On the heels of releasing their new album All You Need Is Now, [lastfm link_type="artist_info"]Duran Duran[/lastfm] has canceled their 5-show South African tour. The reasoning… a show producer who “defaulted on the contract”.

The tour, which was supposed to be “the start of an enormous global campaign” was slated to begin next Monday, December 8th in Durban, South Africa.

In a statement on the band’s website, current members Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, and Roger Taylor said they were “extremely sorry to be disappointing their fans, having spent months planning for the tour.”

In the statement Le Bon added, “The worst part of this for us is disappointing our South African fans, who we were really excited to be performing for again.” He added, “Our hope is that we are able to reschedule these dates shortly as part of the World Tour next year.”

[pullquote quote="The worst part of this for us is disappointing our South African fans, who we were really excited to be performing for again." credit="Simon Le Bon's statement to fans"]

Slicingupeyeballs.com is reporting that DD didn’t offer details on the contract surrounding the tour, but that the band was left with “no other option but to cancel the shows.”

A nine-track digital version of All You Need Is Now is set to be released exclusively on iTunes on December 21st. The expanded 12-track CD and LP form is set to hit shelves in February.

At least they’re not canceling due to an inner ear infection. Too soon?

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