Modest Mouse guitarist Simon O’Connor has been accused of sending inappropriate messages to a minor. The allegations had been revamped the weekend on Reddit with screenshots displaying the musician sending a sexually express meme and a suggestive message in regards to the 16-year-old fan’s “bikini pics.” He has since acknowledged the allegations, saying he had mistaken the account for another person.
The screenshots present that O’Connor initiated the dialog with a picture that learn “SIMON calls your bluff BUZZ.” The fan replied saying she assumed he was hacked, however that she beloved his music. He answered, “Want I used to be hacked simply had a celebration evening and taking a look at the whole lot with one eye ya know.” She then tried to close down the dialog, writing, “ohh boy get a superb evening of sleep.” He replied, “However you probably did blindside me with a gaggle of likes after which little or no intro apart from bikini pics so we’re each guilty.” He then unsent the message, and despatched one other one which learn, “I did it once more.”
The fan defined on the Reddit thread that he’d additionally seen her Instagram Story, which had a countdown to her seventeenth birthday. Here is what she wrote on Reddit:
for context i’m presently 17 years previous however this occurred proper earlier than my birthday, so i used to be nonetheless 16. i’ve a public instagram however its very area of interest, ive been following bands i like for some time so i’ve been following simon for a number of years. late at evening i checked tales and that i spam appreciated no matter it was simon had placed on his story. he got here into my DMs and despatched me an erotic picture (to say the least) whereas giving me the excuse he had been partying or no matter, persevering with to message me. my age is the very first thing in my bio. i reached out to a number of folks throughout the indie music fandom and no person with a platform cared. i feel extra folks ought to learn about this. im hesitant to place screenshots right here however i do have them!
O’Connor made a Reddit put up of his personal to deal with the allegations, claiming he’d assumed the account belonged to a longtime harasser of his. Here is what he stated in full:
All through my grownup life, there was an individual who has popped up every so often with the intention of, for lack of a greater time period, messing with me. This particular person creates a number of social media accounts and deletes them… however at all times posts related pictures that I typically acknowledge from earlier accounts. After an extended evening, I picked my cellphone as much as uncover {that a} related profile had been interacting (“likes” to be particular) with a few of my instagram posts and tales. I assumed that this was the identical particular person I had handled earlier than and, with poor judgement, I made a decision to succeed in out with a tasteless meme, a sticker that learn “Simon calls your bluff,” and an try to point that I acknowledged the “barrage of likes” and related photograph content material from the earlier profiles…. Virtually a “gotcha.” After a couple of minutes, I noticed that I had made a mistake and this was not the one that I had handled earlier than. I unsent the messages and instantly ceased communication. I am genuinely sorry to the one that acquired these messages. They did not should be put in that place, and I am sorry for the stress and a focus this has introduced them. I do know some folks will select to not consider me, and I perceive that. I can not change what’s occurred. All I can do is inform the reality, take accountability for my mistake, and apologize.
O’Connor has been Modest Mouse’s touring guitarist since 2021. He co-wrote and carried out songs on the band’s new album, An Eraser And A Maze.
