Big Thief have announced they are cancelling their two upcoming shows in Israel.

Last week the band announced a pair of concerts in Tel Aviv on July 6 and 7 with a statement repurposed from 2020 when the shows were originally supposed to happen. In the message, the band explained that they wanted to play in Tel Aviv because it was bassist Max Oleartchik’s hometown. They wrote that they were “well aware” of the BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanctions) movement in protest of the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians, but, “In terms of where we fit into the boycott, we don’t claim to know where the moral high ground lies and we want to remain open to other people’s perspectives and to love beyond disagreement.” They concluded by saying they intended to donate the profits from the two shows “to NGOs that provide medical and humanitarian aid to Palestinian children, including joint efforts between Palestinians and Israelis working together for a better future.”

The statement was met with quite a bit of backlash online, and now the band has reversed course. In a new statement, Big Thief write that after lots of dialogue and contemplation about the shows, they’ve decided to cancel. “Our intent in wanting to play the shows in Tel Aviv, where Max was born, raised, and currently lives, stemmed from a simple belief that music can heal. We now recognize that the shows we had booked do not honor that sentiment. We are sorry to those we hurt with the recklessness and naivete of our original statement on playing in Israel and we hope those who were planning to attend understand our choice to cancel them.”

Barby, the Tel Aviv venue where Big Thief were to perform, posted an angry response to their cancellation on Facebook in Hebrew.

Here is Big Thief’s full statement:

We will be cancelling our 2 shows in Tel Aviv.

We would like to start by clarifying a few things about our first post. When we spoke of loving “beyond disagreement” and not knowing “where the moral high ground lies,” that was in specific reference to playing shows in Israel during a time when BDS is calling for a cultural boycott. This was not in reference to the Israeli occupation and the displacement of the Palestinians.

To be clear, we oppose the the illegal occupation and the systematic oppression of the Palestinian people. We believe in total freedom and self-determination for all Palestinians.

Although we have much to learn, these basic realities were never in question for us. We acknowledge that aspects of our previous post were written unclearly and in avoidance of the magnitude and importance of this conversation. We also recognize that there are limitations to our perspectives based on our various layers of privilege. We said we are “well aware of the cultural aspects of the BDS boycott” and we have since realized that that is not the case.

Since announcing these shows in Israel we have been in constant dialogue with friends, family, BDS supporters and allies, Palestinians, and Israeli citizens who are committed to fight for justice for Palestinians. It has been the only thing on our minds and in our hearts.

Our intent in wanting to play the shows in Tel Aviv, where Max was born, raised, and currently lives, stemmed from a simple belief that music can heal. We now recognize that the shows we booked do not honor that sentiment. We are sorry to those we hurt with the recklessness and naivete of our original statement on playing in Israel and we hope those who were planning to attend understand our choice to cancel them.

We recognize that withholding our cultural labor alone cannot be the only action we take. We have more learning to do so we can take more informed action.

As a band, we consider each other family, forever reaching to understand each other. In your responses to our actions, you have helped us realize that we were in avoidance of entering this discussion about Max’s home in a more thoughtful way.

We are committed to growing from this, and moving forward with the transparency, accountability, and import that such a situation requires.

With love,
Big Thief

Adrianne Lenker also responded to a viral Twitter thread in which a writer recounted an interview experience with Lenker during which she apparently “[blurted] out that they play in Israel, because one of their band members is from there, and how they don’t agree with BDS.” The interview was then killed by the unnamed publication at the behest of the band’s press representatives.

“Hi Omar, I’m really sorry that this was your experience and you’ve been holding this all these years,” Lenker wrote in a tweet. “The reason I felt uncomfortable during and after the interview is because I was asked to define my sexual identity, which I wasn’t ready to articulate publicly at that time. Again, I’m sorry for any hurt I may have caused you. It was not my intention. I wish you all the best, Adrianne.”