The music industry is in a state of upheaval. This is not news. From Taylor Swift’s label pulling her entire catalog off of Spotify to indie bands complaining about not making any money on tour, it seems like it’s getting harder for musicians to remain committed to their craft.
One Dutch musician isn’t having any problems with commitment and dedication.
At a recent show in Birmingham, the bassist for symphonic metal band Delain, Otto Schimmelpenninck, ruptured a testicle mid-concert, and despite nearly bleeding out and losing consciousness, stayed onstage to finish the set.
Schimmelpenninck explained what happened to him in a lengthy post on the band’s Facebook page over the weekend:
…As a lot of people are asking about my injuries and lots of friends know what happened already, I figured it would be best to share with you all, before all kinds of versions of this story start to circulate… As some of you know, we use ‘streamer cannons,’ which shoot silver streamers into the audience, usually during The Gathering… In my enthusiasm I did not pay attention, and happened to be VERY close when the streamer fired. It hit me from the back, in my genitals. Although pain was pretty bad right away, I was merely pissed off at myself for not paying attention. During the next song, pain got worse though, and I had the feeling I was bleeding. Pretty soon pain got to the point where I could barely stay conscious anymore, but for some reason I did manage to finish the show and even squeeze out some grunts!
Schimmelpenninck went to the hospital after the show, where he says his testicle had swelled to the “size of a big grapefruit,” and he was in tremendous pain. Doctors drained more than 500mL of blood from the bassist’s testicle and stitched him up, and he will have an ultrasound in six weeks to determine the extent of the damage.
Still, Schimmelpenninck said on Facebook that he should be ready to go for Delain’s upcoming European tour. Now THAT is dedication to the craft.
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