Feist, the support act for Arcade Fire, has pulled out of the tour in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations made against the band’s frontman Win Butler.
Feist, real name Leslie Feist, said that she’s ‘claiming my responsibility now and going home’, describing the ‘incredibly difficult’ situation in a heartfelt statement.
Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler, who is married to fellow bandmate Régine Chassagne, has faced a flurry of accusations of inappropriate behaviour from former fans of the band.
Fans of the group have been calling for the tour to be postponed or cancelled in light of the controversy, but Arcade Fire’s tour kicked off in Dublin as planned earlier this week.
Feist said that she and her band ‘didn’t have any time to prepare for what was coming’ and were already in Dublin when the news broke.
Initially, she donated all the proceeds from sales of her merchandise to Women’s Aid, but has now pulled out of upcoming dates altogether.
She said: “I’m imperfect and I will navigate this decision imperfectly, but what I’m sure of is the best way to take care of my band and crew and my family is to distance myself from this tour, not this conversation.”
Feist was supposed to support Arcade Fire at their shows in Birmingham today, and Manchester on Saturday 3 September, before moving on to perform in cities across Europe.
Her full statement is below.
Feist’s full statement after quitting Arcade Fire tour
Feist. Credit: Flickr
At a pub in Dublin, after rehearsing with my band, I read the same headline you did. We didn’t have any time to prepare for what was coming let alone a chance to decide not to fly across the ocean into the belly of this situation. This has been incredibly difficult for me and I can only imagine how much more difficult it’s been for the people who came forward. More than anything I wish healing to those involved.
This has ignited a conversation that is bigger than me, it’s bigger than my songs and it’s certainly bigger than any rock and roll tour. As I tried to get my bearings and figure out my responsibility in this situation, I received dozens of messages from the people around me, expressing sympathy for the dichotomy I have been pushed into. To stay on tour would symbolize I was either defending or ignoring the harm caused by Win Butler and to leave would imply I was the judge and jury.
I was never here to stand for or with Arcade Fire – I was here to stand on my own two feet on a stage, a place I’ve grown to feel I belong and I’ve earned as my own. I play for my band, my crew, their loved ones and all of our families, and the people who pay their hard-earned money to share space in the collective synergy that is a show. The ebb and flow of my successes, failures, and other decisions affect all of our livelihoods and I recognize how lucky I am to be able to travel the world singing songs about my life, my thoughts and experiences and have that be my career. I’ve never taken that for granted.
My experiences include the same experiences as the many people I have spoken to since the news broke on Saturday, and the many strangers whom I may only be able to reach with this letter, or not at all. We all have a story within a spectrum ranging from baseline toxic masculinity to pervasive misogyny to actually being physically, psychologically, emotionally or sexually assaulted. This situation touches each of our lives and speaks to us in a language unique to each of our processing. There isn’t a singular path to heal when you’ve endured any version of the above, nor a singular path to rehabilitate the perpetrators. It can be a lonely road to make sense of ill treatment. I can’t solve that by quitting, and I can’t solve it by staying. But I can’t continue.
Public shaming might cause action, but those actions are made from fear, and fear is not the place we find our best selves or make our best decisions. Fear doesn’t precipitate empathy nor healing nor open a safe space for these kinds of conversations to evolve, or for real accountability and remorse to be offered to the people who were harmed.
I’m imperfect and I will navigate this decision imperfectly, but what I’m sure of is the best way to take care of my band and crew and my family is to distance myself from this tour, not this conversation. The last two nights on stage, my songs made this decision for me. Hearing them through this lens was incongruous with what I’ve worked to clarify for myself through my whole career. I’ve always written songs to name my own subtle difficulties, aspire to my best self and claim responsibility when I need to. And I’m claiming my responsibility now and going home.
Leslie
Featured image: Flickr
News
A long-standing Italian restaurant in Trafford has sadly announced its imminent closure
Danny Jones
Another day, another bit of unfortunate hospitality news, as long-standing Greater Manchester restaurant, Little Italy in Timperley, has announced it is closing permanently very soon.
The Trafford favourite, which has been serving locals for nearly 20 years, has informed regular diners that it will sadly be closing its doors for good, with Little Italy’s final service set for later this month.
Having earned plenty of praise in its time, including being one of the few spots in and around the Altrincham area to have won a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence in 2015, before the borough saw its foodie boom begin.
But fast forward a decade, and the Timperley institution is yet another culinary casualty to be confirmed of late, with Little Italy sharing a tear-jerking statement online.
Sharing the tragic news on social media this Friday (5 Sep), the restaurant wrote: “To all our lovely customers, it is with a heavy heart that we share some news with you all. After over 18 years of serving you all in Timperley, we will be closing our doors later this month.
“This has not been an easy decision. Unfortunately, rising costs and a significant increase in rental [costs] have made it impossible to continue in a sustainable way. As much as we love what we do, the reality is that it has become too difficult to maintain under these circumstances.
“Over the coming weeks, we will continue to cook with love and serve with the same passion as always. We would love to see you all and share one more meal, and raise a glass together.”
Safe to say that the post has been met with an outpouring of condolences and support from natives nearby and those who have travelled to enjoy their food.
Little Italy went on to add that they will detail more about their final week of business as soon as possible.
They can’t be accused of not keeping up with times and not trying to promote via social media either, as they small family-run team – headed up by Sam Cauchi, who bought the site back in 2008 – have always given things a go besides the day-to-day operation of the restaurant.
Being one of many saddened customers to respond underneath the announcement, we couldn’t possibly sum up things better than local Vanessa Nice, who said: “Look at all these amazing comments – you certainly made your mark as a home from home for the residents of Timperley.
“The end of an era will always be sad, but sometimes life and families have to move on.”
As for Cauchi and co., they signed off by simply adding: “From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for your support, kindness and friendship over the years. Timperley has been our home, and you have all been our family.
“Love from all the team at Little Italy.”
It goes without saying that we’re gutted for the gang and our thoughts are with everyone involved at this difficult time. For now, we can only say thank you to the countless Greater Manchester locations that continue to fall foul in the face of the rising pressures industry-wide. Case and point…
The bizarre explanation behind Manchester’s new mini ‘green space’ – that’s completely closed off
Danny Jones
One thing you always hear people who live in central Manchester calling out for is green space, but when a new patch of grass does arrive, you don’t exactly expect it to be completely inaccessible.
Just a quick FYI to those of you passionate about supporting what little nature there is left in our city centre: brace yourselves, as this one is rather annoying…
For anyone who’s walked down Whitworth Street West past the once lively Locks, or even got off at Deansgate–Castlefield tram stop and come down the glass stairs closest to the Albion Bridge, you may have noticed a rogue patch of grass surrounded by black fencing next to the City Road Inn pub.
It could be considered a nice little lawn were it not completely fenced off, but the question is, why has it popped up there? Well, local lad Curtis Rothwell has recently debunked the whole frustrating mess for us in a helpful video.
Yes, as explained by the Pre-Construction Manager who works for local utilities contractor Zenit Infrastructure Solutions Limited, the somewhat laughable but disheartening gated green space on Whitworth Street is essentially a feeble attempt at adhering to permission laws.
As detailed by Rothwell, the plot bought for a sizeable sum last year (only the original developers didn’t have the funding to actually pull off their initial plans) is now set to become student accommodation.
Currently, real estate firm Tri7 – which has now been fully folded into the parent group known as Fusion, as previous part-owners already – still has a hold on the land for now.
However, after being ordered by Manchester City Council to tidy up the area in the meantime, as they await planning permission to be fully approved, they decided to lay these new rolls of turf there.
Ok, so while the notion of the Council ordering a property company to make urban spaces look pretty and the idea of introducing more grassy zones into the city sound good on paper, as you can see, the real-life result doesn’t quite match up.
Not only does this feel like a bare minimum effort to appease the local authorities ahead of erecting yet another skyscraper, but more importantly, it feels like sheer nonchalant neglect and/or plain dismissal of those Manc residents crying out for more grass, nature and a break from the concrete jungle.
The fact that the rare green space is totally blocked by tall, almost authoritarian-feeling fences and sealed off by a big, black gate comes across like a casual two fingers to both the Council and those living in the city centre.
Speaking to The Manc, Curt commented: “It’s positive the council can take charge of how our empty spaces look after demolitions. In this case, maybe the demolition was carried out too early, which happens, but when it does, greenery is the best look they can give to local people.”
You can see the latest update on the planning permission HERE, and for now, if you’re looking for green spaces in Manchester, you’ll find them more frequently beyond the outskirts and heading into the boroughs; this one is strictly off limits. Find a whole bunch of ones that aren’t down below:
Daisy Jackson -
2nd September 2022 
