The Orwells Disband Following Sexual Abuse Allegations

By: Curtis Sindrey –
Follow @Aesthetic_Mag

Chicago-based indie rock band The Orwells have disbanded according to a tweet posted to the band’s official Twitter account yesterday (Aug. 29th) following sexual abuse allegations that appeared on social media last weekend.

The Orwells have disbanded

— The Orwells (@TheOrwells) August 29, 2018

The band has since denied the allegations, calling them “baseless” and “unfounded”, and have released a statement:

It’s come to our attention that certain allegations of abuse have been made against one or more of us on social media and in social circles of Chicago. We’d like to first state that sexual abuse in any form is abhorrent. We do not take these accusations lightly and consider this matter incredibly serious. We emphatically deny these baseless allegations brought as a personal attack against us.

While callow altercations and vulgar language we’ve used in the past must be recognized and owned up to, the accusations of sexual assault are completely unfounded. No member of this band has ever acted without consent or maliciously taken advantage of anyone. We encourage anyone who’s been affected by sexual abuse to speak up and make their abusers known; however we also encourage everyone to be cautious of the things they read and say on the Internet. No victim of abuse should be hesitant to make their voice heard and if someone does feel that we’ve hurt them, we encourage them to contact us properly and privately (not via social media or anonymously), as to respect their identity.

Sincerely,
Matt, Mario, Dominic, Henry, and Grant
The Orwells

Since the band’s formation in 2009, they released three studio albums and two EPs with their final album being last year’s Terrible Human Beings.