Bauhaus vocalist Peter Murphy suffers heart attack in New York

Peter Murphy (Image credit: Sergione Infuso/Corbis - Getty)

Bauhaus (opens in new tab) vocalist Peter Murphy has suffered a heart attack in New York.

The medical emergency occurred before his planned residency show at the city’s Le Poisson Rouge on Tuesday evening, where it’s reported Murphy was suffering from a shortness of breath.

He was rushed to Lenox Hill Hospital in the early hour of Wednesday morning, where cardiologist Jason Song confirmed the Bauhaus icon had indeed suffered a heart attack.

Song says in a statement: “Mr Murphy was admitted for treatment of a myocardial infarction, had two stents placed in his right coronary artery, and was started on medications to manage his heart condition. 

“He remains in the hospital for continued monitoring of his condition."

Murphy’s family have also issued a statement, which reads: "We would like to thank the fans for their undying support and hope that Peter will be back on stage with a refreshed heart, stronger than before!”

Murphy was due to play a further four shows at Le Poisson Rouge. These will be rescheduled, with details to be finalised in due course.

A spokesperson for the venue says: “All of us at LPR are devastated by this news. Peter’s performances and presence over the past 12 days have been amazing – both onstage and off. We wish Peter a swift and full recovery and look forward to his successful return to Le Poisson Rouge.”

Last year, Murphy and bassist David J toured across Europe to celebrate the band’s 40th anniversary where they played their 1980 debut album In The Flat Field in full along with other Bauhaus classics.

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers and magazines as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. After initially joining our news desk in the summer of 2014, he moved to the e-commerce team full-time in 2020. He maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott grew up listening to rock and prog, cutting his teeth on bands such as Marillion and Magnum before his focus shifted to alternative and post-punk in the late 80s. His favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Ned's Atomic Dustbin and Drab Majesty, but he also still has a deep love of Rush.