Devon Welsh, the mastermind behind indie-pop ground Majical Cloudz recently addressed sexual assault allegations made against his former bandmate Matthew Otto during a Reddit AMA (ask me anything). As reported by Pitchfork, a Reddit user asked Welsh what he thought of recent sexual assault allegations made against Otto, and Welsh responded by saying that he believes the accuser:
“Long story short, I believe the accuser absolutely and I’m very aware of how his behaviour has been distressing and obnoxious at recent shows… My relationship with him has been troubled for multiple reasons, a lot of them are personal so I don’t want to go into them in public here.”
Eventually, the AMA made its rounds in the press and Welsh released a statement clarifying the remarks he made, stating that the reason why Majical Cloudz disbanded had nothing to do with these allegations and that while Otto’s behavior in recent times has been obnoxious, Welsh has not personally seen or heard anything that specifically points to Otto sexually assaulting someone.
Majical Cloudz broke up in 2016 over creative differences, with the band’s final release coming in the form of 2015’s excellent Are You Alone. Welsh has taken up solo career and it has been going well so far, with a new record Dream Songs set to come out shortly. Welsh’s first solo release came in the form of 2016’s Down the Mountain.
You can read Welsh’s full statement below.
“I want to make some clarifications about the Reddit post that has been picked up by news outlets.
The band ended for reasons unrelated to the accusation. It was due to a number of factors, including personal decisions as well as disagreements that are not relevant to any of this. I don’t think Matthew is a bad person. We have had a complicated relationship but it is personal and unrelated to any accusations of harmful behaviour.
I take all accusations of sexual assault seriously and this is no exception. I know Matthew has undergone an accountability process for the accusation that was brought up. In my post I simply intended to validate the experience of the accuser but I cannot speak on all the details of the accusation because I don’t know them.
When I say Matthew Otto’s behaviour was personally obnoxious and distressing at recent shows I was not referring to any knowledge of his behaviour making anyone feel unsafe or harmed. I’m happy to be approached at any of my shows if someone feels unsafe or is being harmed, by anyone.”
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