Artists Boycott WA Live Music Venue Following Serious Incident

A WA live music venue has issued a statement following an “incident” last weekend that has "profoundly impacted many people”.

Singer of Perth punk band Body Horrors, Eden posted to social media about a “very traumatising” experience that happened during their show at Freo.Social on Sunday night.

The venue has since confirmed that the “conduct of an employee of Freo Social’s sister venue Mojo’s, who was a patron at Freo.Social on Sunday night, was inappropriate”.

“Freo.Social takes full responsibility for the events of Sunday night and have already taken several steps in an effort to address the impact of the incident,” the venue said in a statement yesterday.

“Since the incident occurred, we have spoken with witnesses, venue management and reviewed all available footage.”

Freo.Social confirmed that the staff member’s employment with Mojo’s had been terminated and that they had “reached out directly to the band and sent them a letter of apology, which they have acknowledged”.

Following Freo.Social’s post, Eden shared a follow-up on Body Horrors’ Facebook: "i just wanted to thank all of you for your support. i wish the incident on sunday never occurred, it has been very traumatising and time consuming, especially as a disabled person. venues and staff need to be held accountable for their actions. together as a community we need to enact change so situations like this do not happen again."

During the week, WA outfit Lauren & The Goodfights said they would not play at either Mojo’s Bar or Freo.Social until “some changes are made and discussions are had, to ensure a safe environment and an open dialogue where patrons, staff and bands feel safe, heard and listened to”.

“We strongly encourage other bands to do the same and conduct their business elsewhere for now,” they said.

And yesterday, rising WA star Noah Dillon cancelled his show at Freo.Social scheduled for tonight.

“It is with heavy hearts that we have to cancel our show at freo social tomorrow night,” Dillon said. 

“This decision is in light of an incident that occurred last Sunday between the venue and local band Body Horrors. The safety of our patrons will always be our number one priority in putting on our shows, this was meant to be an inclusive and accessible gig that catered to the whole community. 

“We will always err on the side of caution and protection when it comes to putting on events and after days of conversation and deliberation we feel this is the safest decision for everyone involved.”