Limp Bizkit plans free concert July 18 in Las Vegas

By Melissa Arseniuk (contact)

Published Monday, July 6, 2009 | 6:03 p.m.

Updated Wednesday, July 8, 2009 | 12:07 a.m.

The UFC might have pulled the plug on Friday’s Limp Bizkit concert, but the band is coming back swinging.

Not only have they rescheduled the show; they’re going to perform for free.

Tickets to the ill-fated UFC 100 kickoff event at Mandalay Bay had been selling for $35 before the show was quietly called off on June 27.

The rescheduled reunion performance will be the first time the recently reunited band has played in the U.S. in more than eight years.

As the Sun reported earlier today, frontman Fred Durst recently leaked details of a previously unannounced show at the Palms though his Twitter account.

“Concert moved to July 18 at the Pearl bro,” Durst posted to his Twitter page Sunday.

The band’s label, Flip/Interscope Records, and the Palms made things official this afternoon and issued a release stating that the band would perform at the Pearl on Saturday, July 18 – and for free.

Tickets to next weekend’s concert will be given away on a first-come, first-served basis, according to the joint-release.

“You know the drill -- Limp Bizkit fans will have to get in gear!” it stated.

A spokesperson said all 2,500 tickets for the event will be given away on the night of the show but could not immediately provide further information.

The following day, however, more details emerged: The tickets will be handed out at the Pearl box office starting at noon on Saturday; fans will be given a maximum of two tickets per person; and the concert will be open to all ages, with doors at 7 and show at 9 p.m.

It remains unknown if there will be an opening act.

Today’s announcement comes as the band concludes the European leg of their current, “Unicorns N Rainbows” tour. Their final show on the other side of the pond took place last night in Paris.

The band previously criticized the UFC for using their now-canceled concert to help attract people to UFC 100, only to call off the show less than two weeks before it was set to take place.

In a blog post, the rap-metal rockers said it was “unfair” to their fans.

Acknowledging that many music lovers “have rearranged their lives and bought tickets to be in Vegas,” the band last week pledged to make good on their part of the doomed deal with the UFC and perform in Las Vegas this weekend.

“We will still be performing on the same night out of respect for our fans,” the band stated on their blog, adding, “The details of when and where will follow shortly.”

However, no further details had been released until today and the rescheduled date was not the same as the one originally planned.

Venue scheduling may have prevented the band from keeping to their original promise: The Pearl is booked this Friday for Duran Duran, and the venue isn’t available on Saturday, either, as the New Kids on the Block are scheduled to perform.

Melissa Arseniuk writes about Las Vegas entertainment and celebrity events. She can be reached at 702-948-7823 or by e-mail at melissa.arseniuk@lasvegassun.com.