British singer Morrissey cancelled his scheduled concert in Valencia on Thursday, blaming a lack of sleep caused by the intense noise of the city’s famous Fallas festival, which is currently underway.
According to a statement published on the website of the former Smiths frontman, ‘The show planned for tonight in Valencia has become impossible due to lack of sleep.’ The message explained that Morrissey had travelled by car from Milan to Valencia but ‘was unable to rest in Valencia because of the noise’.
An earlier update on the site said the singer had arrived at his hotel in the city ‘late’ on Wednesday night.
‘Any form of sleep or rest throughout the night was impossible due to festival noise / loud techno singing / megaphone announcements. This experience has left Morrissey in a catatonic state,’ the statement added.
In a characteristically cryptic note, the website insisted that it was not technically the performance itself that had been cancelled: ‘The show is not cancelled. Circumstances render the show impossible.’
Morrissey also described his accommodation, the Hotel Plaza Manises, as an ‘indescribable hell’, adding: ‘It will take me one year to recover. And that is an understatement.’
The singer, known for his strong vegetarian beliefs, rose to fame in the 1980s with The Smiths, whose 1985 album was titled Meat Is Murder. He had been due to perform at Valencia’s Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía concert hall.
According to NME, this is the sixth concert Morrissey has cancelled on his tour after axing shows in the US – in St. Petersburg, Florida, San Diego, St. Louis and Atlanta – with the latter also being due to ‘artist illness’.
Morrissey has long insisted that venues hosting his shows adopt vegetarian catering policies, and some media reported that he walked off stage during the Coachella festival in California due to smelling a barbecue.
Figures compiled by the specialist site weheartM.com suggest that Morrissey cancelled 38 of the 84 performances scheduled between the start of 2025 and the end of January 2026.
The Fallas celebrations in Valencia, which typically attract around a million visitors each March, including large numbers of foreign tourists, are famous for their towering papier-mâché figures that are ultimately burned in spectacular displays of fireworks and firecrackers.
Among the loudest events are the mascletàs — pyrotechnic shows held daily during the festival that are designed to be as thunderous and rhythmic as possible.
Morrissey’s decision to call off the concert may also add to Spain’s reputation for high noise levels. Some reports rank the country as the world’s second-noisiest after Japan.
More than 12 million people in Spain — roughly one in four residents — are exposed to noise levels above 65 decibels.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), although such levels may not immediately damage hearing, prolonged exposure to sound above 70 decibels is considered a potential health risk.
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El cantante Morrissey suspende el concierto que tenía previsto dar hoy en Valencia alegando “falta de sueño” por el ruido en la ciudad: “Está en estado catatónico” https://t.co/jLXyMFmtD0
— Europa Press (@europapress) March 12, 2026
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