Arcade Fire pull dates

Arcade Fire have been forced to pull the remaining dates on their European tour, after Win Butler succumbed to ill health.

The singer has been battling sinus and bronchial problems for three months, and had previously been advised by doctors to stop playing live and rest.

Butler announced the decision to cancel the shows following a concert in Oslo on Saturday evening, in a posting on the band's official website.

He explained: "I have had several doctors advise me to cancel shows weeks ago, and I have been trying to push through, but for my own health and safety I need to have sinus surgery so I can get better and start the recovery process.

"We are all very sad, because we were very much looking forward to playing these shows, and we could not imagine cancelling a show unless it was physically impossible to do.

"We apologize to the fans that have been waiting to see us, and we promise to try and come back as soon as it is humanly possible."

Meanwhile, Butler's brother and band mate Will confirmed the extent of his sickness in a separate posting, commenting: "Win is sicker than a brick."

Arcade Fire's cancelled dates are as follows:

March 2007

25 Copenhagen, Denmark - Vega
27 Berlin, Germany - Postbahnhoff
28 Munich, Germany - Elserhalle
31 Lyon, France - Transbordeur

April

01 Cologne, Germany - E-Live Music Hall
02 Utrecht, Netherlands - Vredenburg
04 Brussels, Belgium - Halles de Schaerbeek
05 Lille, France - L'Aeronefdocument.write(unescape("