Sonisphere will not take place in 2015. The metal event, which takes place in Knebworth Park in July, cited an over-saturated market and therefore an inability to book a lineup organisers felt was “good enough” for its audience.
“Team Sonisphere reluctantly confirm that Sonisphere will not take place in the UK in 2015,” reads a message on the festival’s homepage.
We’ve been working hard to get a lineup that we felt was good enough but also on a weekend which would avoid other events that we know rock fans would want to support. Unfortunately our last irons in the fire have just been extinguished and it’s clear that we won’t be in a position to run the event this year. We’ve said in the past that Sonisphere will only go ahead if we feel it is going to be good enough and that hasn’t changed.
The message ended by stating it planned to take place in 2016.
This is not the first time the legendary rock festival has been axed: It was also cancelled in 2013 and 2012, the latter of which was down to the event facing “a very challenging year”. The Switzerland branch of the event will still go ahead, headlined by Muse, who also top the bill at Download 2015.
Last year marked the Knebworth festival’s 40th birthday, and played host to Metallica and Iron Maiden as co-headliners. The lineup for this year’s event had not yet been released.
