Local indie rockers The Orwells disband after sexual-misconduct allegations
Rockers deny accusations from women who also claim members sent unsolicited nude photos, used homophobic language
The Orwells, the suburban Chicago indie rockers known for frenzied live performances, has disbanded following accusations from multiple women alleging sexual misconduct by band members.
“The Orwells have disbanded,” the band tweeted Wednesday.
The wide range of allegations, mentioning band members Mario Cuomo, Henry Brinner and Grant Brinner, surfaced publicly this week in a Reddit thread and a public Google doc. In addition to allegations of sexual misconduct, the accounts include charges band members sent unsolicited nude photos to women and used homophobic language.
The band released a statement Tuesday strongly denying the claims and calling all sexual abuse “abhorrent.”
“We do not take these accusations lightly and consider this matter incredibly serious,” the statement said. “We emphatically deny these baseless allegations brought as a personal attack against us.”
The band said that “callow altercations and vulgar language we’ve used in the past must be recognized and owned up to” but that accusations of sexual assault “are completely unfounded. No member of this band has ever acted without consent or maliciously taken advantage of anyone.”
“… 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.”
The Orwells’ manager did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Sun-Times.
A Chicago police spokeswoman said the department had “no reports of sexual misconduct” connected to the three band members.
On Monday, the group canceled its Nov. 23 show at The Metro, although a tweet from the band did not give a reason for the move.
Although it did not mention The Orwells, the Metro said via Twitter Monday it “does not tolerate acts of violence, victimization, or predation. We always encourage our patrons to voice their concerns and want you to know that we not only hear you — we support any effort that makes our local music scene safer and more equitable.”
The Orwells include the two Brinners, who are fraternal twins, as well as other friends from Elmhurst. They’ve toured nationally, even appearing on the “Late Show with David Letterman” in 2014. They’ve recorded five albums since 2010, including “Terrible Human Beings,” which was released by Atlantic last year.
Some local bands with previous ties to The Orwells spoke out against the group in light of the developments, including members of Twin Peaks.
“We were unaware of The Orwells’ actions during the short time we toured with them, but learned about several incidents through private discussions within the Chicago community in recent years. We never felt it was our place to make public these stories that were not ours to tell,” the Chicago band said in an Instagram post on Tuesday.