Download shift blame for Faith No More falsies

The promotion of Faith No More's appearance at Download as "their only UK gig" has caused some upset to fans, who bought tickets in good faith only to discover that, erm, they're going to be at Reading, too.

Download Festivals' John Probyn has been explaining to efestivals what went wrong and why it wasn't their fault, oh no:

[Efestivals]:There has been some controversy surrounding the status of Faith No More's appearance, as it was first billed as the 'only UK show of the year', and then simply 'first UK show of the year'. Many fans have suggested that they were mislead over the exclusivity of the band playing, is that something you guys hope to fully address soon?

[Probyn]We don't tell lies, we give people information based on facts at the time. What's the point in me misleading a fan, is that going to make them want to buy tickets in the future?

[ef]Was the band's 'self-confirmation' for Reading and Leeds as big a surprise for you and Andy as it was for everyone else? It came out of the blue...

[P]Every day is a day at school in this business.

[ef]Though the festivals obviously have different core audiences, if Faith No More do end up playing Reading, do you think it would undermine Download, particularly given the hype surrounding Faith No More's announcement?

[p]Look at the line-up on the Sunday at Reading last year, did that undermine Download and stop 50,000 people having a great time?

Hmm. You might think that, if your big selling point is an exclusive gig, you wouldn't need any extra business education to ensure that the word 'exclusive' appeared somewhere in the contract.