Eddie Vedder has opened up about the "near-death experience" that led to Pearl Jam cancelling a few recent shows on their European tour due to illness.
Video footage from the band's show in Barcelona this past weekend (July 6) shows Vedder telling the crowd, "Can I just say that the last week, it almost felt like a near-death experience? It was very uncomfortable, and it got frightening. It felt like chest bronchitis. It felt like maybe you couldn't breathe, and maybe you wouldn't make it through the night, and maybe you'd have to go to the hospital."
He said that "a few of us" were affected by the illness. Seemingly fighting back tears, Vedder continued, "You just realize how precious this life is. How lucky we are to have been living on a planet where we can go around and play to incredible people, like the people in this room here tonight. So, it was a poignant experience. I won't be forgetting it anytime soon. And we won't be forgetting tonight anytime soon."
He didn't provide any further details about what the illness was, but the band performed for over two hours on both Saturday (July 6) and Monday (July 8), which is hopefully a good sign for how everyone is feeling now.
They cancelled three shows in total.