INXS Clarify Break Up Comments

Legendary Aussie rock band INXS have shed light on yesterday's reports of their sudden split this afternoon, issuing an official – and definitive – statement, announcing the end of their career as a touring entity.

“INXS' touring days could never last forever. We wanted it to end on a high. And it has,” keyboardist Andrew Farris said.

On Sunday night the band's drummer Jon Farris announced that the band were playing their final ever show that night and, following media reports the next day, comments about the validity of the statement were questioned and confusion well and truly set in.

Today the band have confirmed that they will no longer perform live, but want their fans to know that they will still be a part of the band's legacy.

“We understand that this must come as a blow to everybody, but all things must eventually come to an end. We have been performing as a band for 35 years, it's time to step away from the touring arena,” they said in the statement.

“Our music will of course live on and we will always be a part of that.”

“We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to all the friends and family that have supported us throughout our extensive career. Our lives have been enriched by having you all as a part of the journey.”

The band were dealt the ultimate blow in November of 1997 when frontman Michael Hutchence passed away, but the band were determined to prove their resilience and continued with a string of guest vocalists up until Irishman Ciarin Gribbin joined the band in September of last year and saw the band through to their eventual demise as a live entity this week.

“We never took a soft option, it was the adversity, the challenge and the struggle that forged us into the live working band we became. And this was as big as it could possibly get when it came to a challenge” said Andrew Farriss when discussing the loss of Hutchence. “In the end we decided for a whole bunch of reasons to march forward. To us there was no other option, families always move forward.”

The band's final show was as support to Matchbox 20 at Perth Arena on Sunday 11 November, 2012.