It seemed like a seriously cruel joke when I clicked over to the latest post on ChinaMusicRadar last night, only to be greeted with the news that no foreign bands would be playing at the 2009 Modern Sky Festival.

There seemed to be no other confirmation and officials from Modern Sky Records were unavailable for comment, but shortly thereafter, via their official Douban page, Modern Sky announced that:

All international acts for the 2009 Modern Sky Festival have been cancelled. Modern Sky regrets to announce that due to unforeseen circumstances, the 14 international acts originally scheduled to perform at the 2009 Modern Sky Festival will be unable to attend. We offer our sincerest apologies for the disappointment. However, the organizers are determined to move forward as planned. The time and place of the festival – October 4-7 at Beijing’s Chaoyang Park – has not changed. As for the international acts who will now not be performing, Modern Sky will be setting up a “Main Stage + MySpace Stage” at the festival grounds, so that fans can still enjoy the music. A new performance lineup and ticket prices are in the process of being adjusted; Modern Sky appreciates your patience and understanding during this time. Updated information and directions on how to refund tickets will be coming shortly. Again, Modern Sky expresses its sincerest apologies and gratitude for your continued support.

There has been no explanation for why, but we can rest assured it's a "this is China" type of reasoning.

This is a serious bummer for everyone involved and everyone who was planning on going. It's unclear how this will affect the live music market in China in the future, but there may quite possibly be devastating long-term effects.