Pete Shand Thanks Fans For Medical Fund; New Mastersounds Detail Fall Tour With Kung Fu

Earlier in the week, The New Mastersounds had bad news to share with friends and fans. The band announced that their original bassist of eighteen years, Pete Shand, had developed a spinal condition as a direct result of playing the bass and was in need of immediate surgery. Bedridden and unable to fly home to Europe, Shand was able to schedule an emergency operation for Thursday, though the medical costs would be immense, and without a $40,000 deposit, doctors were unwilling to go through with the essential procedure. In a happy turn of events, the band reached out to their fans and the music community, setting up a GoFundMe and hoping to be able to take a chunk out of the costs so that Shand could go through with the surgery. Showcasing the power that people have when they ban together, The New Mastersounds’ family, friends, and fans raised their donation target of $40K (and then some) within two days—happily, Shand will receive his essential operation tomorrow, and we’re wishing him the speediest and safest recovery process.

While at the beginning of the week, at a point, things were looking bleak, The New Mastersounds are riding a high after the successful crowdsourcing campaign. In addition to sharing a grateful thank-you note from Pete last night, this morning, the band had more good news to deliver to fans. After Shand clocks in a few weeks of recovery and much-needed rest, The New Mastersounds will return to the road this fall, and we cannot be more excited by the news. The tour kicks off in Asheville, North Carolina, on October 26th at Salvage Station. From there, the band heads west, with dates in Texas and Las Vegas ahead of their Halloween show at Winston’s Beach Club in San Diego, California, where they’ll meet up with Kung Fu for the rest of the tour. After a string of shows in California and Nevada, including one in San Francisco’s Fillmore also featuring support from That 1 Guy in addition to Kung Fu, The New Mastersounds will finish out their tour in the Northwest. Hitting Portland on November 7th, Eugene on November 8th, and Seattle on November 10th, the tour wraps up with a date at The Domino Room in Bend, Oregon.

Tickets are available for purchase on The New Mastersounds’ website here. You can also read the full thank-you note from Pete below as well as check out the full dates for The New Mastersounds’ upcoming tour!

[Photo: Jeremy Scott]

Hello Everyone,

Pete here, I just wanted to say a big “thank you” to everyone from myself and my children, Ashton and Nico, for your help and kindness. It is very humbling for me to see that so many of you took the time to help me out at this difficult time.