this,” the band said. “But we’re grateful for everyone’s help so far, and we salute everyone who’s making efforts to push things in the right direction.”
