Maryland Deathfest Organizers: "We Simply Cannot Cancel"

A new update has been issued from the promoters of the annual Maryland Deathfest, and they are making one thing clear: they will absolutely not cancel the event.

However, it is more than likely that the festival will be postponed, likely to the fall and they are confident that they can maintain 90% of the lineup and replace the others who cannot make the new dates. They are taking a day by day approach and are asking for patience. Here's the full message from Facebook:

Update regarding Covid-19 and its potential impact on MDF:

It has been 8 days since our last post regarding this. In pandemic terms, that feels more like a month, as the situation has obviously gotten worse on a global scale. We, like everyone else, are watching all of this unfold. We are very much aware of the border closures, travel restrictions, lock downs, and the potential impact that this could have for both attendees and bands.

We need your understanding, patience, and support more than ever right now. Everything we’ve dedicated the last 18 years of our lives to is at stake, so we’re asking everyone to trust that any final decision made will be in the best interest of everyone involved.

One thing we’d like to forbid around here is the use of the world ‘cancel’. This is NOT an option, as unrecoverable money is heavily invested into these bands and we simply cannot cancel it and abandon it. However, we do need everyone to start to process the reality of possibly postponing the event to a later date. Should this occur, we would be able to retain about 90% of the line-up (and replace any bands who can’t play new dates), rather than waiting this out until the last minute just to deal with the nightmare of possible extended government restrictions, many bands canceling, and many attendees not being able to attend.

We are working tirelessly on this, barely sleeping, and hoping we all find a way to get through this together.
Producing this event is an enormous undertaking as is without a global pandemic unfolding before our eyes, so we appreciate your support and understanding during this dark time. We will update you again as soon as humanly possible once more progress has been made on our end, as we know the uncertainty of the situation has everyone on edge.

Here is how the lineup is shaping up for the fest this year:

Thursday @ Rams Head Live:

Asthma Castle
Acid Witch
Coffins
Cough
Frizzi 2 Fulci (Fabio Frizzi in Concert. A Tribute to Lucio Fulci)
Warmask

Thursday @ Soundstage:

Funerus
Limbsplitter
Prostitute Disfigurement
Putrid Pile
Skeletal Remains
Suffocation

Friday @ Rams Head Live:

Bloodbath
Grave Desecrator
Graveyard
Massacre
Monstrosity
Onslaught
Panzerfaust
Phlebotomized
Spite

Friday @ Soundstage:

ACxDC
Antichrist
At War
Blood Feast
Cloud Rat
Fistula
Fuck the Facts
Negative Approach
No/Mas
Vio-lence

Saturday @ Rams Head Live:

Cadaver
Cancer
Cerebral Rot
Dismember
Imprecation
Impure
Necrophobic
Nifelheim
Novembers Doom
Vircolac

Saturday @ Soundstage:

Backslider
Cadaveric Incubator
Flesh Parade
Haemorrhage
Holy Cost
Impaled
Malignant Altar
Napalm Raid
Schirenc Plays Pungent Stench
Skitsystem
Throaat

Sunday @ Rams Head Live:

Archgoat
Dark Fortress
Death Strike
Demilich
Necrofier
Nocturnus AD
Sacrilegia
Sacramentum
Valkyrja

Sunday @ Soundstage:

Birdflesh
Butcher ABC
Exhorder
Galvanizer
General Surgery
Nunslaughter
Shock Narcotic
Warfuck
Whoresnation
Zombie Assault