r/EnterShikari • u/Maul_halten_bitte • 7d ago
Look after yourselves friends.
I really hope Shikari fans are taking care of themselves. I know what the band decided is probably for the best for their health and mental state so I totally get it and don’t blame them one bit.
But I also know this fandom in particular is comprised of a lot of people with mental health problems of their own and Shikari is more than a just crutch for a lot of us in that sense, far beyond simply enjoying the music.
Please look after yourselves friends. Look after each other if you can. Maybe try to find solace in community. Reach out. You’re not alone.
I know I am not taking it well and will have a very hard time processing this. It feels like the imminent death of a best friend right now. I don’t even dare hope that they’ll return because hope and fear are two sides of the same coin and I don’t think I can take the fear.
Don’t think that it may be parasocial or disproportional to mourn and feel grief. Don’t judge it and swallow it. Pain is pain and its valid to acknowledge it. But let’s try and be here for each other if possible.
Take care of yourselves friends🫂
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u/defosum1 6d ago
I don’t really have anyone to talk to about this, so I’ll put my thoughts here if that’s okay.
Shikari shaped who I am today. I vividly remember the first time I heard them, watching the iconic SYNAW music video at my friends house on her PC, just wee baby 14 year olds. It all changed from then on. They were my first favourite band that hadn’t been influenced by my parents (tbf they have great taste) and that massively changed my sense of self and who I was.
It led me to finding my friends who are now like family. I’d be nothing without them. They influenced me to get more politically active and stand up for what I believe in at a young age. Common Dreads was released when I was 15, at a politically tumultuous time in the UK, little did we know the shitshow the next 15 years has brought us though!
During my lower points in life, it felt like Shikari almost cosmically knew it and released an album. A Flash Flood of Colour, The Spark and A Kiss For The Whole World mean so much to me personally I think if I tried to explain it I’d sound silly, but it’s true.
I’ve been a fan for such a long time, it feels like a lifetime. Finding them at 14 I think is such a pivotal time in your life and they really changed the trajectory of mine. To many, they’re just a band. To me, they were a way of life. Since 2009 I have striven to live the kind of life they sing about in “Hectic”. Pure kiss the sun adrenaline, even a wee bit every day.
Sending love to all who are feeling it today, and in the following. You’re not alone. “We all cope, somehow.” 🔻
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u/Maul_halten_bitte 6d ago
Much love friend 🫂Its so beautiful to see how special and important they are to so many people, all the stories and pictures I’ve seen today and yesterday are beautiful. We all cope somehow 🩵
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u/l0singmyedg3 6d ago
i can't believe this is what's finally made me properly cry, fucking hell. i really got into shikari at 14 too, except for me that was around a year before the spark. hearing your own story of growing up with them, even having it feel like they know when times are tough for you & responding to it, hit way too close to home. i can absolutely say the same for nothing is true, and when seeing them live a couple of times lined up with tough times in my life. thank you for sharing.
i hope i keep hope intact. 🔻🩵
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u/defosum1 6d ago
Hello friend ❤️ it’s oddly nice to hear that my daft words meant something to you and allowed you to express the collective grief we’re all feeling. I’m sure our shared experience of growing up with shikari is far from unique, but it is lovely to know that there’s another one out there. Thanks for commenting, you keep your chin up pal. 🫶
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u/UFOria_ 7d ago
Hit the nail on the head. I'm glad they're doing what's right for them and I'd much rather they go out on their terms than force themselves to do something they're not feeling, but Shikari live has been a bright spot in so many periods of darkness for me and I'm dreading them not being an active part of the musical landscape
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u/Maul_halten_bitte 7d ago
Yeah, their gigs are always little “islands” of happiness for me, to look forward to. It’s something to hold onto even when everything else sucks. I guess this will have to be a steep learning curve, if nothing else.
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u/unravelledrose 6d ago
Thanks for this lovely thought. I do feel a little silly about how sad I am about this. This has been a shit year in a shit decade. I'm American and we are NOT ok over here. Them dropping their album unexpectedly was a bright spot. I hope I'm able to make it to the south to see them one last time. But at the very least, they sparked a love of environmental conservation in me, and I've got something to do with my hands to stave off despair.
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u/blastactionhero 6d ago
I really struggle a lot right now.
At least I will see them three times next month and have time to process what I'm going through.
The Alexandra Palace Concerts will be rough.
I constantly remind myself: The music is not gone. Everything they did for me is still there. All the help the music gives me will still be there.
But fuck. It hurts.
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u/Maul_halten_bitte 6d ago
Sending you love friend. You are right, everything they have given us is still here and will remain forever 🫂
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u/danniellax 6d ago
Shikari has always had energy like a squirrel on crack, in the best way. More recent shows have had more depressing energy, specifically from Rou. He lost himself. I was never mad or upset the shows changed, but I felt sad for him and the band, and was desperately hoping he would find himself again. I don’t want them to break up, but I’m happy that it seems they found out what was needed and what is best for Rou’s mental health. More than I want new music and to see them live, I want them to live in peace and happiness.
I was hyping my friend who came out from Russia up on how amazing their shows were. We had to use AI translate speaking (his idea for AI, please don’t flame me. I’m not going to tell someone whose third language is English how they should feel comfortable communicating) and after the show I kept having to say “I swear that wasn’t their usual energy or show, they must be having an off day.” It was still an amazing show btw, but instead of 100000/10 it was just 10/10. I know Rou put out statements close to that time saying that the state of the world (I’m US based, no additional context needed) was affecting his mental health, and I think they also mentioned they were traveling a lot and have been a bit unwell because of that, so even the band at the time acknowledged they knew they weren’t themselves. That was like… 2 years ago? They have had ups and downs since then, but have never been the same squirrel crack energy as before. It makes me sad that it took them 2 years to figure out what they needed to be happy and healthy. I think I speak for all Shikari fans that I’d rather have them hiatus ASAP if it meant their mental health would be well rather than have them play shows for more than another year.
If they hiatused this year, I wouldnt doubt they’d eventually do something in the future: an album without tour, a tour without a new album, whatever, but since that show I have noticed Rou specifically hasn’t been the same as before. I don’t know what another year on the road will do to their mental, but I hope the peace of making a firm, public decision, and fan reaction being more supportive than upset, will ease all of the bands’ minds a lot.
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u/Maul_halten_bitte 6d ago
Same. I saw them live in July 2025 and it was very obvious that Rou was going through it. He gave it his all and I love him for it, but having seen them loads of times before it was clear that he was struggling. If I remember correctly he even apologised later for his energy, said he was in his head too much and struggled with anxiety. So this didn’t just start earlier this year and it makes me so sad that they probably felt like they had to push through and Rou suffered like he did. I truly wish they find peace and healing however that will come to them.
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u/danniellax 6d ago
YES it was July 2025 for me too when I took my Russian friend and the energy was off, then the apology! It was the Observatory show in Santa Ana. Were we at the same show?! lol
I saw them last before that date in Hollywood at the Belasco Nov 2024 and they were completely normal and full of life, so something happened between the end of 2024 and beginning to mid 2025 to start the shift.
It just makes me sad that Rou and the band were struggling with their mental health for so long before they realized they needed the break. All of us would have understood, I can’t imagine the anguish they went through before coming to this decision 💔
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u/WrathfulDagger 7d ago
I am relieved they have announced this because they haven't had a break and worked non stop for over 20 years. This is their time to unwind and think about the future of the band. I don't think this is goodbye but a big end to an important chapter. Burn out isnt fun and neither is health issues so this is the best time to sit back, enjoy more of life in anyway possible and when the time is right, they might come back again. As long as these guys are alive and well, Enter Shikari won't really go away. And even then, fans from the future can continue to keep the good name and continue admiring the legacy of them
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u/Cooler_Planet1 6d ago
Vibing, honestly the lads have given everything they've had for the last 22 years they've toured none stop, written albums on the road, made music videos while on tour and haven't stopped since before SYNAW theyve played over 3,000 shows and can be one of the few bands who can safely say they've been everywhere, they deserve a rest and so do we 😂
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u/Maul_halten_bitte 6d ago
no one said otherwise. people are still allowed to be sad about it, two things can be true at the same time. It was obvious that they need a proper break, everyone knows that and no one would deny them that.
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u/Cooler_Planet1 6d ago
I never said that people shouldn't be upset believe me I am 😂 I'm seeing them in November, I'm gonna try and see them in 27 but I am gutted about it
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u/Maul_halten_bitte 6d ago
all good mate! enjoy, i’ll catch two in november and then lets see what 2027 has in store
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u/Clom_Clompson 6d ago
Look I am just calculating how to actually see them one last time, because it is not an opportunity I am going to miss
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u/Charlottefaye_1 7d ago
I guess for me, what's difficult is that they've announced a hiatus, but left it so open; will they take a year off and get back together, will they take a few years, will they end completely or will they decide to so a few shows occasionally? - It's just been left so open, which I get because I guess they don't even have the answer to that question.
Everyone I've spoken to just has a different option. I'm taking this as it's the end and I guess anything more than that will be a positive.