CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses rape.
An online petition is calling for the remainder of The Brian Jonestown Massacre‘s Australian tour to be cancelled, following a joke frontman Anton Newcombe made at the band’s Sydney show on Saturday night.
To catch you up, Newcombe was on a rant about Black Rebel Motorcycle Club before an audience member screamed. Newcombe then said, “Your mum probably screamed like that when she was being raped and that’s how you were born.”
Naturally, some people are pretty outraged. But a small number have taken it to the next level, by creating an online petition calling for the remainder of the band’s shows to be cancelled. They’re scheduled to play Canberra on 12th June, Castlemaine on 13th June and Melbourne on the 14th.
With the petition being sent to Principal Entertainment, the company behind the band’s tour, it says that the joke “is horrific and this kind of behaviour cannot be tolerated and should not be by Principal Entertainment and The Forum.”
“In light of the horrific comments regarding sexual assault by Anton Newcombe at The Brian Jonestown Massacre show in Sydney last night the Forum and Principal Entertainment should immediately cancel all upcoming BJM shows to protect all audience members from such abuse.”
“Show leadership and courage and take action on violence against women in all forms including those dismissed as ‘jokes’,” the protest reads. “Gigs should be safe spaces.”
We’ve reached out to BJM for comment.
Watch a clip of the joke in question below.
https://twitter.com/ElenaWewer/status/1005598385175293953